Hey guys. Well I for one am totally excited that we are gonna get a new and fresh take on what I believe to be one of the greatest icons in pop culture: the King of the Monsters himself GODZILLA (or GOJIRA if you go by the Japanese names). A quick reminder: "Gojira" was originally released in 1954, only 9 years after the A-bombing of Japan. His name derives from the Japanese words for gorilla and whale, which was a nickname of a guard at TOHO studios. This film became hugely successful in Japan and really kick started the Tokusatsu genre. The original version of the film was a powerful statement about anti nuclear war and that Gojira/Godzilla represented the aftermath. This character has stuck around for over 50+ years and continues to be a success both here and in Japan. Except that one tiny incident in the 90's, where we got a horrible version of Godzilla.
So now that Legendary has gained the rights to make a new film with the help of TOHO studio, we are expecting one awesome film. So I wanna do a top 10 list, 5 things I want and 5 things to keep out of this new take on an old icon. With that, let's begin with what I want.
Top 5 Wants
#5) A good use of 3D: I know it seems inevitable, so I put this on here just to more or less bring up an interesting point. We know 3D is the ultimate gimmick to sell tickets, but if they film this movie with cameras designed to film in 3D and not that stupid and wasteful 3D conversion crap they are using just to it more "marketable." So just film it well in 3D and give us an awesome experience.
#4) The Oxygen Destroyer: the weapon designed to defeat the first Godzilla was a basic weapon that separated the oxygen from water in a violent fashion and destroys any organic creature in a wide radius. I'm not saying this should be the weapon to defeat him, but have it referenced by being either in blue print form or in the building stage but incomplete.
#3) Monster Island: The infamous island designed to keep all of Earth's monsters in one place, and Godzilla's true home in some films. This would not only set up for sequels, but also hint at other Kaiju's
#2) Hints at other Kaiju's: one thing Godzilla was best known was all his monster friends and foes. There have been so many since his early days all the way to Final Wars, give us some tiny nods to them and their activities as well.
#1) Stick to the Formula: what I mean by this, it's simple. Keep Godzilla as a man in a suit, keep the same roar, Radioactive Fire Breath must be used, miniature cities, and all the other things that have made Godzilla a cinematic staple.
So with the 5 wants, let's move on to the 5 don't wants
#5) Too much CGI: now everything that Godzilla has been able to do, was all done by practical effects, except for his breath which is an easy thing to make. If you make the city destruction and the character all cgi, you lose touch with everything that made the old films great.
#4) The human element: now this seems to be a huge problem in some giant thing movies. Much like Transformers where both things had too much emphasis and focus on the human characters, you lose touch with who the movie is really about. I know most films of Godzilla have plenty of human plots, but those films had a good 50/50 deal, half human and half Godzilla.
#3) No Villain: this may seem odd to say but if we introduce the character in a new light, we don't need more than one antagonist. If they choose to make Godzilla the villain and one who does all the destroying, then that's cool. If they add in too many monsters, or even a human villain who wants to harness the power of the monster, then it will be silly to believe--even for a film about rubber suit monsters fighting each other.
#2) No douchey characters: this ties in with #4. If we do have any human characters we have to follow around, they must not be annoying or douchey pricks, like all the characters from "Transformers 2." I want the human element to be afraid of this and see it as a joke or have no interest or emotion of the situation.
#1) Bad Directors: now this almost seems unavoidable but for this movie to succeed and hopefully develop a good franchise, we need a director who's not only a fan of the character and the films, but can really take the film in a serious tone yet still have some cool elements to it. So just avoid someone who simply does this film for a paycheck. My only guess on who they should pick would have to be Zack Snyder. I mean he's the king of good adaptations, it almost seems perfect
And so those are my 10 wants and avoids. If they can follow these parameters then we may hopefully get an awesome movie and true justice the character deserves in America. Til next time, Aki87 OUT!!!!