So I'm a big Godzilla fan, and I've seen all of them all the way back to the original. I've got to say out of every one of them, this has hit my #1. The plot/story is very simple and easy to follow. Our main character that we follow has fantastic character development along with great supporting characters. The visual effects are superb, especially for a movie with only a $15 million budget. It is a great step Toho did to show you can create a 5/5 movie without the budget of a small nation, which is a gut punch to the bloated Hollywood. Personally, I think if you aren't a Godzilla fan, this would be the film to make you one! I think everyone should be able to relate in some fashion to at least one character in this film, which is probably why the reviews prior to me watching it was so high. Thank you, Toho, for going back to the original movin concept and making this movie happen!

A tremendous take on Zilla. The family storyline is so admirable and rich, it leaves you wanting those human connections. It's a treacherous battle of emotional impacts that stings the inner spirit of the lead character. Female chara had such a warm bliss, crucial to the emotional human story. The city shots and the destruction was insanity. Viewed in IMAX, roars and instruments hit the core!!!

Come for the skyline-destroying radioactive dino, stay for the delicately etched portrait of recovery and self-forgiveness. Or vice versa. Just don’t miss the chance to remind yourself why the world fell for Godzilla in the first place.

Dana Stevens

Slate

The enduring quality of the 1953 original is rooted in its engagement with the twin atomic disasters of Nagasaki and Hiroshima. This prequel, similarly, yokes American imperialism, postwar malaise, survivor guilt and weaponised atomic power to produce the best action film of the year.

It’s precision-tooled in terms of structure, almost to the point of airlessness, but you’d be hard-pressed to knock back the final 45-minute showdown as anything less than an impressive feat by a filmmaker orchestrating and charting the fine processes of an epic battle.