Cast member Olsen poses at the premiere of "Godzilla" at the Dolby theatre in Hollywood
Cast member Elizabeth Olsen poses at the premiere of "Godzilla" at the Dolby theatre in Hollywood, California May 8, 2014. The movie opens in the U.S. on May 16. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni

This is the 60th birthday of the iconic Japanese dinosaur. The American version of the savage destruction showed promise with its trailers. The glimpses of devastation included the gigantic beast biting a piece of high-rise buildings. The raised arm of the Statue of Liberty was missing. The soundtrack made an impression. Everything put together, it promiseds high-voltage action. Let's see how the 2014 version turned out to be.

The Cast

Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen, Ken Watanabe, Sally Hawkins, Juliette Binoche, Bryan Cranston and David Strathairn.

Director

Gareth Edwards (The only other film he directed was a successful Science-fiction "Monsters" in 2010)

The Story

The story of the movie is nothing new to moviegoers. It remains faithful to the original 1954 version "Gojra" by Ishirô Hondo. The 200-foot pre-historic beast comes to modern-age city and gets indulged in utter destruction. This happens to be only the second Godzilla movie which was completely filmed by an American production company. David Callaham, the same guy who penned the first Expendables film, wrote the story.

The Highs

The CGI and other digital manipulations are as good as one can get in this modern era. The look of Godzilla is realistic and scary. The small head, ginormous paws and big bottom look vicious. Even though the movie is mostly dark and one has to struggle to find the texture of the creature, it is still one of the best we have got so far. The sound effect is equally magnificent. The pre-historic roar declares the kind of destruction the viewers are promised to witness.

The Lows

The action of Godzilla goes on amid the human drama involving Joe Brody, his wife Sandra and their son Ford. This human conflict never makes a mark in the movie. The subplot seems to be extremely weak when the city is getting annihilated by a pre-historic beast. Even though the "package" of the movie looks great, the "product" may not seem to be equally impressive.

The Verdict

Watch it if you love Godzilla. The technical mastery will impress you. However, you may get disappointed if you are looking for a great story.

The Rating

6/10