Another year, yet another reboot of the classic "Godzilla" franchise. In many ways, this outing feels like a big middle finger to the 1998 attempt directed by Roland Emmerich, thankfully, Godzilla (2014) is more then just two hours of "hey '98 Godzilla sucks", this is the real deal. Filled with great story and good performances, this is a feature deserving the King of Monsters .
At times it can be hard to remember how much a good build up will make the end result that much sweeter, fortunately this film provides really good build up to a spectacular end result. The actors provide performances that while not amazing, are good enough to provide some entertainment before we get to the main event, Aaron Taylor-Johnson leads, he does a decent job, but he sadly walks away feeling like a character who would've been better as a supporting player rather then a lead. Bryan Cranston plays Taylor-Johnson's father, as well as gives the films finest performance to the point that one wishes he'd be the lead. Ken Watanabe appears as a scientist who studies giant monsters, providing some exposition to Godzilla, which I imagine will divide folks, honestly I land on the side of enjoying the idea of the expert offering minimal explanation to what Godzilla does, simply because who really cares? It's Godzilla, let it all be "because he restores balance" be the excuse we get to see epic monster fights, if the expert knowing it seems a bit weird, just remind yourself that you're watching a giant monster film.
It's important to note that Godzilla himself, does not make much appearances until the movie's final act, this is probably a deal breaker for most, to me, well, there's a story there that is entertaining enough to make the slow buildup feel all the more satisfying, so no complaints from me, well, almost no complaints, another view from him earlier would've been nice. The M.U.T.O.'s provide most of the damage early on, the two (male and female) monsters provide nice carnage, and look good in design too, granted I don't see them becoming Godzilla mainstays. As a whole the movie works too well for me to consider it anything other than one of 2014's best. The buildup is entertaining, and the climax is the thing of dreams, it's the Godzilla fight we've wanted to see for years.
Overall, I hope this movie is remembered well as a reboot done right, the action and tone are kept in sync so well that it feels unique amongst many of the standard blockbuster fare. Godzilla did not disappoint and I hope audiences aren't either, this truly is a great take on the King.
Written By Octaviano Macias
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