It has been 60 years since Godzilla was introduced on movie screens, but over that time very little seems to have changed. Like its cinematic fore-bearers, this monster movie reboot can’t help but be silly on occasion. However, viewers willing to overlook the corny qualities and some minor protagonist issues (strangely enough, involving humans and not the creatures) should enjoy the spectacle.
After tremors result in a tragic accident, ex-nuclear plant manager and conspiracy theorist Joe (Bryan Cranston) drags his estranged son Ford (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) to a disaster site to attempt to reveal the truth. Of course, it’s eventually revealed that giant monsters have been released from beneath the earth. Named MUTOs (Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organisms), these radiation-feeding beings soon threaten the entire world. The secret Monarch consortium (Ken Watanabe) and US military attempt to extract information from Hoe and Ford to help stop the threat.
A dynamic first act introduces Joe as the traumatized theorist and presents the potential for fascinating internal conflict. Unfortunately, the focus soon shifts away from Joe to his son. The movie is primarily about Ford and his own “nuclear family”. Separated from his wife and son (Elizabeth Olsen and Caron Bolde), the majority of the plot follows Ford in his attempts to reunite with them during the chaos. Along the way, he joins in several military operations to neutralize the MUTOs. While the hero takes part in some exciting missions, his story and the generic family drama involved is far less interesting than his father’s more complex issues.
Of course, there’s nothing dull about Godzilla itself and film contains some striking compositions. For the most part, viewers are teased with mere glimpses of it, often from the perspective of humans below. Some of the interesting imagery includes a wide view from an airport terminal that introduces the monster from the ankles down. Later, there’s an impressive skydive featuring a point-of-view shot through the goggles of a character free-falling past Godzilla’s visage.
These sneaky cinematic monster taunts work for a while and even provide an excellent comedic moment – the first confrontation is depicted on a television screen in the background of a domestic scene. Still, it can’t help but feel like the movie shies away from its title character for too long. Godzilla barely appears in the first two thirds of the film and when he does arrive, the repeated cutaways on the cusp of action to human characters prevent audiences from seeing a real monster melee until the final act. Frankly, Godzilla seems underutilized.
Regardless, when we do see the creature, the results are certainly impressive. The throw-down, knock-out conflict on display during the finale provides exciting monster thrills and a unique battle move or two that even die-hard fans haven’t seen before.
It certainly has its flaws, but more of Godzilla is entertaining than ineffective. At the very least, it’s a significant improvement over the last US-produced interpretation of the property. Here’s hoping that the next installment (should there be one) builds on this effort and allows its headliner to reach even greater scenery-chewing heights.
NOTE: The 3D post-conversion isn’t horrible, but adds very little to the cinematic experience. Viewers don’t really need to see the extra dimension to enjoy the film.