Godzilla. 2 Minutes 24 Seconds.

So here's one more, and I reckon that it may be quite heavily defensive.

In fairness, it probably took me a watch or two to work out exactly why I enjoyed it, it was just one of those films that was properly satisfying if you get what I mean? I'm hardly going to lie and say that it blew my mind or was better than I expected it to be, but I see a lot of the rap that it's getting as a little unfair. I don't often accept the judgement of public forums or ratings, but when it gets a lower IMDB rating that Transformers, something needs to be addressed (the much more trusty Rotten Tomatoes has Transformers as 57% and Godzilla as 75%, ratings which are far more representative in my view, yet arguably more people will take an opinion of IMDB over RT, more public forum and all that?).

What classes as a spoiler these days? I mean this seriously, do stats 'spoil' anything for people who haven't seen the film? If you don't want stats with your Godzilla then I'd probably say don't read, but if you've already seen it and just need a bit of an opinion, then yeah? Go for it?

Here's the clip that I'm going to use, about an hour into the film, which is purposeful for stats reasons that I've mentioned previously. Otherwise it'd be that bloody awesome Halo Jump sequence which had me properly salivating when I first saw it (in IMAX).

So that clip, here's some of the minor points as to why it was included.

First thing you see is that it isn't bloody New York, there's only so many times that city can be raised to the ground and it is interesting... In a way for me, the fact that it's in Hawaii grounds it a touch more. The when you see the infrastructure you're presented with it gives you a sense that there are real people in 1 or 2 story buildings, instead of skyscrapers that you just assume are empty and yeah I've seen this a number of times over move on please thank you.

The monorail aspect of it gives the film a very intimate action sequence for the main character. No car chase to get lost in the geography of the area, simplistic scenario, problem, no apparent solution, and in my opinion rather in fitting with the rest of the film.

It's definitely a monster movie, and as monsters go, the MUTO is not terrible at all, the scale is terrifying, and it's abundantly clear from the chopper fire that they are immensely dangerous. Massively reminds me of the clover monster from Cloverfield, anyone remember that? But the main importance of it in this situation is that it's a match for Godzilla. Which leads me to...

The reveal of the title character. Now here's where the gripes from most of the reviews come from, we are an hour into the film, and this is the full reveal of Godzilla. People say they have paid money to go and see a film called Godzilla, and we do not properly get to see him until halfway through.

Why is that an issue? I mean seriously people, are you so the film isn't exactly as you were expecting, big deal? So this creature isn't smashing the place up 40 minutes earlier as you were expecting it to, I don't see why that's a problem for an audience. In the world of multi platform marketing, people have been teased for months about this film, and when they finally get into their cinema seat, they are unable to wait for another 60 minutes for the script to play out and Godzilla to appear because that's not what they were expecting. Go write a different script and make that, give it to Michael Bay or something and blow up everything and grin staring at the screen while you consume destruction and nothing else. Go on, do it. That's what you 'want to see', that's what you were expecting. The trouble is, rational film viewers who go along to enjoy the experience of the cinema do not, they will watch the film as it is presented, and judge it based on it's execution of the plot, and how well the story holds up. NOT explosions from big lizard/minute. And that is genuinely the basis of the vast amount of negative feedback.

Here come the stats. The Alien from Alien, yep, that title character, does not appear in full until 01:08:00 into the film. Bruce the Shark, the (somewhat unofficially named) title character from Jaws does not appear until 01:16:50. Now, tell me that matters in either film. I'm not going to argue that Godzilla is on par with either film, but the character appearances are at the complete discretion of the people making the film, and you never get the same argument flung at Jaws or Alien. The premise is all the same, build up tension, tease the audience, give them glimpses and stave off the money shot for the opportune moment. Jaws and Alien are far superior than Godzilla in that category yes, but the instant fix is not to pile the film with irrelevant monster destruction scenes.

If you want to see Godzilla before he appears in the film, go google it, I'm sure you'll find a promo shot.

I think that may as well be the end of that rant.

So the reveal itself stars way before you get a glimpse of big beasty, with the fairly innocuous tide reaching the feet of one of the airport workers, who pretty much blanks it. Then you get the catalyst for the reveal, the helicopter that get's swatted out of the air, and the building of tension that comes along with it audibly. As the chain of events progresses further, the soundscape becomes barer, until the final plane gets smashed in two, the screams die down and we get that payoff. And in some style I may add.

The footfall breaks through the silence. You can pretty much feel the awe radiating off the people within the departure lounge as they take in the size of Godzilla for the very first time, much in the same way as the audience.

Godzilla (2014) - Quite the boot.

Next we get an animalistic reaction from the MUTO before the full reveal, slow rise up Godzilla's body, swelling chorus of voice and strings, finally showing the creature in full.

And then you get that roar. My god that roar. It gave me goosebumps for months pre film release, and seeing it attached and in full flow gave me goosebumps on my goosebumps. It's so incredibly satisfying that the sound itself is a closely guarded secret. Even in isolation, here, it's awesome.



So there you have it, nothing massively profound, and a lot of me just ranting about various things that irritated me about reviews, but overall hopefully a fair defense of a film which recieved a lot of negative public feedback, most of which I see as incredibly irrelevant. Just give it a go, sit back, and immerse yourself, that's all I can say about it. I have, and I did, again, and again, and again.

Payoff, a rough sketch of the beastie himself. Pretty kid ain't he?

