16 years is an awfully long time between movies for one of the world's most recognizable monsters, but for Godzilla as envisioned by director Gareth Edwards, it has been worth the wait. Effectively ignoring Roland Emmerich's widely disliked 1998 version and going back to basics, this is much more along the lines of what we come to expect from a good summer blockbuster. Is the script "smart" and airtight? Of course not, but it offers a thoroughly entertaining two hours of monsters, mayhem, and the humans caught in the middle. Warner Brothers would love to have a franchise on their hands that doesn't involve superheroes (I'm sure we'd all welcome one of those by now), and by the looks of this film, they have one in the bag.
Obeying the long-standing Jaws rule of slowly building to the monster's appearance, the big lizard doesn't make his debut until about halfway through the film. Early on, we're introduced to the Brody family, living in Japan circa 1999. Mysterious tremors are threatening the stability of a nuclear power plant, and scientists Joe and Sandra Brody (Bryan Cranston and Juliette Binoche) lead the investigation. They prevent disaster, but not without a few casualties. Flashing forward 15 years later, the Brodys' now-adult son, Lieutenant Ford Brody (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) finds himself confronting similar demons. His father has been arrested by Japanese Police for trespassing in the same zone quarantined 15 years ago, and after bailing him out, the old man won't stop obsessively rambling about government cover-ups. Joe's theories are proven correct, however, when a giant insect-like creature, mutated by radiation, rises up and stomps its way through Japan and the Pacific Ocean searching for its mate. Meanwhile, a second monster, attracted by the carnage, makes its way toward Hawaii. Guess who......
Obviously, viewers are in the theater for the monsters, but Godzilla takes its time developing a few characters worth caring about. Ford is a good every-man (insofar as a military man can be) with enough qualities of leadership and selflessness for us to latch on to, and Taylor-Johnson does a solid job. He's dwarfed, however, by Bryan Cranston, who ratchets up the intensity appropriately for each emotional scene required of him. His participation alone is guaranteed to draw in a few Breaking Bad fans who might not otherwise be jazzed about seeing a Godzilla movie, and I'm sure he doesn't disappoint on that level. The two "name" women in the cast, Juliette Binoche and Elizabeth Olsen (as a nurse and Ford's wife) make the most of limited screen time, rounding out a cast that is certainly atypical of a monster movie, and all the more welcome.
Director Gareth Edwards turned his fair share of heads with his 2010 sci-fi tale Monsters (currently available on NetFlix streaming), and he proves himself a filmmaker with a clear vision when given $160 million to play with. Godzilla's (yes, they actually call him this in the movie, and let's just say Ken Watanabe is the perfect man to first utter the name on screen) reveal is nothing short of spectacular, and the CGI work on all of the monsters looks suitable to what we would expect in 2014. Ditto for Seamus McGarvey's cinematography. One of the most memorable images in the film involves the tide on a Hawaii beach slowly rolling out before an impending tidal wave. The shot of troopers diving from a plane into downtown San Francisco (seen in the ads) is equally eye-popping. Cynics might note that the only reason for rebooting/updating Godzilla is because we can provide better special effects and higher production values, but for a movie attempting to create an overwhelming "you are there" vibe, isn't that reason enough?
The success of this Godzilla would hopefully mean a long-overdue franchise starter for one of movie-dom's most venerable giants. Admittedly, when most of us hear or read the name Godzilla, we think of campy monster-on-monster throw-downs that dare you not to giggle. Not so here, where Edwards wants to inject a little more art, genuine thrills, and craftsmanship that you can enjoy along with your popcorn. He succeeds, and while this movie won't rock the foundation of Hollywood blockbusters for years to come, it entertains for the entire running length and leaves us open to further adventures. That's all we can really ask for.
Rating: *** (out of ****)
Good review Kenneth. This is how the 1998 film should have been.
ReplyDelete