(1998)
Page 2
So, I might as well get this out of the way. I like Godzilla. *gasp*shock*awe* Deal with it.
I've always felt the agressive backlash was somewhat this movie never really deserved. It's perfectly fine and watchable, and it's at the very least as unremarkable, yet enjoyable as Peter Jackson's King Kong or Michael Bay's Transformers. Yet the latter two are highly praised as amazing thrill rides and this one was stuck with a decade of hatred.
Does it have it's flaws? Definatly. The script is riddled with storytelling problems, a prime example being a scene that has puzzled me since the film opened, when Nick picks up pregnancy tests and then sounds surprised when they turn out positive and the title creature is discovered to be nesting. I've looked at this scene countless times since the film's release, and I can never quite figure out this semi-logic hiccup. Some of the humor is corny and obvious, especially a rather poor satirization on film critics Roger Ebert and the late Gene Siskel.
But in spite of how corny the humor gets, it sets the spirit of the film very much in synch with Toho efforts such as King Kong vs. Godzilla and Godzilla vs. Gigan. To me, that's not a crime.
The character of Godzilla is well reimagined, though somewhat alienating the core of his character and turning him into something less intimidating. The Godzilla of the previous films was a territorial beast, yet the new Godzilla doesn't seem to mind sharing company with humans as long as he's left alone and allowed to do his thing. Filmmakers Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich (the duo behind quirky and fun offerings such as Stargate and Independence Day) said they wanted to take a more realistic approach with the icon, and decided to portray it as a trapped animal. To an extent, it's easy to see why fans rejected the idea, as the film often portrays Godzilla running scared instead of attacking head on.
While I contend that the body design of Godzilla himself is bloody beautiful and the CG to create the character holds up well even by today's standards, the head of the creature looks nothing like the icon of old. It's an interesting concept design, but ultimatly it's a little too un-Godzilla-esque for the film's own good. Given the new design of the title creature, I think the Baby Godzilla designs come off excelent. Unfortunatly, they're in the shadow of a creature design most people were unhappy with, so they're left to be forgotten.
The acting is spotty, to say the least. Once again, we're talking about the Godzilla series here, and the performances given somewhat fit straight in the tradition of most Godzilla sequels. Matthew Broderick has a child-like charm about him which gets him by well enough, however, for the most part, he just isn't strong enough to keep a film like this afloat. Maria Pitillo is a cutie, but her acting skills leave much to be desired. She does her best to come off meek and naive, but goes off into whiney and bratty. Unsurprisingly, I hadn't seen her before this film, haven't seen her since, and doubt I ever will. Jean Reno gives the best performance in the film as French agent Philippe Roache, and gives a fun, gung ho-ness to the last third of the film. Simpsons voice actors Hank Azaria, Harry Shearer, and Nancy Cartright all secured roles in the film, mostly going for laughs. Azaria is the most prominant of the group, as the gutsy/thickheaded cameraman Animal, who doesn't mind puting himself in harm's way as long as he gets the whole thing on tape.
Ultimatly, I think the only tragedy of this Godzilla's legacy is that the series never got to continue. While the American take on Godzilla had a few zits, it wasn't with out intrigue. It was certainly superior to the film that eventually dominated the box office that year, Michael Bay's trashy Armageddon. There were rumors abound as to what follow ups Devlin and Emmerich had up their sleeves, which may or may not have included a second film featuring a brawl with King Ghidorah and a third film portraying a world overrun by Godzillas. It sounds like it might have been fun, but instead we got a mildly amusing animated series as a consolation prize.
But...love it or hate it. I liked it then and I like it now. I doubt that's subject to change in the near future.
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