I tried to watch this a few years back and thought the opening CGI was straight trash. During that time I had been watching a TV show called "True Blood" and thought it was ok. That is likely what encouraged me to even bother with this one since monster movies are not really my thing.
Seeing your words though I guess I made the correct decision by switching it off.
I think I know what explosion scene you are referring to. I think the total budget for this one was relatively low, something like $20 million and once you deduct what they had to pay Hawke and Dafoe, there probably wasn't a lot left over.
I enjoyed "True Blood" but like a lot of series it carried on too long and it was right about the time that Sookie found out she is a fairy and just everyone had magical powers of some sort that the show lost its edge and I tuned out. I still don't know how it ended, probably with a whimper.
I looked it up, yes the budget was exactly $20 million. That being the case, this movie looks really good. Perhaps the main stars accepted a pay cut... who knows