The Non-Fan's Guide to Godzilla Films

This series is the culmination of everything that went before, taking what made each era of Godzilla films great. I've said similar things before, and it was true, but it's also true here. Produced by Hollywood, what we have here is what could have gone right with the 1998 film, finally done right. Excellent effects, an outstanding cast, recurring characters, and locales that aren't just (yawn) Japan or the Pacific.

Godzilla (2014)

Truly, Hollywood went all-in on this one. Look at that cast. Bryan Cranston, star of "Breaking Bad," right after that show reached its conclusion; Elizabeth Olsen, slated to star as Scarlet Witch in the Avengers franchise; plus other high-profile actors such as Juliette Binoche and Ken Watanabe. This is a far cry from Matthew Broderick and other people you couldn't quite remember, or Raymond Burr and just Raymond Burr. The effects are top-notch, the acting is good, and as noted earlier, we have Godzilla in different locales and different situations.

As with many of the 29 other Godzilla films preceding this one, the original 1954 is referenced, but with a few changes. This time around, it's indicated that there was an attack by a monster at that time, and nuclears "tests" since then were all attempts to kill it. Also, as with some of the reboot series, a task force has been organized to investigate activity by Godzilla and other giant creatures. However this time around that task force, Monarch, is more similar to a secret paramilitary scientific research organization and is global in scale.

Godzilla isn't seen until later in the film, continuing the tradition of foreshadowing and building up to his dramatic appearance. When he does come on the scene after decades in hibernation, it's to fight two new monsters who feed off of nuclear radiation. While Godzilla is clearly a threat humans have been trying to control or eliminate for decades, these monsters are worse and the question is made whether Godzilla isn't actually a kind of savior.

This film is a great jumping-on point. It's not hokey at all, and requires no knowledge of the previous films. Just sit back and enjoy.

Shin Godzilla (2016)

This film is not part of the current Hollywood series, but is the start of a new reboot done by Toho in Japan, with more traditional effects. Unlike other reboots, including the American series, there is no reference to the 1954 original. Instead, it takes place entirely in present-day Japan, as Godzilla destroys a boat and attacks Japan. This time around, his form evolves and Godzilla grows, more than doubling in size over the course of the film.

While Godzilla's form and abilities change slightly in this film, what Godzilla symbolizes also takes a turn. For decades Godzilla was the living symbol of the problem with atomic weapons, then nuclear weapons. This time around he's a symbol of the problem of nuclear power in general, particularly in the wake of the Fukashima disaster.

It's always good to see Godzilla films with a darker tone like this one. And as much as I enjoy seeing CGI push the limits of the imagination, there's always a sense of unreality about CGI. In this case, having a Godzilla that's actually physically real is like a breath of fresh air.

Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)

As with the previous series of Godzilla films, the current series has included the best characters and parts of the previous series and cut out all the crap. Case in point: the baddest Godzilla villain of all, King Ghidorah.

Set 5 years after the previous film, which actually was 5 years earlier, the existence of Godzilla and other monsters, now called "Titans" is now public knowledge, but Monarch still operates largely secretly, and most titans are dormant. A team goes to Antarctica to awaken Monster Zero aka King Ghidorah, while Rodan is awakened in Mexico. Eventually the classic match-up of Godzilla, Mothra, and Rodan versus King Ghidorah takes place, while other Titans are assembled for the final battle.

This chapter of the series brings in even more well-known stars, including Vera "Bates Motel" Farmiga and Millie Bobbie Brown, better known as Eleven from "Stranger Things." The humans provide support and intrigue, and the monster action is excellent, plus, in what is now the traditional Marvel-style end credits scene, we have foreshadowing of the next film, another conflict between Godzilla and an ancient foe - Kong.

Godzilla vs. Kong (2020)

While the first match-up between King Kong and Godzilla was perhaps the best film in the original series, this one is the better matchup between them, and one of the best films featuring either of the characters. Here, we have a direct cross-over between both film series, continuing on from "Godzilla King of the Monsters" and the Kong film "Skull Island," creating a shared universe that ultimately features all the classic giant monsters as well as new ones.

The question this film asks is, "If Godzilla is King of the Monsters, then what is King Kong king of?" or, "Can there be more than one king?" And, we do get an answer. Over the course of the film we learn that Godzilla and Kong's species were always rivals. We also learn that rumors of the Earth being hollow are true, and Monarch is aware of that fact.

Now that he has been revived, Godzilla is interested in proving once and for all that he truly is the king of monsters, so her pursues Kong on land and sea. But Kong has become attached to a group of humans, in particular a young girl, and by attacking Kong Godzilla also threatens the humans around him, and Kong is put in the position of defending them as much as they are trying to defend him.

As tends to be the case when two icons square off against each other, eventually they do unite against a common, even worse enemy. In this case, the newly created nightmare Mechagodzilla.

Thanks to CGI, this film shows us things we've never seen before in a Godzilla or Kong film. Things we couldn't have seen in the age of human actors wearing monster suits, smashing miniature cities. Things like Godzilla and Kong fighting in the open ocean, leapfrogging acoss aircraft carrriers, or Kong and Godzilla fighting in a city, hiding behind skyscrapers and ambushing each other. Fantastic stuff that leaves you eagerly awaiting the next film.