The summer movie season kicks off officially this weekend as “Godzilla” roars its way into thousands of theaters across the country.

For months (almost a year, in fact) teasers for the film have touted the tag line “Size does matter” to get us all suitably worked up to see Hollywood’s latest event film.

Of course, the old saying is size doesn’t matter, it’s how you use what you’ve got that counts. (Guys like me want to believe in that statement wholeheartedly, but that’s not a topic for discussion here.) “Godzilla” proves the old saying is largely true.

The movie features a 400-or-so foot tall nuclearly mutated iguana on a rampage through New York City. The monster is almost too big. We don’t often get a look at the whole creature.

Mostly what we see are shots of Godzilla’s huge feet crushing another cab, or its tails knocking out big chunks of office buildings. Lots and lots of feet and tail shots.

A shroud of secrecy has surrounded what exactly Godzilla would look like. Well, it looks pretty much like you thought it would look like: a giant lizard.

There are, of course, a few modifications, like the creature’s abilities to walk on all fours or its hind legs and a jutting chin almost reminiscent of Jay Leno.

There are humans in “Godzilla,” too. I could complain about lack of character development or a weak plot line, but what would be the point?

Matthew Broderick does an admirable job as a scientist determined to understand Godzilla. His ex-girlfriend and reporter-wannabe is played by the extremely cute and spunky Maria Pitillo. And it’s nice to see Hank Azaria, a gifted comedic actor, getting some screen time in a huge movie like this one as a news cameraman.

The real scene-stealer is Jean Reno as a French secret service agent and his search for a decent cup of coffee. Yes, for the movie to work you have to buy that the French are the ones really on the ball, as the American Army, apparently populated by idiots, does more damage to the Big Apple than Godzilla does.

Destruction is what a movie like “Godzilla” is all about. We go ’cause we want to see things blow up, fall down and get destroyed. On that count, this movie delivers. No more home games for the Knicks, since Madison Square Gardens explodes.

The army accidentally blows the art deco top off the Chrysler building when Godzilla ducks away from an errant missile. And forget a shopping spree down 5th Avenue — Sak’s, Macy’s and all the rest are pretty much rubble.

For me, the movie didn’t really get going until the second half, after the hatching, and there were lots of little Godzillas running around.

Yes, I saw this when it was called “Jurassic Park,” but the scenes of Godzilla’s young chasing people around Madison Square Gardens are fun. After the young ones hatch, the energy level for the rest of the movie remains high after a relatively slow start up.

One minor complaint — there aren’t any dead people in “Godzilla.” When he steps down, I want to see mangled bodies under his foot, like in “King Kong.”

Call me morbid, but the movie gives you the impression no one was actually killed by the giant rampaging lizard, even as it jumps through office buildings.

I guess this makes it easier to sympathize with the great beast. After all, Godzilla isn’t evil, it’s just a big, hungry, sushi-loving lizard out to protect its young.

The humans just want to destroy what they don’t understand. The irony here — people created this monster with their nuclear testing.

There’s probably a tree-hugging environmental lesson in there somewhere, but it’s lost in all of the rubble.

Now, we all know a film like “Godzilla” is more than a mere movie these days; it’s a franchise.

We all know there is going to be a sequel (in fact, rumor has it Broderick is contracted to do two more) but that doesn’t excuse the “to be continued” sign the filmmakers stuck on the end of this movie. Not literally, of course, but that would have been more subtle then what they did.

Of course, whoever goes to “Godzilla” expecting subtlety is a fool. This movie is a smashing good time — literally.

3 1/2 stars out of five

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Mike Milik is a senior in advertising from West Des Moines.