This film begins a few years post the alliance between the titans Godzilla and Kong. Godzilla is protecting the surface of the planet and mankind from attacks from other Titans.
Published Date – 29 March 2024, 10:25 PM
Hyderabad: In a universe where we have monsters smashing up one another and making their own alliances, the best thing is an orange ape almost the size of Kong’s forearm. A good example of big is not always better.
On the one hand, you have Godzilla Minus One winning an Oscar for visual effects and Monarch proving a point that one can have compelling human characters in the midst of warring monsters and titans. On the other, you have Godzilla x Kong The New Empire – one the best in the monsterverse.
This film begins a few years post the alliance between the titans Godzilla and Kong. Godzilla is protecting the surface of the planet and mankind from attacks from other Titans. Kong is exploring his new territory in the Hollow Earth and keeping monsters from travelling to the surface. After one such escapade between Godzilla and another monster Titan Scylla, a Monarch observation outpost stationed in the Hollow Earth picks up an unidentified signal.
On the Earth’s surface, the same signal causes Jia (Kaylee Hottle), the last member of the Iwi tribe, to experience hallucinations and flashbacks. Jia’s hallucinations cause her adopted mother Dr. Ilene Andrews (Rebecca Hall) to approach Bernie Hayes (Brian Tyree Henry), Trapper (Dan Stevens) and Mikael (Alex Ferns) to travel to the Hollow Earth to find out the cause. It soon turns out that Kong needs an alliance with Godzilla to save Hollow Earth and then the whole planet from the evil Skar King.
This outing has something for the fans of both Kong and Godzilla. Director Adam Wingard ensures a level playing field for both Titans. He gets it right in terms of action, the VFX, and the screentime for all characters including the humans.
The scene where the orange ape helps Kong or the scene where Godzilla rests in the Colosseum are bound to bring cheers from the audience. The movie is not about the humans but surprisingly perform very well in the limited time that they have. It is about the monsters and some jaw dropping VFX. This is one of those instances where the introduced interval seems longer than the 115-minute outing.
This is a clash built not only for the fans but for those willing to give it a try. This is not only a monster mayhem – this is more. Having said so, if you are looking something resembling a nuanced plot or a story about human relationships, you will be disappointed. This is not that kind of a movie. This is not that kind of a monsterverse.
Though you would want a little more screentime for both Rebecca Hall and Kaylee Hottle they hold their ground in the limited screentime. Surprisingly, it is the mini ape that steals the show. He is cunning, sad, manipulative, brave, lovable, and cute. Kudos to the VFX team.
Go for it. This circus is definitely a dekho for those who want something more than the cricket circus.
