The Flickering Myth writing team give their thoughts on the first trailer for Godzilla...
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It's been a busy time for the Flickering Myth Reactions with three going live last week looking at Gal Gadot's casting as Wonder Woman in Batman vs. Superman, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 trailer and the announcement of X-Men: Apocalypse.
But we can't rest up, because the King of the Monsters has a debut trailer for his new movie next year released yesterday. You can read Luke Owen's detailed thoughts on the trailer here, but what did the rest of the team think of the trailer for Godzilla?
Martin Deer: Well this trailer certainly did it's job: I'm excited. A few oddly placed scenes in the middle to show the "drama", I guess, but a cracking opening and the tease of Big G was more than enough to get me excited.
Anthony Donovan Stokes: I have never been genuinely excited for a remake before until this movie. Did anybody notice how there was a building that had a hole in it similar to the Roland Emmerich movie?
Oliver Davis: Looks wonderfully understated (well, as understated as a giant monster movie can be) and Bryan Cranston made me audibly yelp when he briefly appeared on-screen. Can't wait.
Rob Spake: Pretty cool. Not a massive fan of the middle scenes but I loved the visuals of the first and last bits. The red flares were cool and the reveal of Godzilla was nicely done.
Sam Thorne: I think the trailer, in conjunction with Gareth Edwards other work proves that he knows what he's doing. He knows how to make Godzilla seem heavy, daunting, and essentially terrifying which has been missing from the monster movie genre for over several decades. Should be quite an experience, hopefully.
Luke Owen: If there is one thing he got spot on - it's establishing the sheer size of Godzilla. He looks huge! I loved the trailer, really loved it. The cold opening, leading into the middle shots which build with a wonderful crescendo to that final shot? Masterful stuff.
It's also great to see a trailer come out that doesn't give away anything about the movie. We have no idea of the movie's plot outside of the usual smashy-smashy stuff. We got no tease of the other monsters, the characters, the history etc. All we were given was a very shrouded shot of the King of the Monsters. It left me wanting more - which is what a good trailer should do. My hat goes off to them. As Sam said, this should be quite an experience.
Martin Deer: Wait, there's going to be others monsters in this one? Think I just wet my big boy pants.
Luke Owen: That was the rumour a while back, and then a few sources "confirmed" it. One of them I believe is a re-working of Kumonga, who was one of the villains from Son of Godzilla.
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Alice Mary Rush: Wow, what a teaser! Looks awesome, love how not loads of the movie was given away, just enough to get you talking about it. So glad they included the Godzilla "yelp" at the end, it ran right down my spine (I will confess that I too did my own yelp as well when I saw Bryan Cranston).
The smokey reveal was really well thought out and the hints at the size of him actually made me feel scared, whereas before I must admit I took Godzilla quite lightly and not as serious a monster.
Yeah, just going along with the general consensus here, can't wait for this one!
Sam Thorne: I also like how it teased the movie's star power, as it fit in shots of Ken Watanabe, and Bryan Cranston with absolutely no context. Kind of interesting, as there's so much shown, with so little revealed. Not seen a trailer that's been EXACTLY right like this, for years.
Jackson Ball: Just have to concur with everyone else. It's very reassuring that Edwards et al. know what they are doing. Just go back to the first Pacific Rim trailer, it is literally a world away from this gem. So excited!
Anthony Donovan Stokes: I have a feeling like this will blow Pacific Rim out of the water.
Scott J Davis: In the same way the teaser for Batman Begins worked, it's low-key and almost still in its teaser, letting us into this world just slightly enough, without giving lots away. It looks spectacular, and the cast is enough to get me excited, let alone the big, spikey fellow.... Can't wait!!
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Villordsutch: I am well and truly sold by this trailer; I was trying to cram my £10 note into my CD Burner just to make sure I'd secure my ticket for it's release. Even though they've lifted music from 2001: A Space Odyssey (my No.1 film), I'll let this one go by if they promise to make the rest of the movie as perfect as this trailer. Pacific what now?
