The original Godzilla (the Japanese one; not that awful Hollywood schlock starring Matthew Broderick) is considered to be one of the greatest sci-fi movies ever, a relentlessly entertaining parable - and warning - for the nuclear age, in which a giant, radioactive lizard emerges from deep within the ground to punish humanity. If Gareth Edwards' latest version doesn't quite reach the standard, it's not from lack of trying. Sci-fi fans were practically giddy when the first trailer for Godzilla hit, and though the subsequent film didn't exactly meet everybody's expectations (there was some poor pacing; a questionable lead in Aaron Taylor-Johnson), there's no denying the grandeur of the spectacle on show here. It might lack the human interest that made Edwards' debut, Monsters, so great, but Godzilla delivers the explosive goods when it counts.
Sam Hill is an ardent cinephile and has been writing about film professionally since 2008. He harbours a particular fondness for western and sci-fi movies.
