Bland

Rating: 4/10 (28 January 2015)

This new adaptation of "Godzilla" seemed to be the perfect opportunity for rekindling an interest in the monster and presenting him a new light. While the film does successfully showcase that Godzilla can be treated as a protagonist, it seems very absurd that a population would come to that conclusion after the amount of destruction caused by the monsters.
I was aware of Godzilla's little screen time before viewing the film but was disappointed with the MUTOs having been given the spotlight, leaving Godzilla as an inevitable plot device for getting rid of the 'evil' monsters, making the majority of the militaristic aspects of the film pretty pointless, even when we are explicitly told that Godzilla will have to defeat the MUTOs somewhere in the second act and the military act regardless; we have no interest in their actions following this point.
The action and tension quickly wears off and becomes dull following the first act and all sense of mystery and suspense is stripped away at the clear sights of the MUTOs terrorising cities via TV broadcasts. The visuals and CGI are impressive but as previously mentioned, the MUTOs appear to be given more screen time which means we are unable to fully appreciate the level of detail put into Godzilla, whose design is much more meticulous than that of the Cloverfield-esque monsters.
What would have been a great, chilling scene in the third act, when soldiers free fall into the barren and devastated city at night, is diminished by the fact that, again, there is no more mystery regarding the monsters and no tension to be anticipated. The film very easily comes across as bland as it steers away from teasing big reveals and instead opts for the cliché and more explicit shots of the monsters battling it out and the city in ruin but no real evidence of a chaotic atmosphere as most civilians are swept aside, letting the soldiers take the forefront of the narrative.
Cast performances are not at their potential best due to the averagely-written script. There seems to be little drive within the characters, appearing very simple, following explicit orders. Emotional moments are never fully explored as most of this exchange is quickly done and dusted, either in person or over the phone.
"Godzilla" is a tolerable watch (not that I'd recommend it) but you may find yourself disappointed and underwhelmed after the 2 hour viewing. Don't expect a lot other than an average 'monster' movie that fails to present an epic scale, with simple characters and a very stale plot.