Nothing New Save the SFX

Rating: 3/10 (19 May 2014)

When I heard some time ago that Gareth Edwards, director of the fabulous film "Monsters" had been chosen to reboot the Godzilla franchise, I was ecstatic. "Monsters" was such a brilliant film in that the monsters played only a very small role in a well-crafted film about people dealing with unprecedented circumstances. The film was carried not by special effects, but by character development, engaging plot, solid pacing, and breathtaking visuals on a small budget. With the Godzilla reboot, it's as if Edwards purposely went in the exact opposite direction with a recognition that today's film-going audience isn't looking for any depth whatsoever, but rather a ridiculous amount of computer-generated effects in which all other elements of the film (characters, plot, acting, pacing, script, everything) are thrown completely to the wayside.
Despite the absurd amounts of money that must've been spent creating the film, Edwards' "Godzilla" never breaks free of the b-movie elements of the 1950's. I don't know that this quite counts for a spoiler, but the plot of the movie was truly as simple as: Nuclear something or other, giant monsters, mass destruction, monster battle, the end. The lead characters hardly seemed to react to the fact that there were giant monsters running a muck. They simply geared up, grabbed some nuclear weapons (literally, they were carrying nukes by hand) and pursued the creatures. I suppose it's my fault for expecting a giant monster movie to have any depth. However, even if you only go to this movie for Godzilla, you'll see him for only an incredibly small portion of the film. Even the 3D aspects of the film seemed elusive / non-existent. Save your money and go to the zoo or something. I guarantee the creatures there will be much more entertaining.