Godzilla - my thoughts, some spoilers

First off, as a life-long Godzilla fan I want to say this movie was great.  I give it 4 out of 5 stars, with some slight problems (I will address them later).

I do, however, want to start out with some positives and what I loved about the movie.

1. The king, Godzilla.  His design was flawless... his atomic breath was perfect... and his demeanor was actually Godzilla (not like the 1998 American Godzilla, thank god we can finally put that to bed).  Like many, I agree he could have had some more screen-time, but what we got was adequate. 

2. The MUTOs.  Their design was awesome, and the movie actually revolvs around them more than it does Godzilla.  This is okay though - because we needed something new.  Everyone knows Godzilla, the roar, the atmoic breath, etc...  Without the MUTOs this is the same-old same-old, and that wouldn't have been interesting.  Their feeding on radioactivity drove the plot, and their back-story was more than acceptable.  All in all, I loved them, and they were a great and formidable opponent for Godzilla.

3. Gareth Edwards.  Kudos on getting it right.  Thank you for not using so much CGI it becomes a cartoon (see Pacific Rim).  Thank you for choosing Alexander Desplat, his score was breathtaking.  And thank you for the character and plot development.  Sure this isn't the Godfather series but the storytelling here is enough for a Godzilla movie.

Now for some of my issues:

1.  Cranston.  Cranston should have been the lead!   The death of his wife drove the first part of the movie, and his investigation into these extraordinary happenings are our reason for the story.  His departure 1/3 of the way into the movie leaves the movie lacking after that part, as Taylor-Johnson can't give the viewer the same attachment Cranston can.  I am not saying Taylor-Johnson was as flat as some reviews, but he isn't as interesting as Cranston's character (nor is he as good of an actor).  On another note, Watanabe and Binoche were great, and I loved their characters.

2. Maybe I am wrong about this, but the whole Strathaim quote ("Gentlemen you are being sent in via a halo jump...") was cut from the movie?!  This was the highlight of like all the trailers!  Why - that would have been great!

3. The Ligeti music for the halo jump.  Great for the trailer, seemed out of place for the movie.  Do something original Gareth - Stanley Kubrick you are not!

4. Pay respect!  I was reaaaalllyy hoping for something more to pay tribute to the original Godzilla movies other than a few Easter eggs.  I know this was probably wishful thinking, but I had my fingers crossed for the original Godzilla theme music during the credits with some footage of the original movie (like Giant Monsters All Out Attack).

All in all, a great movie, can't wait to see it again!