Godzilla films are wide renowned for the amount of camp. This one is no different, but that's not a bad thing though. I love Godzilla films with all my heart, almost to the point of obsession, and when I heard that this was supposed to be the supposed last Godzilla film ever, I figured it would have to go out with bang. Well, to paraphrase Deuce Bigalow, it can and it did.
It was a wise choice for the producers to hire Ryuhei Kitamura for the final installment. When I think of over-the-top camp in relation to contemporary Japanese film makers, Kitamura immediately comes to mind. With his highly stylized and purposely campy Raimi-esquire visuals used in the directors previous work, Versus, this Godzilla film was bound to delight few, enrage and confuse many (many Godzilla fans hate this film). Not only are we treated to the greatest menagerie of giant monsters (or kaiju to people in the know) since Destroy All Monsters, but we also receive a kooky, over-the-top martial arts spectacle. Something that has never been attempted in a Godzilla film.
How does this fare up? It could either be good or bad depending on the way you look at it. Those familiar with Kitamura's style will certainly be delighted to see that the director is in top form and takes it to a level most Hollywood movies seem to go for nowadays. Some might label this as tongue-in-cheek or just plain bad but it was clearly an artistic choice. Since Kitamura's style is overly excessive, it's naturally expected that he'd raise his own bar. The film and film maker realize most come to Godzilla for the cheese and they're going to give it to you like it or not. When this is the case, the movie succeeds.
It could be bad, however, if you are unfamiliar with the franchise (most aren't) or the director. A buddy of mine and I recently sat down to watch Versus. About 15 minutes into the picture he tells me, "are you serious? This is bad." I tried to explain to him that that was the point. Imagine a plethora of Godzilla fans, some never venturing into Japanese film further than Godzilla, viewing this film for the first time. The same response as my friend would come out. They would also be mad that there are many gaps where we only get some "human action" for the first part of the movie, complete with hokey Matrix fight scenes and car chases. The pacing of the film is much faster than any Godzilla film before it, the fan might be thrown off or just plain exhausted from the machine gun editing.
Regardless, no one can deny that the special effects in this film THE best any Godzilla film has ever scene. You could say that this film is a proverbial flexing of the muscle of how much the guys-in-suits thing can exhibit. Sure there's splashes of CGI through out (the American Godzilla makes an appearance and the Japanese Godzilla kicks his ass!) but it caters to the suits and other practical effects. Some scenes, particularly the ones where the monsters trash the cities, it completely washed over me that these were guys in suits. It's that enthralling.
I would recommend this film to anybody, whether for a laugh or for the casual Godzilla fan. This is a film where it's imperative that you suspend your disbelief. No ifs ands or buts about it. If you want to see a UFC champion act and things blow up every ten seconds this is your kind of film. But if good acting, feasible plot, and drama are your thing, stay far, far away from this one.
It was a wise choice for the producers to hire Ryuhei Kitamura for the final installment. When I think of over-the-top camp in relation to contemporary Japanese film makers, Kitamura immediately comes to mind. With his highly stylized and purposely campy Raimi-esquire visuals used in the directors previous work, Versus, this Godzilla film was bound to delight few, enrage and confuse many (many Godzilla fans hate this film). Not only are we treated to the greatest menagerie of giant monsters (or kaiju to people in the know) since Destroy All Monsters, but we also receive a kooky, over-the-top martial arts spectacle. Something that has never been attempted in a Godzilla film.
How does this fare up? It could either be good or bad depending on the way you look at it. Those familiar with Kitamura's style will certainly be delighted to see that the director is in top form and takes it to a level most Hollywood movies seem to go for nowadays. Some might label this as tongue-in-cheek or just plain bad but it was clearly an artistic choice. Since Kitamura's style is overly excessive, it's naturally expected that he'd raise his own bar. The film and film maker realize most come to Godzilla for the cheese and they're going to give it to you like it or not. When this is the case, the movie succeeds.
It could be bad, however, if you are unfamiliar with the franchise (most aren't) or the director. A buddy of mine and I recently sat down to watch Versus. About 15 minutes into the picture he tells me, "are you serious? This is bad." I tried to explain to him that that was the point. Imagine a plethora of Godzilla fans, some never venturing into Japanese film further than Godzilla, viewing this film for the first time. The same response as my friend would come out. They would also be mad that there are many gaps where we only get some "human action" for the first part of the movie, complete with hokey Matrix fight scenes and car chases. The pacing of the film is much faster than any Godzilla film before it, the fan might be thrown off or just plain exhausted from the machine gun editing.
Regardless, no one can deny that the special effects in this film THE best any Godzilla film has ever scene. You could say that this film is a proverbial flexing of the muscle of how much the guys-in-suits thing can exhibit. Sure there's splashes of CGI through out (the American Godzilla makes an appearance and the Japanese Godzilla kicks his ass!) but it caters to the suits and other practical effects. Some scenes, particularly the ones where the monsters trash the cities, it completely washed over me that these were guys in suits. It's that enthralling.
I would recommend this film to anybody, whether for a laugh or for the casual Godzilla fan. This is a film where it's imperative that you suspend your disbelief. No ifs ands or buts about it. If you want to see a UFC champion act and things blow up every ten seconds this is your kind of film. But if good acting, feasible plot, and drama are your thing, stay far, far away from this one.