Godzilla looks great, but the films has its faults.

Rating: 6/10 (23 July 2014)

I don't know a lot about the Godzilla films. I've only watched the disappointing Roland Emmerich 1998 film and only small bits of the old ones. I watched the trailer for Gareth Edward's "Godzilla" and became very interested in this adaptation. From the trailer, it looked visually stunning and intense. I have to say, though, I was a let down by this film.
The story is mostly about Ford Brody (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and his encounters with Godzilla. They conveniently meet from Japan to Hawaii to California as Godzilla tries to find and destroy two new monsters who were released (the trailer made no mention of these two creatures). There is another storyline with Dr. Ishiro Serizawa (Ken Watanabe) who gives us background information about the new Godzilla.
Godzilla looks great in this film. He is huge and looks very realistic. Every time he comes on the screen it's really good. However, Edwards makes this film like Steven Spielberg's "Jaws" so we don't get to see Godzilla as much. The film decides to follow the humans more and tries to be a character drama. I don't think this worked out though.
I felt like the characters were thinly scripted. We've seen these kind of characters before. The performances aren't bad, but I never felt emotionally engaged with any of them. The cast is great with Oscar winner Juliette Binoche and Oscar nominees Ken Watanabe, Sally Hawkins, and David Strathairn. It even has Bryan Cranston who seems to have won everything except an Oscar, but I just didn't feel connected to them. I didn't really care for them.
The story is forced and has a few plot holes. Many people just happen to be in the right place at the right time. It can be kind of repetitive. Seamus McGarvey's cinematography really saves this film. It looks great and really captures the grand scale of Godzilla. He makes great use of blacks and reds throughout the film.
Edward's "Godzilla" is a blockbuster reboot that looks great, but has a weak story. The film is at its best when Godzilla holds the screen. It'll wow you.