Zo's Reviews: Godzilla Vs. Kong

 


GODZILLA Vs. KONG was directed by Adam Wingard and is the installment in the MonsterVerse franchise we've been waiting for...the epic battle between the two Titans, Godzilla and Kong, with humanity (or at least some of it) caught in the middle of it, but something sinister is unfolding in the background and while the two Titans battle, it's up to our human heroes to find out exactly what is happening. Aside from everyone's favorite giant lizard and badass ape, the film stars Alexander Skarsgård, Millie Bobby Brown reprising her role from King of the Monsters, Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Shun Oguri, Eiza Gonzalez, Julian Dennison, Kyle Chandle, Demien Bichir, Kaylee Hottle...and a whole lot of destruction, so let's dive right in!

I won't ruin any of the plot for anyone who hasn't seen it yet, but just know that in typical Godzilla movie fashion, some shady stuff is happening in the background while our two main stars (Godzilla and Kong) are fighting for supremacy. It looks as though Michael Dougherty and Terry Rosio (story by) and director Adam Wingard have learned from the previous films in the franchise and have decided that what people want to see are the monsters doing their thing, and less of the human involvement. That's something that we definitely get with this one, as Kong gets some much needed love while Godzilla just looks like a massive threat the entire time. But while it seems like I absolutely loved this movie with just those opening words...there were some flaws. Let's get into that before I rant more and more on why I loved this movie...

There's very little character development in this movie. You're meant to just kind of shrug and accept that shady business man is probably doing bad things (spoiler) and our "heroes" are just kind of there. Outside of only the handful of characters, there's really nothing else going for it in terms of the humans. They're being used to push the plot forward, but is that really such a bad thing? It's reminiscent of Freddy Vs. Jason where everyone was ready for this title fight between two big slasher icons, and the kids that are getting slaughtered in the movie are just there to push the story forward until we finally get to see the fight we were waiting for (and that fight was OK...maybe I'll review it someday). I would've liked to see a little more of the human actors and their struggles, but it was alright in the end.

As for the good...the fights between Kong and Godzilla and freakin' awesome. They went all out with the CGI and it looked spectacular. The devastation both Titans make when they get to the final battle is intense! The way the cinematographer lit up Hong Kong was pretty cool, too. The whole movie felt like one gigantic adventure as we dive into one city (and world) after another. The love for Kong is present throughout, which I love because I'm definitely Team Kong. The plot and pacing fit pretty well for this kind of film. Junkie XL's musical score is great and he even throws it back to some of the original monster movies. If you don't know what I mean, go watch the original Godzilla film and get back to me. The acting, while cheesy at times, was pretty fun. Especially everything that dealt with Millie Bobby Brown, Julian Dennison (seriously, this kid is funny in everything...) and Brian Tyree Henry who were great. The thing is though, Kaylee Hottle was just adorable, her acting brought the feels for me and allowed me to connect with Kong in ways I never really knew before.

Other than everything I just mentioned, it's a fun movie that brings a ton of excitement and doesn't overwhelm the viewer with anything too serious, the film is action packed, the plot is solid, the visuals are incredible, and we get the title fight we had been waiting for for a long while. I absolutely loved this movie, go check it out it's in theaters now and on HBO Max until August 30th.

FINAL SCORE: A

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