Movie Review: Godzilla (2014)

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

      Today I review the all-new American monster movie, Godzilla! This movie is spectacular, with great protagonists and awesome effects to bring the monsters to life. I will also review the plot, IMAX usage, and how it stays true to the original monster.

      The story goes as follows: many years after attempting to kill an ancient dinosaurian creature in 1954,  scientist Dr. Serizawa and his assistant Vievienne Graham discover dormant eggpods in a large cavern in the Philippines, along with the fossils of the original creature. a series of consistent earthquakes hit the Janjira Nuclear plant near Tokyo, and, during the chaos, Joe Brody's wife dies due to radiation leaks. Fifteen years later, his son Ford has his own family and returns to see them after his military training. Hearing his dad entering a quarantine zone, he soon gets him and visits him. After revisiting their home from 15 years ago, they are taken to a scientific facility that used to be the plant. During their visit, Dr. Serizawa finds out, to his horror, that the eggpod has a special EMP pulse. After his attempts to kill it, it only allows the creature inside, dubbed MUTO, to hatch and escape the facility. During this, Joe is severely injured and dies, which his son grieves for.

The MUTO monster, as they find out, feeds off radiation, and it goes after several bombs that the military transports and feeds off of them. After some discussion, the calls of the monster were found out to be mating calls, and a larger, non-winged MUTO was listening and awakes, looking for its mate. However, it was not the only thing listening; Godzilla was as well. After fighting the male MUTO briefly in Honolulu, the military wishes to use a powerful nuclear weapon, hoping the shockwave will kill all three monsters. Later, both MUTOs meet in San Francisco to rebuild a nest and manage to have thousands of embryos connected to the super nuclear weapon they steal. However, Godzilla comes and battles the MUTO in an all-out monster brawl for the fate of the world. However, Godzilla begins to lose as the MUTOs attack him together. After the military drop in and steal it, Ford manages to destroy the eggs using a fuel tank, distracting the MUTOs and allowing Godzilla to gain the upper hand and unleash his atomic ray. Godzilla manages to kill the male, but is engulfed in a falling skyscraper after sharing a stare with Ford. During this, the female attacks the soldiers and atttempts to retake the nuke; Ford, meanwhile, is taking the boat with the damaged nuke to sea. When MUTO is going to kill Ford, Godzilla saves him and rips off the monster's head. After a near escape, Ford reunites with his family as Godzilla returns to the sea, triumphant.

Godzilla roars in his victory!

     The plot was magnificent, with enough human influence to give the movie some character development, at least for Ford. The monster fights were somewhat short, but enough to satisfy. The characters were all good, though Ford's parents and Dr. Serizawa didn't get enough screen time in my opinion. My favorite character was the good ol' doctor; he knew that Godzilla could help defeat the MUTOs and was against the use of the super nuke. Ford had great character development, and you really feel for him and don't wish for him or his family to die. Overall, the plot and characters were awesome.

The MUTO roars at the terrified civilians.

        The monster designs were amazing; they truly brought the creatures to life. Godzilla, in particular, looks amazing, with his CGI top-notch and his roar loud and terrifying. The MUTOs were a great addition and allowed for Godzilla to be a hero in this movie, as opposed to his normally antagonistic role in his films. The powers for the MUTOs were creative, allowing for some plot twists to make it harder for the military. Godzilla's atomic ray was beautifully captured in CGI, making it look more realistic than it ever has. Godzilla looks much like his original appearance, which will please fans. Overall, the monsters and their respective abilities are amazing and breathtaking in appearance.

Godzilla admires (then promptly destroys) the Golden Gate Bridge.

       The soundtrack I love and is one of the best Godzilla soundtracks made. It has great battle music and dramatic music, as well as the sadder tonesfor the respective part of the movie requiring it. The IMAX experience for Godzilla is not used to its fullest extent, I think, though it was used relatively well. It does, at some points, look like the monsters are looming over you as they roar. Overall, the IMAX experience is definitely something to watch, as it will allow you a better view of the King of Monsters's movie than regular 2D or 3D. Overall, the soundtrack is great and really enhances the movie.

      Overall, this movie definitely deserves to be seen. Whether you are a casual moviegoer or a Godzilla fan, this movie will not disappoint, with its epic score, great characters, awesome-looking monsters and amazing effects definitely going to draw people into the theater.

Final Rating: 4.9 out of 5

Great reboot with amazing effects and soundtrack.

See you on my next review!

The King of Monsters celebrates his 60th anniversary!