Review Godzilla film review by Infinite Earths
Written By Infinite Earths on 2014-05-29 08:40:23
It has been 60-years since Godzilla first rose from the Pacific to terrorize the populace of Tokyo. During the six decades that have passed since his debut in 1954's King of the Monsters, he has been re-invented and re-imagined countless times over. Some versions, like the one seen in Kazuki Omori's 1989 film Godzilla vs. Biollante, have been great! Others, like Roland Emmerich's attempted 1998 Tri-Star reboot, not so much. Still, the Big G lives on, becoming a pop culture icon, not only overseas in his home country of Japan, but the world over.
Now, Gareth Edwards, who rose to fame with his 2010 Indie flick Monsters, is the latest director to take the King of the Monsters back to the big screen in this summer's Godzilla. With visions of Roland Emmerich's film oh so freshly implanted in our heads even 16 years after release, we couldn't help but wonder – does Edwards give Godzilla his due, or is this film something only Matthew Broderick could love? Is the Big G still fresh and relevant to modern-day film goers, or starting to show his age after six decades of terrorizing Tokyo?
Let's take a Look...
The year is 1999. The Place: Janjira, Japan. Seismic activity is reaching unstable levels, resulting in nuclear plant supervisor Joe Brody (Breaking Bad’s Bryan Cranston) and his wife Sandra (Juliette Binoche) being called in to monitor the effects of the tremors on the Janjira Nuclear Plant. An explosion rips through the core, killing Sandra and destroying the plant.
Fifteen years elapse and Joe is convinced it wasn’t a natural disaster that killed his wife, but something else entirely. Determined to uncover the truth, Joe sneaks back within the confines of their old neighbourhood, since abandoned and quarantined, in an effort to obtain research material from his former home. Brody is promptly arrested for setting foot within the quarantined area, along with his son, Ford Brody (Kick-Ass’ Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and soon discovers the truth behind this Quarantine Zone – a giant, parasitic beast, later referred to in the film as a M.U.T.O., or Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism.
Without giving too much more away to those who have yet to see this film, the creature escapes and begins a tirade that results in Godzilla once again rising from the depths to set matters right. While it may seem like a predictable plot for a film such as this, director Gareth Edwards, who’s take on the classic Kaiju is his debut Hollywood film, does so much right by Godzilla that it is almost possible to forget the Tri-Star travesty of 1998 – almost.
Akin to other great monster/action movies of the past, such as Steven Spielberg’s Jaws and Ridley Scott’s Alien, Edwards masterfully draws out the suspense of the film with only occasional glimpses and hints of the creatures within. However, like those classic films mentioned above, it is all worthwhile when Godzilla and his foes are finally revealed in all their full, digital glory!
This tactic may seem somewhat dated, but allows Godzilla to maintain a fair amount of momentum without overly stimulating the audience, like last year’s Pacific Rim. Don’t get us wrong, that too was a great film, but unlike Godzilla, it over-indulged the audience a bit too much, leaving little room for any real surprises come the film’s finale. Some have, admittedly, called Godzilla long-winded and drawn out when it comes to the overall flow of the story, however, we have to admit, it was done in an entertaining manner that made the finale of the film that much more exciting and, again, worth the wait.
The acting on the part of the cast was not half bad either. Granted, no one really goes to films like Godzilla because they want to see some Oscar-worthy acting, we just want to see stuff get smashed and monsters kick the crap out of one another. Still, the cast does put on a believable performance. Edwards has, no doubt, followed in the footsteps of the 1954 original, and focused quite a bit on the characters within the film. During the 2-hr. 3-min. runtime, there is plenty of human interest throughout. You actually find yourself concerned, or routing for those caught within the path of the massive monsters, regardless of the fact that they are the sole reason you’ll stand in line and buy a ticket to see this one.
Bryan Cranston, whose role as Joe Brody, is his first since Breaking Bad finished up, and Ken Watanabe (Batman Begins) give the most memorable human-based performances in the film, bringing the same intensity and realism that movie-goers have seen from this pair over the years. The rest of the cast does an admirable job in their respective roles as well, but it’s Cranston and Watanabe that truly stand above the rest and make you believe the fictitious tale of radioactive monsters running amuck could actually be happening somewhere across the planet right now.
To sum things up, after what happened in 1998, it is a wonder Toho agreed to let Hollywood take another stab at their classic Kaiju. But, they were right in doing so. By combining a masterfully suspenseful film with solid acting, a believable plot and plenty of human interest, Gareth Edwards has proven that a creature like Godzilla is still relevant in our age of modern cinema – even sixty years later! In fact, the film has done so well that, two days after its release, Thomas Tull of Legendary informed the world that a Godzilla sequel was moving forward. Not long after that, it was reported that the studio is actually planning a trilogy of films around the King of the Monsters, so, if that isn’t cause enough to see this film, we don’t know what is.
Yes, while Godzilla 1998 was a testament to what happens when an iconic brand lands in the hands of the wrong director, Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla proves it doesn’t all have to be that bad! 16 years later and North America has proven we love our Kaiju too! Check this one out, you won’t be sorry! And chances are you just might forget that Roland Emmerich film once and for all!
Maybe...
60 Years Later and Gareth Edwards has shown us Godzilla is still the King of the Monsters!
