by Shane Conto, Staff Writer
Who doesn’t want to see a giant dinosaur and a giant ape fight each other? I know, some might not want to, but come on. When you look up “Popcorn Movie” in the cinematic dictionary, you will most certainly see Godzilla and Kong smirking back at you. The original Gojira had a serious tone with plenty of symbolism. But over the years, Godzilla began fighting such a wide range of crazy and absurd creatures that you could not help but have fun with it. I grew up experiencing all of these films and I have been a lifelong Godzilla fan. Yes, I even saw the 1990s’ American film plenty of times. But the new MonsterVerse has been pretty hit or miss. The action… incredible. The effects… breathtaking. The characters… no. Except for Bryan Cranston, John C. Reilly, and a very select solid supporting characters, the human characters have either been bland and boring or just plain annoying and weird.
But how does Godzilla vs Kong shape up in this equation?
This film flops down right into its recliner and feels extra comfortable in this model that has been set up before. But let’s start with the positives. Adam Wingard is an extremely talented director with a great energy and atmosphere to his films. If you have not experienced the treat that is The Guest, stop reading and go watch it right now. What Wingard brings to this film from a directing standpoint is a vibrance and in-your-face energy that is infectious. The action in this film is big, inspired, and intense. The camera movements are bold as we can get up close to the action and the monsters’ points of view. There are limbs flying, punches thrown, and two big monsters yelling at each other. The effects are almost flawless. I was in awe of how great these beasts look and one particular new place we ventured to is such an incredibly realized set piece. What a crazy new world we get introduced to in this film! We had better get more in the obligatory sequel. Wingard is also very obviously a student of the game as he utilizes some fun homages to films like Die Hard and 2001: A Space Odyssey. But let’s not forget about the bold and bombastic glory that is the score from Junkie XL. Enough said.
But, what about the script?
(Deep sigh)… exactly what you would expect. Similar to the previous film in this franchise, this is a big, dumb movie. If I had a dollar for every time I asked myself a question because of a character choice and a plot point, I could comfortably retire right now at the ripe age of 29. There is a small village of story credits for writers on this film, and it certainly shows. The plot seems to move from place to place for… reasons? Why is this happening? Why are we here? How did we get here? I am starting to sound like a Talking Heads song, but I think you get the point. When the film is confusing, it is filled with so many cliches. You see “twists” coming miles away. The dialogue in this film is not great. Some of the lines were so cringeworthy that I actually rolled my eyes watching it. The exposition was so on the nose with most of the dialogue in the film feeling like forced info and over-explaining. Rebecca Hall’s character spouts so much exposition, including things she could not possibly know, but the audience needs it spelled out so… she magically finds out? To give credit where credit is due, this is a bold film. This film does not shy away from the absurdity of a lot of monster movie ideas and Godzilla mythology. We see crazy introductions from Godzilla lore and just plain silly additions like Kong’s own Stormbreaker, but they are too much fun to not enjoy.
Did this film make an improvement on our human characters?
No. Can I just leave it at that? I guess I could, but I will certainly elaborate. Why is Millie Bobby Brown in this movie? Julian Dennison is a walking disposal of terrible comic relief. Alexander Skarsgard is bland with a forced emotional arc. Brian Tyree Henry had the same type of forced emotional arc, except he was a walking cartoon character. Rebecca Hall is a good actor but she honestly overacts at certain points that are so bad that they took me out of the movie. Eiza González is a walking villainous trope and Demain Bichir is very much the same… even if he chews it up a bit, too. Wait, Kyle Chandler was in this movie? But in all seriousness… Kaylee Hottle. She has such a sweet connection to Kong that I wish she was the only human character in the film. Is it too much to ask for a Godzilla film with just monsters? They are by far the best characters in the film and Kong certainly gets the best acting moments.
But the biggest question has to be… who wins?
While I will certainly not tell you that, there is definitely a winner! In the end, the title is a little misleading (thank you, Warner Bros. for making movies that are supposed to be about two heroes fighting each other, but who don’t actually fight). But who is surprised? Should you check out Godzilla vs Kong? If you want to have a blast and can just ignore the terrible script, you will love this. If you cannot do that, this will be a bumpy ride.
Grade: C