Matthew Spencer-Skeen: I have to agree with what others are saying! Love the very little information given, hopefully I'll be able to go see this without feeling as if I saw the best bits in the trailer already.
Chris Cooper: Wow. That has to be the best trailer I've seen in a while, just impact. I thought I was seeing all of him, and he looked pretty damn big. Then I realised that what I was seeing was just his arm. The sense of danger and weight is fantastic. Sign me up.
Helen Murdoch: I think it looks amazing and a really interesting trailer by not revealing too much. I think Godzilla looks right and the sheer level of destruction that's on show is awesome. I loved Monsters and I rate Aaron Johnson quite highly. Pacific Rim was disappointing whereas this actually gave me goosebumps
Ozzy Armstrong: Not really fussed by kaiju films but this was a decent teaser. If it can have half of the atmosphere of Monsters (which I love) and less of the dumb-awesome-blockbuster nature of Pacific Rim it could be worth a watch
Thomas Harris: Where's Ferris Buller?
Brogan Jameson Morris: Walter White just met his match.
Sam Thorne: He got replaced by Hal from Malcolm in the Middle.
David Bishop:I loved the first part of that trailer; a slow build which focused on one thing and really hooked me in. The rest didn't add much, but I'm very excited about this.
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Anghus Houvouras: I was exactly the opposite David. The first part of the trailer had me concerned. Another Military vs. Monster movie just won't get me excited. How many variations on that paradigm can I sit through? Yes, its a Godzilla film so I realise the need for that dynamic, but my first thought was "Oh s**t, it's Godzilla meets Reign of Fire" with the halo jumpers and the suicide attacks. Once the trailer opened up and we saw past the opening scenes to the drama unfolding across different areas and characters, I started to get intrigued. I've seen Godzilla fight the army. What I haven't seen is a fantastic, diverse, well schooled group of actors in a Godzilla movie and that's what intrigues me about the reboot: A Godzilla movie with a Director who cares about the original vision of the material and a cast of actors to bring some gravitas to the city stomping theatrics.
Visually, it looks great. I loved Monsters and can't wait to see where Gareth Edwards takes this. It does look decidedly different from the other crop of CGI heavy summer blockbusters. I'm eagerly anticipating this one now, though I was sad we didn't get to see Bryan Cranston using a pregnancy test...
Rohan Morbey: Very good teaser, although it doesn't convince me it'll be any better than the usual disaster movies. It needed some Jamiroquai 'Deeper Underground'
Chris Cooper: TUUUUUNNE
Anthony Donovan: Stokes: I share Rohan's concerns. I hope there's something to elevate it above that as I always feel like there is a ceiling to how good these movies can be - and that is rarely raised. I normally hate that "darker, grittier" approach to remake but here it seems to work. if they can add a genuine sense of threat and some great dialogue and characters I'll be more then satisfied.
Luke Owen: If there is one thing that eases my worries of your concerns is that the tone of the trailer feels a lot like the original 1954 movie. Most people forget that Godzilla did start out life as a force of nature that destroyed Tokyo (you know, before he started dancing on Planet X and glad-handing his chums on Monster Island). The original movie was a lot darker than people give it credit for, and that's what Edwards is going for here. At least, going by the trailer.
Rohan Morbey: It's got nothing on the 1998 movie's teaser. Remember that one?
Luke Owen: You laugh Rohan, but the trailer for the 1998 Godzilla was the best thing about the movie. All the promotional work was fantastic. The reason why the film blew however is because Roland Emmerich didn't want to make a Godzilla movie. He said in interviews before and after the movie was released that he thought the franchise was stupid and had no interest in remaking it. He just did it for the cash - and therefore put no effort in. In fact, the only thing he added to the movie was poking fun at Siskel and Ebert - and he didn't even have the foresight to kill them off as his middle finger salute.
Rohan Morbey: Oh I'm not laughing, I LOVE that teaser. One of the greats
Luke Owen: All of the teasers for that movie were spectacular. They got everything right - apart from the movie.
