Respectfully Yours

This isn't a review more or less an observation on Godzilla 2014. First off I wanna say that I really liked this film. I'm grateful for the fact that I had read numerous reviews beforehand instead of going in blind. Because of that I believe I was more capable of being patient and let the movie tell the story it wanted to tell. Which in turn allowed me to judge it properly. I'm going back later this evening to see it again. One thing is painfully obvious about this film and that is it was made with a great deal of respect to Gojira the 1954 classic. Legendary/WB could've blown the doors off with a whiz bang vfx rollercoaster ride and "Michael Bayed" it to death. Instead they chose a much more somber approach that was more in tune with the original. I felt they were truly trying to be reverent and not mock the character. Almost to a fault. I remember when Whitney Houston passed away and every music awards show was trying to give her a respectful farewell. One show in mind had Jennifer Hudson of "Dreamgirls" set to come out and belt out a tribute to Whitney by performing her hit "I Will Always Love You" Now keep in mind Jennifer can really sing and is a powerful vocalist. So everyone was on pins and needles to hear her really go for it. Instead what we got was a very subdued but razor sharp rendition that didn't come close to what we expected but was very respectful of Whitney's legacy. I didn't get it then and I was a bit letdown but after hearing her explain it on the radio and looking at it again I totally understand now. This movie is a celebration of "Godzilla" and all those creative, and talented people at "TOHO" who brought us so much joy for 6 decades. It was never a competition on who can make the best Godzilla movie. Just a chance to "Americanize" him a bit and do our own story. I feel this movie will gain popularity and one day be seen as a classic as well. The problem is not what they did it was what we all expected. Let this be a lesson learned about focusing our world around something we don't even know if we'll like. It's okay to expect to like something but not okay to expect it to be the end all be all of movies. Any movie would cave in under that much expectation.