GODZILLA VS KONG (2021)

GODZILLA VS KONG (2021)

Tagline:  One Will Fall

(Action, SciFi, Kaiju) [PG-13]

In this one, we find out that not only is Kong on Skull Island, but he is being kept there on purpose and he’s pissed about it. Seemingly Kong’s only friend is a small girl with who he can communicate with named Jia. Meanwhile, Godzilla is inexplicably becoming destructive after a long period of getting along pretty well with humanity. As events unfold a race has begun for world dominance, man, Kong, and Godzilla are on a course for the ultimate kaiju battle. 

I am purposely not giving away big plot details that couldn’t have been picked up from the previews, but overall if you came for the ultimate Godzilla vs Kong smackdown, this movie has one of the best few Kaiju battles in kaiju history. 

Story-wise we get some awesome introductions to some ideas investigated in GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS, having said that this movie is actually missing a bit in the story department. While I was able to follow what was going on, the movie lacks any character development and moves along at such a quick pace it’s difficult to get as emotionally involved as perhaps we might have in the first three films in the series. This isn’t something that is uncommon in Godzilla movie history however, the first KING KONG VS GODZILLA movie literally didn’t even really have a story at all. What isn’t lacking is the actual acting. Millie Bobby Brown returns as Madison Russel and gets a fair amount of screen time. She hasn’t missed a beat and is just as brave and defiant as she was the last time we saw her. Rebecca Hall is solid as Ilene Andrews and the little girl Kaylee Hottle crushes it as Jia.

On the downside, I did miss Kyle Chandler in this one as Mark Russel because he, unfortunately, takes a back seat to Alexander Skarsgård who plays Nathan Lind. For me, this wasn’t the best choice because I really liked Chandler in GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS. Alexander was okay, but not an upgrade.  I did like Julian Dennison as Firefist in DEADPOOL 2, but in this movie, he’s almost more annoying than it’s worth. We also don’t get a ton of Monarch in this one meaning that some of the main characters from GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS are not in this. 

Cinematically this thing is just mind-blowing in some scenes, but there are also some shots that are unnecessarily too close up. Regarding the design work, I think we actually get better kaiju designs in other movies, this doesn’t mean they are bad, but visually we’ve seen better work on Godzilla for instance. Some people have an issue with the fact that King Kong is now almost Godzilla’s size as if they somehow believe they have an understanding of radioactive physiology. For me, this is a terrible and nonsensical complaint.
 

This movie does move fast even though it’s longer than the original battle (KING KONG VS GODZILLA) by 16 minutes. After about the first 30 minutes it feels like this thing is punching you in the gut 50 times a minute. GODZILLA VS KONG regarding the battles is ridiculously satisfying and outdoes one big issue people had with BATMAN VS SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE. I also like that Godzilla is freakin powerful when he’s pissed, but no so overbearingly powerful that it’s ridiculous. 

Overall this is a heart-pounding kaiju romp with lots of cool concepts that you will need to check your brain at the door for. Both King Kong and Godzilla fans should be thrilled. I love this damn thing and give it a 7 out of 7 with no reservations but for me GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS was a more complete film.

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