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Size Does Matter

Posted in Movie Review, Movies, Reviews, tagged Aliens, Audrey Timmonds, Colonel Hicks, Doug Savant, Dr. Niko "Nick" Tatopoulos, General Comments, Godzilla (1998) – movie review, Hank Azaria, Jean Reno, Jurassic Park, Kaiju, Kevin Dunn, Legendary, Madison Square Garden, Manhattan, Maria Pitillo, Matthew Broderick, Movie Reviews, MTV, New York City, Philippe Roaché, Reviews, Sergeant O’Neal, Toho Films, Victor “Animal” Palotti on October 10, 2025| Leave a Comment »

“Godzilla” (1998) – movie review
Today’s review is for the big-budget creature feature: “Godzilla” (1998), starring Matthew Broderick as Dr. Niko “Nick” Tatopoulos (a worm specialist / biologist turned monster tracker), Jean Reno as Philippe Roaché (a French intelligence agent with a taste for espresso and espionage), Maria Pitillo as Audrey Timmonds (an aspiring reporter and Niko’s ex-girlfriend), Hank Azaria as Victor “Animal” Palotti (a cameraman with guts and a Brooklyn accent), Kevin Dunn as Colonel Hicks (military brass with a skeptical eye), and Doug Savant as Sergeant O’Neal (a level-headed soldier who actually listens).

Background: I saw this film in theaters during its original release, drawn in by the marketing blitz — trailers teasing a monster that crushes a T-Rex skeleton. I hadn’t revisited it in over ten years, but curiosity (and a discount Blu-ray bin) brought it back into my queue. I’m using this as the jump off point to watching / reviewing the King Kong and Godzilla films from this millennia.

Plot: A mysterious creature attacks a Japanese fishing vessel and soon makes landfall in New York City, leaving a trail of destruction and confusion. Dr. Tatopoulos is brought in to study the beast, which turns out to be a mutated iguana born of nuclear testing. As the military scrambles to contain the threat, Niko discovers that Godzilla is nesting — laying eggs that could unleash a new generation of monsters. The film becomes a race against time to stop the creature and its offspring before Manhattan becomes a permanent reptilian habitat.

So, how’s the movie? The acting? The filming / FX? Any problems? And, did I enjoy the film? Short answers: okay to good; serviceable; flashy but dated; many; sort of.

Any good? Better than expected (or remembered), but not really the Godzilla I grew up with. “Godzilla” (1998) is a film that wants to be a “tent-pole” for a series, but ends up as more of a bigger T-Rex Jurassic Park. It borrows heavily from “Jurassic Park” and “Aliens” but lacks the insight or depth of either. The creature design is more T-Rex sized velociraptor than kaiju, and the tone veers between disaster flick and slapstick farce – mostly at the expense of the military. It’ll be a disappointing film if you’re a fan of the original Japanese franchise.

Acting: Broderick plays Niko with his usual affable awkwardness, but he’s miscast as a leading man in a monster movie. Reno adds some dry humor and gravitas, though his character feels parachuted in from a different film. Pitillo’s Audrey is underwritten and often reduced to a plot device. Azaria brings energy, but his comic relief sometimes undercuts the tension. Kevin Dunn’s Colonel Hicks is the standard military skeptic, while Doug Savant’s Sergeant O’Neal is one of the few characters who feels grounded — he’s competent, calm, and actually pays attention. The ensemble is fine, but no one really stands out. You’re here for the monster, not the humans — and unfortunately, even the monster feels underdeveloped.

Filming / FX: The visual effects were cutting-edge in 1998 and they’re still pretty serviceable. Godzilla’s design is sleek but generic, lacking the mythic presence of its Japanese counterpart. The destruction scenes are loud and chaotic, but rarely suspenseful. The nighttime rain-soaked aesthetic tries to mask the CGI seams, but the creature’s movements often feel weightless. The baby Godzillas in Madison Square Garden seem clearly inspired by raptors from “Jurassic Park“, but the sequence plays more like a campy take-off than a serious monster film.

Problems: Plenty. This version of Godzilla simply isn’t the correct size of the old days. The plot tries to make the film about people and forgets to keep the camera on the money. The film sidelines its own mythology, turning Godzilla into a misunderstood animal rather than a symbol of nuclear reckoning. The military is portrayed as both incompetent and trigger-happy, and the romantic subplot feels forced. Traditionally, Godzilla was never really interested in people – eating or chasing. He (it) was only a problem because it was so big and lumbering, it just laid waste to any city it entered. Worst of all, the film lacks tension when Godzilla is not on screen and those are big chunks of the film.

Did I enjoy the film? Yes! There’s a certain 90s charm to the excess — explosions, one-liners, and a soundtrack that screams “MTV era.” But as a “Godzilla” film, it misses the mark. It’s more disaster porn than monster movie, and it trades / loses “something” (depth?) by going for spectacle and people (relationships). Still, if you’re in the mood for something loud, silly, and vaguely nostalgic, it might scratch the itch. It scratched mine…

Final Recommendation: High moderate to low strong recommendation. “Godzilla” (1998) is a cautionary tale in franchise adaptation — how not to reimagine a cultural icon. If you’re a kaiju fan, stick with the original Toho films or the more recent Legendary reboot. If you’re just looking for a creature feature with explosions and quips, this might do the trick. It worked for me…

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Click here (10 October) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.