Two of cinema’s most popular monsters battle it out in Legendary Studio’s newest Monsterverse flick. Photo: Legendary Studios.
There’s just something about history’s most iconic movie monster and cinema’s most famous ape punching each other that brings me joy.
Does it make sense? No, not at all but, is it awesome? Yes – 100 times yes!
So when the sequel to the stupidly awesome Godzilla vs Kong finally hit cinemas late last week, I was among the first in line to see what madness Legendary Studios had in store for its newest Monsterverse flick, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.
If you’re looking for a clear-cut answer on whether this movie is good or bad, I can’t give you that and personally, I don’t think that’s what matters. What does, is just how much nonsense you’re willing to accept in the name of fun viewing.
If you’re after a serious meta-narrative about nuclear fallout and the serious threat weapons of mass destruction have in today’s age, this isn’t it. Go watch Godzilla Minus One instead, it’s fantastic and it will suit your fancy.
But, if you’re after a giant ape riding an even bigger lizard while wielding a magic axe all in an attempt to stop another huge monkey that uses a space whip to control an ice monster, Godzilla x Kong is the way to go.
It’s a high-budget popcorn flick through and through, something the saturated movie industry needs more of. We don’t need 10 comic book movies a year all trying to set up franchises, or melancholic yet censored biopics that make a billion dollars. Sometimes audiences just want to have fun and it shows because in less than a week, this movie passed $200 million.
Critics haven’t been kind to the film and it’s not entirely fair. Sometimes critics can miss the point of a movie and in Godzilla x Kong’s case, it’s just to have fun, not to be the next Godfather.
There are a few negatives. Aside from Dan Stevens and Brian Tyree Henry’s characters, the human roles are an absolute snooze fest and some plotlines come out of thin air.
The movie clearly has more planned for Kong than it does for Godzilla as well. Kong’s on more of a journey while Godzilla feels like he’s asleep until needed.
It takes a little to get to the action as well. For some reason, much like the most recent Transformers and Alien movies, studio executives think viewers care more about human characters. We don’t! Let the big, expensive CGI characters hit each other!
Ultimately there’s no real story here either and when it pretends there is, it’s the most boring part of the film.
All of this can easily be ignored once the action starts. In one scene, Godzilla suplexes Kong and I audibly cheered. That’s the level of pure ridiculousness we’re dealing with.
The crazy heights of this film completely outshine any negatives.
Will it be the best movie of 2024? No. But it will be one of the most loved by casual moviegoers and it’s completely understandable why.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is an absolute blast, a breath of fresh air for a rather rubbish start to movies in 2024. Some will love it, others will hate it. But I recommend it to anyone looking to have a little bit of fun.
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