Review

Did you want to know more about the history of King Kong or the people on Skull Island? You did, oh that’s too bad. Did you want to catch up with the characters from the previous Godzilla and Kong movies? Oh. Did you like the nuanced and connected stories about the interactions between titans and humans? Oh, you liked that? Well, did you want to see a giant ape fight a radioactive lizard? Excellent, ‘cause that’s what we’ve got.

Godzilla is hurting people and we don’t know why. Instead of trying to figure out why, let’s use Kong to lead us to a special power in the centre of the earth. Why Kong? Because salmon swim upstream. Why do we need the power? Don’t you worry about that. Let us worry about that. Does that sound silly to you? It does to me. After the good story in “Kong: Skull Island” and excellent story in “Godzilla: King of the Monsters”, “Godzilla VS Kong” is a big disappointment falling back down to the level of the 2014 movie. It is exciting and kind of interesting, but the continuity and originality drop big time. There are so many small inconsistencies and a few real big ones that just suck. Maybe I came into this movie with my expectations too high, but it’s sad to see the Monsterverse fall.

It’s a good thing the film looks amazing. Godzilla and Kong are fantastic and it’s difficult to imagine how they could possibly look any better. With great battles in full daylight and in the dramatic neon of Hong Kong at night, this movies looks so good. The only drawback is a couple spin shots that stop just before motion sickness.

The sound is also superb. Just like “King of the Monsters” my living room was a theatre surrounded by bellows, blasts and the surprisingly evocative thumping of Kong’s heart.

Violence and gore wise this one lands pretty close to “King of the Monsters” and much less than “Skull Island”. The majority of the violence is between monsters and although lots of humans die, most do so off screen. The’ve toned down the language a little from “King of the Monsters” and “Skull Island” and feels a more comfortable PG-13.

“Godzilla VS Kong” is what most people expect from a monster movie and not what a monster movie can be. I give it a disappointed 7/10. It’s a good movie, but I had hoped for more. My favourite Godzilla is still “King of the Monsters”.

Purchase links:

4K - https://amzn.to/3qWO9Ff

Bluray, DVD Combo Pack - https://amzn.to/3dGHR74