The Wrath of Godzilla

There's probably no better example of dumb Hollywood trend-following than the 1998 Roland Emmerich blockbuster Godzilla, an American adaptation of the popular Japanese monster movie series of the same name. While it was successful, Emmerich's re-imagining wasn't remembered fondly by those who sat through it. Newcomers were turned off by a stupid plot, annoying characters, and special effects that look dated compared to movies ten years older than itself. Established Godzilla fans were spurned by drastic redesigns of the creature itself, which ended up looking like a cheap knockoff of the T-Rex from Jurassic Park. In the end, it was a movie that pleased absolutely no-one, and it would be sixteen years before the famous city-destroying lizard would ever get back to the big screen, this time with Monsters director Gareth Edwards at the helm.

That's no reef.

This new Godzilla is a very human-centric story as the world is suddenly and disastrously reintroduced to city-sized monsters with our smaller, slightly crunchy heroes left to scurry around avoiding being stepped on. As an American soldier traveling to Japan to bail his estranged father (Bryan Cranston) out of jail, Aaron Taylor-Johnson just wants to get things taken care of and return to his wife (Elizabeth Olsen) and son at his California home. Unfortunately, this trip coincides with the re-emergence of an ancient monster that starts destroying cities and absorbing nuclear power sources all over the Pacific. Soon both soldiers and monster are converging on San Francisco, as the military struggles to contain the destruction and save the lives of all of the world's citizens in the process.

Duct tape is all the rage with crazy people in Japan.

Oh, the problems Godzilla has. The biggest is the fact that the title character has little screen time to speak of. While we get glimpses of the monster throughout the film - and his origins are merely glossed over, by the way - we never really get a good, long look at him until the end of the final act. It's not as though Godzilla doesn't have the opportunity to wreak havoc, as he appears numerous times in scenes setting up grand spectacles, only for the scenes to abruptly cut to either insignificant conversations between insignificant characters about what to do OR to the same scene but immediately after the off-screen carnage that Godzilla fans paid money to see in action. Obviously this was due to one of two things; either it was a budget decision, because that CGI LOOKS extremely expensive to produce (even if 3D added little); or it was a conscious decision to focus more attention on the human characters witnessing this crisis.

Right... what was your purpose here, again?

And we know that's a story angle that Edwards can do; his Monsters was very character-focused, even while the audience seemed to waiting on the edge of their seat for a GLIMPSE of anything alien. There are two reasons why - despite it being a brave idea - Edwards' effort doesn't work here. One is that the movie is called Godzilla, and people did not pay $8 (or more) for their tickets to watch a bunch of humans talking about all the action - and far more engaging action, mind you - taking place off-screen. Second, the characters here are one-note cliches from the annals of monster movies past. Cranston - while amazing - is your standard man driven into obsession by tragedy only to be proven right about the existence of giant monsters in our world. Olsen - while amazing - is your standard wife/mother/love interest whose existence in the film is purely to be an object for our hero to return to. Ken Watanabe and Sally Hawkins - while amazing - are figureheads of a secret society who unsuccessfully tried to keep these giant creatures a secret, and take on a John Hammond-esque desire to not interfere and let nature take its course. David Strathairn - while amazing - is a typical military leader who doesn't hesitate to abdicate nuclear force against what he sees as a threat. And Taylor-Johnson - while struggling to wipe clean his British accent - is the MacGuffin, an American soldier with an unbelievably convenient skill set who gets caught up in trying to take down the monster before it can destroy his home. He also happens to be the luckiest man alive, as proven by the impossibility of the situations he survives. Though the acting is solid, there's not enough development here to make up for the lack of dedicated monster action we get.

Ooh, do we see him now? Wait, wait... no...

So after all that, my opinion on Godzilla must be clear... It's absolutely awesome.

Don't get me wrong, this is a movie with some clear, easily recognizable flaws. Edwards and his filmmakers take WAY too long focusing on things other than the film's main character, and the script - credited to newcomer Max Borenstein but with contributions from mediocre established writers David Callaham (Doom), David Goyer (Blade: Trinity), Drew Pearce (Iron Man 3) and Frank Darabont (okay, he's actually quite good) - just doesn't do this story justice. The actions of the humans are inconsequential (or just stupid), their motivations forced and derivative, and the characters themselves mere caricatures of established cliches.

Amazingly, you can understand almost everything Watanabe says this time around.

