GODZILLA

"It’s pointless talking about the remake of Godzilla (by a team of cashed up Hollywood producers) as if it were cinema; it’s not to be confused with movies, because it is merely a moving picture version of a comic. If you buy comics (like many Japanese do, and not just children – remember, too, the original was a Japanese creation which destroyed Tokyo) you will probably find this a whoosh of an experience. Your senses will delight in the transition from imagining the sounds of Godzilla and the destruction of a city, to actually hearing it and seeing it in motion. This is not to put it down – simply to put it in perspective. In its own context, Godzilla the US$150 million monster is the full bottle: here is BIG menace, BIG destruction and BIG danger. It’s like watching your toy go berserk while on a bad trip (both of you on abad trip!). Me? I prefer creature features to be cheap on effects and big on bravado."
Andrew L. Urban

"This is the most hyped up, over-marketed film Hollywood has announced since the regrettable Independence Day [created by the same soulless folks who brought us THIS computerised lizard flick]. It seems so easy to make a big-budget movie in Hollywood these days: create a multitude of special effects, a few human puppets, a sprinkling of simplistic dialogue that could easily have been written on the back of a few bubble gum cards, and voila, Godzilla is born. Where has all the imagination gone in movies, or indeed the passion? Godzilla is a passionless, artless affair, a hybrid of most idiotic monster films, including the two Jurassic Park movies. Director Roland Emmerich has such a pedestrian approach to film making, and here he feels bigger is better, without remembering to sustain suspense or excitement. The fact is, the film is a flat, listless work that is excessively noisy, excessively silly and excessively long. Some of the visuals are clever, while at other times, the creature is so obviously computer-generated. While it's understandable that the human element is usually lacking, there can be an attempt at some interesting actors. Broderick is simply dreadful, delivering a wooden, flat performance. Only veterans Jean Reno and the amusing Michael Lerner are engaging, and the design of the film is certainly extraordinary. At a cost of over $100 million, Godzilla is little more than a shamelessly manipulative attempt at crass studio marketing. The film is a loud, humourless affair which insults its audience. It's true, as the ad campaigns insist on reminding us, that size does matter. But so does plot and character!"
Paul Fischer