A scruffy pencil sketch of Mr. G, I may make this a thing, may not.

And if you made it this far, here's a second payoff for you. I bloody love that Halo Jump...

HERE is the article on shy monsters on screen, should you want to look into it a little more.

Until next time!

Dexter. 1 minute 46 Seconds.

Yeah I started with TV. Bloody rebel. 

As someone who watches a lot of TV (it's impossible to clearly communicate how much, but a lot really doesn't do it justice) I often get asked by people the very same question. And I mean that, the wording rarely varies from:

"So I've just finished all of Breaking Bad, what do I go for next???"

In a time where Game of Thrones is probably the biggest thing in people's lives, let alone in their viewing schedule, I usually answer with the same response.

"Have you ever watched Dexter?"

It's often met by a no, and this surprises me, as it is a show which has earned a large following both on it's home Showtime network over in the US, and over here in the UK, wherever it was aired. I think it was a late night slot on ITV a few years back? Anyway, with the rise of readily available box sets and every other person having a Netflix account, I thought it'd be a widely known about and heavily consumed show, but apparently not. I've often had to describe the premise to people too (incredibly easy: Miami forensic analyst who also enjoys a bit of dismemberment in his spare time, often investigates his own crimes).

As someone with a very questionable attention span with new things at times (I had to force myself through series 1 of Breaking Bad for example) the opening title sequence usually need to grab me. And Dexter did that. It did that extremely well, and year on year I continued to enjoy it.

Oh go on then, have a watch.

 

See, this to me is pure, full on, attention to detail, edity, soundy, TV goodness. And in a way epitomises everything I enjoy about the show.

I'm not sure which way to do this now, if I should ask you to watch that video over and over about 5 more times, or explain away about what exactly gets me so worked up and excited. So I reckon I'll explain that conundrum, and allow you to make your own mind up.

With me again? Good. Can you understand why I'm raving about a title sequence yet? Well if not, here come the answers. Hang on, I've already given the answer away. Two paragraphs up, you can't miss it. Attention to detail.

Each and every shot choice and visual cue is geared towards that (rather excellent) theme (thank you Rolfe Kent). Until you notice it once it's easily missed, and once noticed, I reckon it's forever admired.

26 Seconds in - the slow rub up the face, followed by the slow razor down the face, both in time with musical phrases, both the same length of time.

33 Seconds in - the drop of blood followed by the camera punch ins, in time with the music.

37 Seconds in - Notice that symbol crash? Notice that swell of blood? Perfectly in sync with each other.

42 Seconds in - See all that bacony goodness all close up, slices and cuts in time.

47 Seconds in - Don't tell me that bacon in the pan action is on the off beat? Oh stop it.

Now I could bore you like this for ages, going through each and every one of these points individually with proper timecode and a video that showed off numerical values to the frame, but I think I'd rather leave you with the option to go back and watch the entire thing again with a new view of it. And turn the volume up and enjoy it! (Hint: watch out for the spray from the fruit about 1.08 in, very possibly my favourite moment out of everything).

Now for the kind of argument bit I guess, which is essentially this, if that's the thought and care that the creators will put into less than 2 minutes of a title sequence, just imagine what's to come in the next hour. This 1 minute 46 seconds (I subtracted a few seconds from that youtube link) shows off both the skills and the story telling ability of the creators. 

There is blood everywhere. From mosquito slap to shaving to ketchup it outlines the obsession we're dealing with, all in a way that teases the main character, and shows off both sides of the personality we have before us. Obvious insanity wrapped up within a normal life. Oh and it gives you a payoff with seeing the guy at the end, breaking the 4th wall and smiling at you and everything. Top bloke eh?

The sound design for this little intro scene is rather lovely, incredibly clean, fitting the images, and matching the intimacy of the way it's been shot. Everything is accentuated to cut through the music, well, play along with the music, and provide people with a diegetic theme to match. This for me is why the edity, shot choicey achievements are nowhere near as appreciated as that recent, in-your-face, look at me, please god don't let the TV sound be out of sync Marks & Spencers advert. Is that a thing in the US? I mean I highly doubt there's any US viewership, but might as well check either way. 

Well in case they dont have it, or someone reading is without a TV or can't remember, here it is!



Yeah I know, decent effort, but lacks 8 years of serial killer based entertainment drama at the end of it if you ask me. You didn't? Ah well you got an opinion anyway. But it's nice to imagine that the minds behind this particular ad campaign got the idea while watching Dexter take a drill to a drug dealer or something. Family friendly ideas yaaay! 

I've completely lost track of where I was, and may just finish up here, but I hope that the main part of what I set out to achieve has been reached. Watch these things closely, and try and appreciate more of what people are trying to put out for you to enjoy en mass. Put the smartphone down, and properly watch what you're watching. Unless you're on a train or something, watching on a smartphone, in which case invest in a decent set of headphones and replace the earbuds you got with it. You can thank me later.

What do you mean that was never part of the original premise of the blog? Well it's in my head and I'm adding it now. Go now and forever enjoy these things to the max. I like this making up rules thing.

Oh, and watch Dexter. It's all over now, and people complain about certain aspects of the show, but everything is flawed, run with it. I hope that the 1.46 that I presented and based everything on appears as frequently in your life as it has mine.

No idea what's up next, can't teaser. Damn. Have the Blood Theme instead. Often plays as the credits roll. Enjoy!