This movie is far from amazing, but it doesn't entirely deserve the maligning it gets. Is the pace plodding sometimes? Yes it is, especially in the middle act. Is the script weak? Yes it is rather. Is the direction unfocused? I think so, but it is Roland Emmerich, a director I never found particularly good anyway, that said I actually think it is one of his better directing jobs here. Is the acting bad? Sort of and sort of not. Matthew Broderick is very bland, and his character is poor, same with the female lead whose acting style doesn't belong but Harry Shearer is fun and Jean Reno is surprisingly dignified.

I did love the idea of Godzilla though. There may be the odd hole here and there, but thanks to a quite riveting final half hour especially it remains interesting. The scenery is splendid, the editing is good enough, some sequences are entertaining and Godzilla while different is very well designed. The score is also memorable. And while there are flaws to Godzilla, I couldn't help being entertained. This film isn't Emmerich's best, but contrary to what others might say I don't think it is his worst either. Overall, it has a lot of problems, but I kind of liked it. 6/10 Bethany Cox

You know, I used to think that there couldn't be a bad monster movie. However low the production costs of a film, however cheesy the acting, the sight of a monster eating or killing people would always make a film great fun to watch. Of course, I felt like this back in the days before I saw abominations such as WES CRAVEN'S MIND RIPPER or METAMORPHOSIS. But I never thought that I'd be sitting in a cinema watching a multi-million pound monster movie which was utterly dire. And sad to say, GODZILLA wins the award for worst monster movie ever.

I'm not talking about worst in terms of cheap special effects (hell, I love those films),there is no status attached to this film when I say that. It's just bad, and difficult to watch. I felt quite embarrassed that I was in the cinema while this played. My friend walked out halfway through and that's saying something. The worst thing was that it was summer, the hype for this film had been played up a lot and I was really looking forward to it. The trailer looked excellent. Although word on the 'net had been bad, I thought "How bad can it be? it's got a big monster in it!" Now I can look back and shake my head and think how wrong I was.

The film reeks of two things: commercialism (witness the numerous references to Disney and the like) and, unfortunately, Americanism. Godzilla was created due to French nuclear testing - excuse me? The film is full of bland American jingoistic losers who walk around and smile and think they're the best. The worst offender is "pretty boy" Matthew Broderick, child star of the 1980s, who appears to think he's the best thing since sliced bread. The female lead is also bubble-headed and atrocious, no wonder blondes get a bad name. The only competent actor is Jean Reno, French star of LEON, who gives a tongue in cheek performance. We know he's not really taking this film seriously and he stands head and shoulders amid his co-stars, acting all of them off the screen at once (including Godzilla herself).

As for Godzilla, there's no man in a suit this time. Instead we get state of the art computer effects which look truly horrendous. I don't want to watch a video game, I want to watch a film! Sadly, the special effects are pretty much ripped off JURASSIC PARK, so any surprise or awe we may have had when that film opened in 1993 has completely gone now, especially with so many CGI-fests filling our cinema screens. There is exactly one good scene in the film, where the heroes are stalked by lots of velociraptor-like monsters in a train station, which is effective and enjoyable to watch, but seeing as this is ripped off JURASSIC PARK too there's not a lot to commend.

All in all, this atrocious rubbish proves once and for all that Godzilla should be left to the Japanese. There are no rubber-suited maniacs, no incredibly bad dubbin,g and most of all no rubber dummies falling out of windows here. If you're looking for monster movies go elsewhere; this film is an abomination and typical of the trash filling the cinemas these days. All special effects, no plot, acting or anything else. What a bomb.

Director Roland Emmerich brings us the legendary lizard. Godzilla rises from a South Pacific atomic bomb test, walks across Panama, and attacks New York City.

Dr. Niko Tatopoulos (Matthew Broderick) is studying worms after Chernobyl disaster. Audrey Timmonds (Maria Pitillo) is his college sweetheart and lowly assistant at a TV station. Hank Azaria is the cameraman, and Jean Reno is French secret service. Together they battle the big lizard and a whole lot of less-big lizards.

First off the location is too ridiculous. Godzilla start from the South Pacific and cross oceans just to go to NY. I didn't know he had relatives there.

The action is pretty good. It's definitely Godzilla size. But a lot of little things are annoying like the miniature building background. I don't think they could make them any faker than when the helicopters were chasing Godzilla.

Most importantly, they did a double climax. Basically they killed all the lizards in Madison Square Gardens. That's the climax. They need to wrap things up and send everybody home. Instead they resurrect Godzilla to tack on another 30 minutes of action where they have to kill him again. It destroyed the tension and that's so important in an action movie. That 30 minutes at the end is completely self-defeating.