[usr 3]

After only a week of release worldwide, Godzilla vs. Kong is already roaring its way into the box office overseas, having grossed $70.3 million in China during its opening weekend. The monster film released in the United States on Wednesday, and according to Deadline had a record-breaking opening day for the pandemic, grossing $9.6 million on its premiere date.

A follow-up to both Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) and Kong: Skull Island (2017), Godzilla vs. Kong takes place five years after the events of the former, with Kong living in a dome on Skull Island that’s monitored by Monarch, a secret scientific government agency established to contain dangerous monsters. Meanwhile, Godzilla unexpectedly attacks an Apex Cybernetics facility in Pensacola, Florida. The two monsters clash when the evil tech corporation formulates a plan to fight against Godzilla, which involves traveling to Hollow Earth with Kong to retrieve an energy source that will save the world from Godzilla’s wrath.

So, how was it? Well…it definitely lives up to its title, because you get to see Godzilla and King Kong beat each other up. Other than that, there’s not much else going on. The human characters don’t get enough development, and their conflicts aren’t really that interesting. They just kinda threw in a couple of new characters along with the preexisting ones to expand the Monsterverse. I will say that I loved Jia (Kaylee Hottle), a deaf orphan native living on Skull Island who – initially unbeknownst to her adoptive mother, scientist Ilene Andrews (Rebecca Hall) – can communicate with Kong through sign language, and has a special bond with the giant gorilla that ends up being crucial to the story. The scenes with Jia and Kong were really sweet, and brought a sense of humanity to the monster, showing us that Kong just wants to go home (which he does at the end – Monarch moves Kong to an observation post in Hollow Earth, where he has free reign).

What about the two monsters the film is titled for? They’re really what the hype is all about, and it’s absolutely worth the excitement. The shots of them brawling it out underwater and smashing into skyscrapers are a lot of fun. I loved the aesthetic at the climax of the film, when they were in Hong Kong. The neon, futuristic look to the city set against the night sky was the excellent backdrop for this long-anticipated monster battle, creating lighting that was fun to look at, as well a color palette that went well against the monsters as they shot laser beams at each other and stomped around the city. This epic brawl was like the classic scene that comes to mind when I think of monster movies or kaiju: just a couple of monsters beating each other up in a big city.

My final thoughts on Godzilla vs. Kong? If you’re looking for an action-packed monster movie and think it sounds cool to watch King Kong and Godzilla beat each other up, then this movie is for you. Just a disclaimer, I watched the movie at home on HBO Max, which may have affected my viewing experience. Because it’s really about the action rather than human conflict, I’m willing to bet that my experience might’ve been different if I’d watched the movie on the big screen in a theater, as opposed to the TV in my living room.

[usr 4.5]

The reboot of the original Godzilla brings with it a very eerie feeling. The new Godzilla is explained in a very scientific way, but still leaves room for mystery. Thus, ‘Shin Godzilla’ can also keep interest. Therefore, if the film can keep people watching it must be good, right? That is correct and it is why I am writing this film review for ‘Shin Godzilla.’

This reboot of Godzilla was one that I was looking forward to ever since I heard about it. When I saw the film for the first time, I was confused because usually Godzilla just kind of exists. However, this time Godzilla is a creature that was unknown to the entirety of the public. Thus I was immediately hooked within the first minute of the film. Seeing a Godzilla that evolves before your eyes makes him all that more terrifying. Starting from the beginning, he is not much to look at, but he gets scary.

Even though Godzilla is weak at the start of the film, that does not mean he can’t cause tons of collateral damage. In this film he is back to just a mindless version of himself who is looking for nuclear energy. That motivation is what drives him; that, and survival pushes him to evolve rapidly. We also see how government officials would react in the modern age to something like Godzilla. Not well.

IN THE END

The next time we see Godzilla, he is a walking weapon of mass destruction. Even with advanced weaponry, he is impossible to harm permanently. Therefore, we see people trying to come up with new ways to stop him. As if to prove to us that he is a god, like his namesake, even the plan that does work won’t stop him forever. This is why I think this film is so well executed. It is also the reason why I am writing this film review for ‘Shin Godzilla.’

If you want more information on the film, click here. If you want to see a film similar to this one, try Godzilla:2000 Millennium, an older reboot.

[usr 4.3]

There are a lot of classic horror movies out there in the world, and a lot of them have very similar themes. This movie is no exception to this, however that does not mean that it isn’t an interesting movie to watch. All of the characters, like most people in real life, have something that they try to hide. This is something that is unavoidable, but it doesn’t mean that it is something that should be ignored or forcefully forgotten. Nearing the completion of the film it can be seen that the main theme is to accept your own shortcomings and grief so that you can try and move past them. This film shows that sometimes the best thing to do in situations is to face them head on and sometimes fight like your life depended on it. This is something that can be taken into everyday life; even if you have something go wrong no matter how big or small, you should fight to try and get through it. For me this is the most poignant point that I see being made in this film. If people don’t agree with this, that is fine, but it is advice that should be followed nonetheless. We all have the capacity to fight to make our lives better, and that is shown at the film’s climax. The Ritual is not just some horror movie to me, it is a movie that makes me think about how I should act in my own life, and for that reason I believe it is a film that is worth the watch. That is the true horror that is a result of this film.