New Godzilla trailer sets online fans abuzz. Meanwhile, in Japan...

“I would not be asking any one of you to take this leap if I did not have complete faith in your ability to succeed.”

 

The upcoming Godzilla film from Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures is not Hollywood’s first stab at Americanizing the popular science fiction monster’s story. If the Internet’s reaction to the first official trailer is any indication, though, it looks like the new film will be a fitting celebration for the reptilian behemoth’s colorful career as multimedia star and pop culture icon.

 

Interestingly enough, reactions from Japan—where Godzilla was born from the feverish mind of scifi director Ishiro Honda in 1954—have been a mixed bag of sorts.

 

 

A mighty, screaming roar

 

Clips of the new Godzilla film were first shown at the San Diego Comic-Con last July, and the initial audience reaction was positive. Science and entertainment website io9 described the creature’s appearance in the film as a “ginormous dark scaly beast with a gaping maw and a mighty screaming roar,” and claimed that the crowd present at the screening was absolutely impressed.

 

When the official trailer was first unveiled to the public on December 10, it was swept up in a sea of mostly positive comments. The trailer quickly went viral, and has now garnered over 7.6 million views.  

Some commenters expressed excitement for the new film, while others were happy with the quality of the production, specifically with regards to the monster's appearance and the sound of the creature’s roar. 

 

Other netizens mentioned Guillermo del Toro’s recent Kaiju-busting blockbuster Pacific Rim, and even joked that the robots should be called in to fight Godzilla.

 

Pop culture blog The Flickering Myth even wrote a "unanimously positive" reaction piece about the trailer. "A lot of kaiju fans were burned with the 1998 American reboot, but perhaps this 2014 attempt will mend those wounds."

  

However, some viewers were less than optimistic, citing Hollywood’s last attempt at a Godzilla movie in 1998 – a film that received generally negative reviews from critics such as Roger Ebert.

 

Forbes, however, seemed less concerned with the film's quality, being more interested in whether the upcoming film can outperform its American predecessor at the box office.

 

Japan’s reactions: varied and interesting

 

Unsurprisingly, Japanese discussion boards have also been filled with reactions about the new Godzilla.  Kotaku.com reported that online Japanese bulletin board 2ch was buzzing with various comments about the trailer.

 

"I can look forward to this more than that tuna-eating Godzilla from before," said one user. 

 

"This seems good. Along with Pacific Rim, it really seems that more than the Japanese film industry, the American movie industry is in full swing with kaiju movies," said another.

 

Another user was looking forward to the movie, “[s]ince Godzilla looks like Godzilla” in the film. 

 

But others didn't seem to have much faith in America’s latest entry in the Japanese franchise, drawing unfavorable comparisons to another US monster film, Cloverfield.

 

"This isn't another pseudo-lizard, is it?" said one skeptic.

 

Meanwhile, others were just plain baffled. “Why is there a Godzilla movie now?” asked one user, who may not have been aware that 2014 will be the 60th anniversary of the monster's first appearance.

 

Directed by Gareth Edwards, the infamous Kaiju will make waves through Philippine theaters on May 15, 2014, and features Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen, Ken Watanabe, Juliette Binoche, Sally Hawkins, David Strathairn, and Bryan Cranston. — TJD, GMA News