Scene breakdown

What are the relationships? This will always guide the emotional tone.
What is the element of trust between the people in the scene? Closely related to relationships however it intensifies the tone precisely because of the nature of the relationships.
What are you trying to communicate? Or rather, what thought in my head am I trying to put into yours?

Edge of Tomorrow

Sloppy beginning then,  got my attention.  Comedic elements were working, then...sloppy middle.  1,000 holes...what? wait! how? where? when...? Relationships between characters completely drowned.  Cool last scene.  89% on rotten tomatoes? Really? Last time I look at that site.  Tom Cruise needs a great comedy to sink his teeth in.  Those were the best moments in the film.

Finally got around to watching Dogtooth

Just when I think I am beginning to know a little, I watch a film that challenges everything. This 2009 greek oscar nominee is an artistic gem.  The acting is subtle, powerful, no funny voices. Except for a few movements, this whole thing was shot in sticks with art work framing.  Give me information or communicate a feeling.  Wow.  Fucking biutiful.

How narrow our genre classifications attempt to pigeonhole movies.  It's a visual art, like all visual arts.   Highly recommend.

Godzilla missed

Except for a few scenes that were PURE MAGIC, (i.e., the parachute shots with the Stanley Kubrick style audio in the back, looking through the goggles, the red dots falling out of the sky...that entire sequence was BEAUTIFUL) Godzilla's script never risked anything for the audience. Frankly, I was let down. This was my childhood monster, the one responsible for the most amazing nightmares I ever had, and in the end, Spielberg still reigns with Jaws and Jurassic Park, as THE monster films of the past 40 years, including War of the Worlds. A great reminder to all of us aspiring filmmakers that perhaps reading the script you might intellectually feel that you have nailed all the text book elements, yet ultimately, there was no emotional connection, because there was none to follow.