Godzilla is a slow-burn film with a huge emphasis on human perspective, and quite similar to Gareth Edwards' previous work "Monsters".

Rating: 9/10 (4 December 2014)

Summary: Godzilla is a slow-burn film with a huge emphasis on human perspective, and quite similar to Gareth Edwards' previous work "Monsters". 91/100 (A-)
It makes me happy that Edwards directed this movie. I liked the way he did not show Godzilla throughout the film, that was very clever and suspenseful. This film felt very similar to Edwards' previous work "Monsters". I highly recommend you to watch "Monsters" before watching this film. I have read a lot of negative comments from the audience, it is sad that people do not appreciate the awesomeness of Gareth's work. Godzilla (2014) is not your average blockbuster, and the best thing about it is that it does not rely on the special effects. It focuses more on the human perspective and cares about its characters.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson did a pretty good job, but his character was somewhat boring and I would be okay if he died. Elizabeth Olsen was fine, even though I did not feel 100% engaged with her character, I still cared about her. Bryan Cranston was terrific in his role, his performance gave me the chills. Ken Watanabe and Sally Hawkins were excellent too. Also, there were some little roles in the film that were very effective: the bus driver in the bridge sequence, and a little girl in the tsunami scene. This movie has a few flaws and one of them is that spends too much of its running time developing its characters.
It is a film with a huge emphasis on realism and human perspective. It requires a lot of patience, you have to wait an hour to finally see Godzilla, and that is not a bad thing. The movie has a bunch of exciting moments throughout. There are a lot of people saying that there was not enough of Godzilla in the movie. The big guy had 12 minutes of screen time, and that was fine to me. I left the movie theater completely satisfied and happy because the payoff was huge to me. I was on the edge of my seat during the last 20 minutes. The third act was a huge payoff, a mind-blowing spectacle of dazzlingly special effects and an epic battle between the three monsters.
I saw it on 3D and it was an awesome experience. The visual effects and the sound mixing were just breathtaking. Just imagine all the work that was required to make the design of the MUTOs and Godzilla. Gareth Edwards and his team clearly appreciate the monsters. Moving on, the fight sequences were bold, exciting and the CGI looked so neat. These monsters are masterfully designed, and they look scary as hell to me. I am so glad that the trailer did not show too much of the final act. Also, the musical score by Alexandre Desplat was great and fits with the tone of the film. The tsunami scene includes one of my favorite tracks.
Another strength of the movie was the beautiful camera work. Edwards wants you to feel as if you are right there seeing a monster through your eyes, with his camera movements. I felt like I was into the movie. Also, there was a scene that reminded me of the 9/11 attacks. It was very short and many people missed it, but it is one of my favorite moments in the movie. It was just a plane crashing into a building and it looked quite real. Overall, Godzilla is a slow-burn spectacle with a huge emphasis on human perspective and empathy, very similar to Edwards' previous work "Monsters". Despite a few dull characters, it delivers exciting action, stunning camera work and a payoff. (A-)