I know a lot of you probably didn’t enjoy the last Godzilla film… it was cheesy and it lacked any real depth, but having been fascinated with dinosaurs and the Japanese culture since I was a little kid it’s was a real treat for me to see one of my favourite concepts (a super-sized dinosaur that can wreck cities) come to the big screen with – what was at the time – a decent budget. As a teen, I was so obsessed with Godzilla that not only did I watch all the Japanese films (even the cheap rip-off versions), but I watched the American cartoon… and, if you’ve seen it, you will know that THAT required love and dedication to the original concept.
Well, it seems those big Hollywood dudes have decided to chuck more money at the Godzilla concept and, to me at least, the trailer seems pretty fricken awesome. What I see is a movie that will have an almost alien like feel to it and yet be set in a city that will allow some great wreckage effects. The atmospheric tension this trailer creates seems to suggest that rather than being aimed at family audiences, as the last film was, the director has gone for something darker and grittier; I do think this will pay off.
The movie has quite a cast too! Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ken Watanabe, Elizabeth Olsen, and Juliette Binoche are starring in the film, with David Strathairn and Bryan Cranston.
Most interesting of all though is that the plot summary of the film seems to suggest one of the original Japanese monster vs monster story lines as opposed to humans vs monster story lines. Check this out: “An epic rebirth to Toho’s iconic Godzilla, this spectacular adventure pits the world’s most famous monster against malevolent creatures who, bolstered by humanity’s scientific arrogance, threaten our very existence.” I’ve heard rumours of it being Godzilla vs. Hedorah (the Smog Monster from a 1970’s movie storyline).
This would certainly fit with the remarks of one director, Gareth Edwards, who interestingly views Godzilla as an anti-hero:
“Godzilla is definitely a representation of the wrath of nature. The theme is man versus nature and Godzilla is certainly the nature side of it. You can’t win that fight. Nature’s always going to win and that’s what the subtext of our movie is about. He’s the punishment we deserve.”
Sadly the movie is not out until May 2014, but until then there is a pretty awesome movie website, Godzilla Movies, where you can chat about the original films and keep up-to-date with all the latest information.
What do you guys think? Could this be America’s first ‘great’ monster movie?
Geoff Matthews
Julia Kitvaria Sarene