FILM REVIEW: GODZILLA

When going to watch Godzilla, you should be aware that you are not watching a monster action film. You are watching SO much more than that! What you get out of the new Godzilla film is a character driven story about a man trying to get home to his wife and kid when the world is on lock down after the discovery of giant creatures. Gareth Edwards previously directed the movie Monsters, which is pretty similar to Godzilla but on a much smaller scale. Here Edwards has got the budget, time and scale to do another character driven Sci-Fi story where the destruction takes a slight back step. Don't get me wrong, there is A LOT of destruction here but that's not the focus of the movie. To break the story down, Ford Brody arrives home in San Francisco from being away in duty for 18months. Not long after he is greeted by his wife and kid, he gets a call from the police in Japan where his dad Joe lives (and he grew up) to say his father has been arrested for trespassing into a restricted testing area. It just so happens that 15 years earlier, Joe worked within this restricted area with his wife who was killed after a terrible tremor unleashes radioactive gas. After helping his father, they try to go back to find their old house but are apprehended and taken to a secret location within the restricted area - where a creature has been discovered many years previously. It then doesn't take long for a MUTO (Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism) to hatch and wreck havoc across the globe! It isn't long for scientists to awaken Godzilla in the hopes of saving everyone. This film is definitely a character driven piece. We see all the action happen around the main characters which really adds to the level of realism. And it's surprising how real a film about giant monsters fighting can feel! There's scenes of mass destruction where you can see the devastation caused and how panicked people would act. It's this fresh take on the Godzilla story which has really let Gareth Edwards have his cake and eat it too. Sure, it takes a good hour to see Godzilla on the big screen and you only get a full taste of his wrath in the last 20 minutes, but it's the build up of the characters, the story and even the monsters that makes the ending feel like one giant pay off! The film isn't perfect by any means but the fresh approach, fantastic CGI and the story really shine through over any weak points. See it now! Rating: 4.5/5 Barry Mowatt