The long-awaited Godzilla movie was released in theaters on Fri., May 19, as longtime Godzilla fans hopes for a modern blockbuster were shattered after a disastrous 1998 adaptation and the plans for a sequel were scrapped. Legendary Pictures acquired the Godzilla rights in 2010 and set out to produce a worthy Godzilla film. It is satisfying to say that the new film easily tops the 1998 adaptation and restores the glory of the franchise. The movie is well paced and never bores the viewer.

The beginning of the movie is mainly the setting of the background story, which introduces Joe Brody (Bryan Cranston) and his wife (Juliette Binoche) working at a Japanese nuclear power plant. Unlike most science fiction films, the movie never feels slow, even when detailing the origins of Godzilla. The human characters are interesting enough that, by the end of the film, you feel attached to them. Since there is enough action spread throughout the film, the audience is always on the edge of their seat.

Although Godzilla doesn’t appear in the first hour of the film, other monsters show up and add a sense of danger to the film. The scenes in which Godzilla appears received applause from the audience and the film continuously dazzles the audience with its visual and sound effects.

Godzilla shifts focus from Cranston and Binoche to their son Ford (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and his wife Elle (Elizabeth Olsen). The film succeeds in creating a sense of never-ending peril. The film has a generally dark and serious tone though occasionally has comedic moments. The darker direction suits the film well as the studio attempted to avoid all the mistakes its predecessor made.

The core subject of Godzilla is the threat of nuclear weapons and the unknown consequences of using them in a careless fashion, a message that still resonates today. Director Gareth Edwards publicly stated that he didn’t want to end the movie with a cliffhanger like most blockbuster films do, but he wanted to leave the audience satisfied and the story complete. The final result is very fresh in today’s cinematic world of cliffhangers and lingering questions. The only qualm I have, as many people have expressed on social media, is that Bryan Cranston was underused in the film, appearing for only about 20 minutes or so. Overall, the film is excellent; the production team honors Godzilla’s original 1950s design while simultaneously adding spectacular modern visual effects. You couldn’t ask for anything better.