But while the film struggles narratively, it still has excellent action, amazing special effects, and it uses its title monster effectively when we finally DO see him let loose. Whether or not you're a fan of the classic Japanese movie creature, seeing him smash buildings or fight other giant MUTOs (yes, they look like derivatives of the Cloverfield monster, but that design was awesome so I'll forgive it) gives a definite feeling of awe and excitement, much like last Summer's similar epic Pacific Rim. Better, Edwards knows to treat Godzilla as a heroic figure, as opposed to Emmerich's more neutral stance in 1998. Sure, he directly causes the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people (off-screen, naturally), but at the end of the day this is a monster you're still rooting for, if only because Hollywood got him right. Simply put, the best parts of Godzilla give you instant happiness, despite whatever else it does wrong. You might mentally tick off all the issues that this film has as you watch it on the big screen, but as the closing credits roll you'll find yourself putting down your 3D glasses, glancing at the screen, and uttering:

"Please, sir, I want some more."

It's a Monster Mash

While I'm sure the film I'm reviewing today did indeed screen in the Boston area upon it's release this past fall, I'm hard pressed to recall it. I do remember some of the hype for Monsters; trailers that didn't show much more than sporadic images from the film along with praise from various reviewers. Despite not many reveals (or perhaps because of it) I was seriously looking forward to the film's release, as it looked like not just any monster movie, but one with great human drama, as well.

And then... nothing.

The film didn't do much in the theaters (at least locally; it was a bigger hit overseas), and went forgotten by many film-goers, myself included. When trolling Netflix for the latest streaming films last week, I was surprised to find it among the newer titles available. When I failed to wake up in time yesterday to make the matinee showing I'd intended (maybe some other time, Take Me Out Tonight), I decided to rest and relax on the couch and let this film take me for a trip.

I don't think we're in Kansas anymore, Toto

Six years ago, a NASA probe sent to search for evidence of extraterrestrial life breaks up upon reentry over Mexico, spreading debris over a wide area. That would be bad enough, if the crash hadn't also brought with it an alien infestation that over time infects most of the Central American country, creating "Monsters" that every so often attack the cities of those unfortunate enough to be in the area. Current day, we meet Andrew (Scott McNairy), a photojournalist who has sought for years to catch one of the creatures on film, content until now with carcasses and disaster areas. Now he finds his big break has met an unfortunate end, since his employer's daughter Samantha (Whitney Able) has been injured while supposedly on vacation in the area, and Andrew has been tasked with making sure she is taken home safely. With both air and sea travel quickly eliminated by embargoes instituted by the military,  the duo are forced to trek by land over the country's restricted zone and a chance to cross the US border's wall built to keep the "infection" from infiltrating the States.

Fun with murals!

If that last part seemed like a shot at the United States's immigration control policy, you wouldn't be the only one to think that. It seems likely the entire Monsters premise tackles the divisive topic of illegal immigration, from the wall to the journey people take to escape to America. The trip is not easy, dangerous even. However, as one character points out, if you don't have the money, you take the risk. Not unlike District 9, the 2009 film that liked refugees from the stars to real-life apartheid victims, the creatures in Monsters are meant to be those illegal immigrants who are widely despised by American citizens, who decry the loss of jobs to low-wage immigrants despite the fact that those same protesters wouldn't touch the dirty jobs the immigrants are often stuck with. The film makes its stance on the strict anti-immigrant policies employed by the US known, as well as its opinion of their effectiveness.

All the rage in Mexico these days

The film only employed two real actors, with most of the film's roles filled by ordinary people wherever they were shooting. The result in carrying so many non-actors meant that any scripted film wouldn't really work, and the result is a film shot more guerrilla-style, with the camera simply following the film's two leads into wherever they find themselves. It's fortunate then that the leads are as fun to watch as the rest of the film. McNairy is good as the disgruntled photojournalist Andrew. Andrew has no interest in what he sees as a babysitting job; he really wanted a shot at a big payday by capturing a monster attack with his camera. Able is even better as the daughter of a media mogul who is apprehensive about her upcoming marriage; After being hurt in Mexico, she's reluctant to even call her fiance. The tension between the two is wonderfully realized in a realistic buildup of friendship and mutual respect that fosters between them. The two actors connected very well over the course of the shooting in fact; McNairy and Able married last July, mere months before the film's release. While hardly the main reason the film works, the two certainly earn much credit for their efforts.

Following the Yellow-Bricked Road doesn't seem to be working out

Monsters was the first feature film from director Gareth Edwards, a jack-of-all-trades who made it on a shoestring budget, shot over 100 hours of footage, and then took it home and edited and added creature effects until he had a film that manages to convey its message while at the same time entertain its audience with a very cool and engaging story. At the very least, it was enough to convince Legendary Pictures to hand him the reigns to the newest reboot in the classic Godzilla franchise. Meanwhile, Monsters is easily among my favorite sci-fi films from the past five years, sharing the shelf with great titles like the aforementioned District 9, Moon, and Splice. A great film that deserves your attention if you haven't taken the time to see it yet.