Movie Review: Godzilla (2014)

Godzilla (2014)
Starring: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ken Watanabe, Elizabeth Olsen, Juliette Binoche, Sally Hawkins, David Strathairn, Bryan Cranston 

Director: Gareth Edwards
Legendary Pictures, Warner Bros. Pictures, Toho, USA, Japan, 2014. 

In Philippines 1999 a giant skeleton is found from collapse mine. The scientists find unhatched spores and one that is hatched. In Japan a nuclear power plant supervisor Joe Brody (Bryan Cranston, known from Breaking Bad) studies unusual seismic activity. His technician wife Sandra (Juliette Binoche) dies after radioactive steam breaks out. The plant collapses and the area is put into quarantine. 

Sandra Brody. Dad's birthday party will have to be postponed

Joe Brody, nuclear plant supervisor

15 years later their son Ford Brody (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) is serving in military. He returns to his family, wife Elle (Elizabeth Olsen) and son Sam (Carson Bolde). Ford has to go to Japan after his father is arrested for trespassing the destroyed nuclear plant area. Joe is trying to find out the reason why the plant collapsed. Joe and Ford go to find answers and get detained again. (It's hard not to think about Breaking Bad when Joe puts the gas mask and protective suit on). They are taken to a secret scientific facility. 

Ford Brody returns home

Wife Elle is happy to see Ford

Returning to the disaster area

Dr. Ishiro Serizawa (Ken Watanabe) and Dr. Vivienne Graham (Sally Hawkins) are supervising a giant cocoon that is about to hatch. Something breaks out and disables electronics with electromagnetic pulse. Then it flies away and the facility is destroyed. Dr. Serizawa takes Joe and Ford assist him. The creature is named MUTO (Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism). 

Dr. Ishiro Serizawa

Dr. Vivienne Graham

Navy following Gojira

Ford is told about ancient creatures that use radiation as food. Gojira is mentioned to be the first one to appear in 1954. Dr. Serizawa suspects that MUTO and Gojira are about to fight. Monsters meet first time in Honolulu and smash the city. The military hunts the monsters and Gojira hunts the MUTOs. Ford is trying to get home, but is caught up in the action. 

MUTO goes to Las Vegas

Flying MUTO

Gojira goes for a walk

There are lots of references to old Godzilla movies. Gojira takes a long time to appear. The movie is more accurate to the original Godzilla mythology than the 1998 movie. This time Gojira is not just a mutated lizard, but an ancient God of Monsters. Also the movie paints bleak disaster visions reminding of Fukushima disaster and Indian Ocean tsunami catastrophes. The plot is very predictable so nothing new here. 

San Francisco has seen better days

Gojira himself

Dad's Mothra

Sally Hawkins, known for her comedic roles, has a serious role to play, and there is very little humour in the movie. The other famous actors (Binoche, Watanabe) do also good job, but the most memorable character is Bryan Cranston as a troubled engineer. The main star of the movie is Gojira so the human actors are just supporting characters. But not much to complain, with the new Godzilla movie the audience gets what it expects: spectacular giant monster action. Probably sequels will follow. There is a nice 2001 Space Odyssey moment when the paratroopers jump to San Francisco: the music choice is Ligeti's Requiem for Soprano, Mezzo-Soprano, 2 Mixed Choirs and Orchestra, you can listen it here:

Rating: Good