Anthony Donovan Stokes: It's ironic he said that the original Godzilla movies were stupid, seeing as his entire career is making guilty pleasure stupid movies.
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So, for the first time in quite some time, a nearly unanimous positive reaction for the trailer for Gareth Edward's Godzilla. A lot of kaiju fans were burned with the 1998 American reboot, but perhaps this 2014 attempt will mend those wounds.
What did you think of the trailer for Godzilla?
But we can't rest up, because the King of the Monsters has a debut trailer for his new movie next year released yesterday. You can read Luke Owen's detailed thoughts on the trailer here, but what did the rest of the team think of the trailer for Godzilla?
Martin Deer: Well this trailer certainly did it's job: I'm excited. A few oddly placed scenes in the middle to show the "drama", I guess, but a cracking opening and the tease of Big G was more than enough to get me excited.
Anthony Donovan Stokes: I have never been genuinely excited for a remake before until this movie. Did anybody notice how there was a building that had a hole in it similar to the Roland Emmerich movie?
Oliver Davis: Looks wonderfully understated (well, as understated as a giant monster movie can be) and Bryan Cranston made me audibly yelp when he briefly appeared on-screen. Can't wait.
Rob Spake: Pretty cool. Not a massive fan of the middle scenes but I loved the visuals of the first and last bits. The red flares were cool and the reveal of Godzilla was nicely done.
Sam Thorne: I think the trailer, in conjunction with Gareth Edwards other work proves that he knows what he's doing. He knows how to make Godzilla seem heavy, daunting, and essentially terrifying which has been missing from the monster movie genre for over several decades. Should be quite an experience, hopefully.
Luke Owen: If there is one thing he got spot on - it's establishing the sheer size of Godzilla. He looks huge! I loved the trailer, really loved it. The cold opening, leading into the middle shots which build with a wonderful crescendo to that final shot? Masterful stuff.
It's also great to see a trailer come out that doesn't give away anything about the movie. We have no idea of the movie's plot outside of the usual smashy-smashy stuff. We got no tease of the other monsters, the characters, the history etc. All we were given was a very shrouded shot of the King of the Monsters. It left me wanting more - which is what a good trailer should do. My hat goes off to them. As Sam said, this should be quite an experience.
Martin Deer: Wait, there's going to be others monsters in this one? Think I just wet my big boy pants.
Luke Owen: That was the rumour a while back, and then a few sources "confirmed" it. One of them I believe is a re-working of Kumonga, who was one of the villains from Son of Godzilla.
The smokey reveal was really well thought out and the hints at the size of him actually made me feel scared, whereas before I must admit I took Godzilla quite lightly and not as serious a monster.
Yeah, just going along with the general consensus here, can't wait for this one!
Sam Thorne: I also like how it teased the movie's star power, as it fit in shots of Ken Watanabe, and Bryan Cranston with absolutely no context. Kind of interesting, as there's so much shown, with so little revealed. Not seen a trailer that's been EXACTLY right like this, for years.
Jackson Ball: Just have to concur with everyone else. It's very reassuring that Edwards et al. know what they are doing. Just go back to the first Pacific Rim trailer, it is literally a world away from this gem. So excited!
Anthony Donovan Stokes: I have a feeling like this will blow Pacific Rim out of the water.
Scott J Davis: In the same way the teaser for Batman Begins worked, it's low-key and almost still in its teaser, letting us into this world just slightly enough, without giving lots away. It looks spectacular, and the cast is enough to get me excited, let alone the big, spikey fellow.... Can't wait!!
Matthew Spencer-Skeen: I have to agree with what others are saying! Love the very little information given, hopefully I'll be able to go see this without feeling as if I saw the best bits in the trailer already.
Chris Cooper: Wow. That has to be the best trailer I've seen in a while, just impact. I thought I was seeing all of him, and he looked pretty damn big. Then I realised that what I was seeing was just his arm. The sense of danger and weight is fantastic. Sign me up.
