Movie Review : Godzilla

Hollywood’s second attempt at making a Godzilla movie did not have to try a lot to perform because whatever it would do, it would still be better than the first attempt. Godzilla 2014 is more faithful to the original Japanese movies and treats Godzilla as a force of nature that awakens to restore balance to the force …I mean restore balance to nature. He is an alpha predator, a god to us mere humans, who awakens when he feels his territory, the planet, is threatened when two other predators arrive to mate.

Hisenberg vs Godzilla … not so much
As I had watched ‘Breaking Bad’ with unwavering devotion and had seen this movie’s trailers, which were stunning to say the least, the presence of Bryan Cranston in the movie added to its appeal and became a must watch movie for me. And boy does Bryan Cranston deliver! He steals and adds a lot of weight to the scenes he is in.

Though I wasn’t expecting a Hisenberg vs Godzilla Death Match (one can only wish), I had hoped Cranston would have a prominent role rather than his character being done away with after the first act.

Bryan Cranston Bait

Cranston’s character’s son (‘Kick-Ass’’s Aaron-Taylor Johnson) is now the new protagonist who is a bomb disposal guy in the military. He is stolid…and that’s all, nothing unique or impressive about his character. It was a poor choice from a storytelling perspective as the character which was developed from the beginning and given an emotional core and a relatable backstory was discarded for a new lead. It is as if the studio dangled Bryan Cranston before my eyes just to lure me to the theatre.

Average Movie

The rest of the cast is uninteresting or given too little screen time and dialogues to showcase their talents. Kick-Ass’s wife and kid don’t have any purpose except occasionally being point-of-view characters. The Japanese doctor is only there to remind us that Godzilla was originally a Japanese character. Godzilla is a secondary character in his own movie. The most exciting dialogue after the departure of Bryan Cranston is, “Let them fight”, delivered with an unemotional stare by the Japanese doctor. Also, the movie is filled with plot conveniences. Whenever a big action set piece is about to go down, one member of the cast manages to find his or her way to the location of that set piece, no matter where in the world the location is.

God-like visuals

The action scenes are the saving grace of the movie. Gareth Edwards, the director, knows how to create awe-inspiring and spectacular visuals. Some of them left me speechless. The only problem is that there were not more of them. Action scenes in the beginning were very restrained as if the director was taking himself too seriously. But the last act saved it all. It has to be seen to be believed. With minimal dialogue, an enervating soundtrack, a dark and deadly calm atmosphere the last fight commences and, try as much as you can, you cannot take your eyes off the screen. The actual fight is… well, beautiful! Yes, so beautiful to move you to tears. It is as if you are in a state of deep meditation as you watch the monsters fight. Also, Atomic Breath Rules!