Helen Murdoch: I think it looks amazing and a really interesting trailer by not revealing too much. I think Godzilla looks right and the sheer level of destruction that's on show is awesome. I loved Monsters and I rate Aaron Johnson quite highly. Pacific Rim was disappointing whereas this actually gave me goosebumps
Ozzy Armstrong: Not really fussed by kaiju films but this was a decent teaser. If it can have half of the atmosphere of Monsters (which I love) and less of the dumb-awesome-blockbuster nature of Pacific Rim it could be worth a watch
Thomas Harris: Where's Ferris Buller?
Brogan Jameson Morris: Walter White just met his match.
Sam Thorne: He got replaced by Hal from Malcolm in the Middle.
David Bishop:I loved the first part of that trailer; a slow build which focused on one thing and really hooked me in. The rest didn't add much, but I'm very excited about this.
Anghus Houvouras: I was exactly the opposite David. The first part of the trailer had me concerned. Another Military vs. Monster movie just won't get me excited. How many variations on that paradigm can I sit through? Yes, its a Godzilla film so I realise the need for that dynamic, but my first thought was "Oh s**t, it's Godzilla meets Reign of Fire" with the halo jumpers and the suicide attacks. Once the trailer opened up and we saw past the opening scenes to the drama unfolding across different areas and characters, I started to get intrigued. I've seen Godzilla fight the army. What I haven't seen is a fantastic, diverse, well schooled group of actors in a Godzilla movie and that's what intrigues me about the reboot: A Godzilla movie with a Director who cares about the original vision of the material and a cast of actors to bring some gravitas to the city stomping theatrics.Visually, it looks great. I loved Monsters and can't wait to see where Gareth Edwards takes this. It does look decidedly different from the other crop of CGI heavy summer blockbusters. I'm eagerly anticipating this one now, though I was sad we didn't get to see Bryan Cranston using a pregnancy test...
Rohan Morbey: Very good teaser, although it doesn't convince me it'll be any better than the usual disaster movies. It needed some Jamiroquai 'Deeper Underground'
Chris Cooper: TUUUUUNNE
Anthony Donovan: Stokes: I share Rohan's concerns. I hope there's something to elevate it above that as I always feel like there is a ceiling to how good these movies can be - and that is rarely raised. I normally hate that "darker, grittier" approach to remake but here it seems to work. if they can add a genuine sense of threat and some great dialogue and characters I'll be more then satisfied.
Luke Owen: If there is one thing that eases my worries of your concerns is that the tone of the trailer feels a lot like the original 1954 movie. Most people forget that Godzilla did start out life as a force of nature that destroyed Tokyo (you know, before he started dancing on Planet X and glad-handing his chums on Monster Island). The original movie was a lot darker than people give it credit for, and that's what Edwards is going for here. At least, going by the trailer.
Rohan Morbey: It's got nothing on the 1998 movie's teaser. Remember that one?
Luke Owen: You laugh Rohan, but the trailer for the 1998 Godzilla was the best thing about the movie. All the promotional work was fantastic. The reason why the film blew however is because Roland Emmerich didn't want to make a Godzilla movie. He said in interviews before and after the movie was released that he thought the franchise was stupid and had no interest in remaking it. He just did it for the cash - and therefore put no effort in. In fact, the only thing he added to the movie was poking fun at Siskel and Ebert - and he didn't even have the foresight to kill them off as his middle finger salute.
Rohan Morbey: Oh I'm not laughing, I LOVE that teaser. One of the greats
Luke Owen: All of the teasers for that movie were spectacular. They got everything right - apart from the movie.
Anthony Donovan Stokes: It's ironic he said that the original Godzilla movies were stupid, seeing as his entire career is making guilty pleasure stupid movies.
---
So, for the first time in quite some time, a nearly unanimous positive reaction for the trailer for Gareth Edward's Godzilla. A lot of kaiju fans were burned with the 1998 American reboot, but perhaps this 2014 attempt will mend those wounds.
What did you think of the trailer for Godzilla?