Storytelling- 8/10
Characters- 8/10
Dialouge- 7/10
Direction- 10/10
Music- 10/10
Action and adrenaline- 9/10
VFX- 10/10
Cinematography- 9/10
Battle sequences- 10/10
Production design- 10/10
Sound design- 9/10
Music- 10/10
Rating- 9.1
This is the 5th instalment of the monster verse franchise, where we witness two iconic monsters come together for a fearsome battle. The action and adrenaline are at the highest peak. It promises everything you want to see in a monsterverse film- action, adrenaline, drama and emotions. Cinema is definitely a roller coaster ride, and this movie proves that. It keeps your heart thumping at the highest peak. This film can make you hyped, scared and waiting for the next big thing. The film looks like a universal studio ride, where you are inside the film and riding with the characters. The Imax 3D version is awesome! It gives a feel that Godzilla and Kong are reaching out of the theatres towards you with a big bang. You will love it when you see it in PVR Saket.
The Imax experience is wonderful. Ever since its birth, audiences have been demanding it more, due to its crazy enhanced spectacle. For this film, its wow! This film really changes the landscape of the 3D experience, like you are sitting in a 3D theme park ride , watching your favourite monsters fight and you go along with the ride. Cinema is a ride for sure. The ones who have not watched it in Imax have missed the experience of it. It is a wonderful family experience. It even has a lot of scares and goosebumbs. You can feel it when you watch it in Imax. One of the best Imax experience is, when Godzilla and Kong team up for an epic battle. This is where the ride goes on !
The theatre became a marathon with this film. A fun madness moment never seen before ! So many claps and screams. The film definitely wows the audience, but it also makes them scared and gripped in a few scenes. The cheer marathon begins when, Godzilla in act 1 emerges out of the sea to battle a giant spider. The audiences cheer like wow! And there is celebration and fun, like watching a cricket match. The biggest celebrated reaction is when Godzilla jumps high from a pyramid on Kong. There is so much excitement and fun. There are also some emotional crying moments. Even some gripping dark moments with your heartbeat fastening. Another biggest cheer marathon is when- Godzilla rises out the Arctic sea with his new form. The gripping moment is when, we are introduced to the frost beast and the Skar King. His appearance enhances up the heartbeat level. The heavy amount of excitement is felt when Godzilla and Kong team up for an epic battle.
There are so many badass scenes in Godzilla and Kong that makes you don’t want to leave the theatres. Here is a list of the best scenes I ever saw-
i. Godzilla fighting a spider titan.
ii. Skar King fighting Kong.
iii. Exploring hollow earth.
iv. Godzilla and Kong team up.
v. The pyramid fight.
vi. The gauntlet.
vii. The frost giant- Shimo.
viii. Godzilla rising from the ice in Antarctica.
ix. The return of MOTHRA.
The characters in the film have a very unique role.
Kong-
• Protector and guardian of Hollow Earth.
• Living a normal life.
• He traces the source of a strange signal.
• He befriends a tiny ape.
• He meets with the skull king.
• They have a duel.
• Kong encounters Shimo-frost beast.
• He is almost killed by the creature.
• Kong confronts Godzilla and they team up for a big war.
Godzilla-
• He has a minimum role in the story.
• He is the helper of Kong.
• He gains a new kind of radiation to help Kong.
Skar King-
• He is a cruel tyrannical ruler.
• He has the arc of Genghis Khan and Allahuddhin Khilji.
• He is a barbaric leader who forces his apes to do the dirty work.
• He tortures the apes to death.
• He forces his people to go to war with the surface world, even if they don’t want to.
• He uses a bone like whip to torture his slaves.
Jia-
• She struggles to fit in the real world.
• She believes the normal world is not her kind of place.
• She decides to be among her people in Hollow Earth.
• She has visions of an upcoming battle, which makes her a key character.
Dr Andrews-
• She is the new mother of Jia.
• She is also a researcher in Hollow Earth.
• She loves Jia more dearly than anyone.
• She is unable to let go of Gia, because of her fear of losing her.
• Ultimately she admits it.
Mothra-
• She has a very special role in the film.
Berney-
• He serves as the helper.
• He helps Dr Andrews crack a code.
• He is also a jokester.
Trapper-
• He is an ace pilot.
• He knows a lot about aerial technology.
• He uses the teleportation device to reach Hollow Earth.
Shimo-
• The tortured pet of the Skar King.
• He is enslaved and forced to do the ruler’s dirty work.
• He is hypnotised by the ruler’s staff.
The film properly follows the process of the 3 act structure.
ACT 1- the signal
THE MONTAGE- Kong and Godzilla live different lives.
ROLE- Kong is protector of Hollow Earth and Godzilla is the defender of earth.
A MOTHER- Dr Andrews is now a mother to Gia.
THE INCITING INCIDENT- Gia has strange visions of an upcoming future war.
THE INVESTIGATION- Dr Andrews tries to find the source of the signal.
THE DANGER- An unknown entity destroys Hollow Earth.
THE MYSTERY- Dr Andrews discovers blood like hands over a mountain. She learns they are not Kong’s
THE ADVENTURE- Kong traces the source of the signal coming from underneath Hollow Earth.
THE TEAM- Dr Andrews hires a team to help her venture into Hollow Earth.
ACT 2- the journey
THE ADVENTURE- Kong discovers a hidden cave underneath Hollow Earth. He goes in all by himself.
THE HELPER- Jia and Andrews decide to teleport to Hollow earth and help Kong.
VENTURING INTO UNKNOWN TERRITORY- Kong finds himself surrounded by a few crystalized rocks.
A NEW DISCOVERY- It is revealed there is another island underneath Hollow Earth.
A NEW HOMEWORLD- Kong discovers a new kind of apes living underneath. They attack him and strangle him.
A NEW SIDEKICK- Kong encounters Mini-Kong. He guides him to the source of the signal.
Kong faces more obstacles to get to the signal.
SUB -PLOT- Their bond is shown throughout the film.
MIDPOINT/ ENCOUNTERING THE VILLAIN- Kong encounters the SKAR KING. They both fight.
JIA’S MIDPOINT- Jia encounters her IWI people.
GODZILLA’S MIDPOINT- Godzilla attacks a creature and gains its powers for the upcoming battle.
THE DUEL- Skar King and Kong have a duel and whoever wins, brings war/ peace to the surface world.
THE BIG THREAT- Shimo shows up and attacks Kong. He freezes his hand.
THE DEFEAT- Kong is left outmatched by the Skar King and his pet.
THE WAR- The Skar King assembles an army to wage war on the surface world.
THE GOAL- The Skar King wants to become the ruler of Hollow Earth and the Surface World.
IN THE WEAK ZONE- Kong’s arm is wounded by Shimo.
THE STEP- Jia takes the step to become the leader of the IWI tribe.
THE LOSS- Dr Andrews becomes emotion as she has to give up her daughter for her people.
A NEW WEAPON- Kong is given a new gauntlet to fight the Skar King.
ACT 3- the war
THE UNFRIENDLY DUEL- Kong calls Godzilla for help. But, Godzilla attacks him.
THE CONVINCE- Kong tries to convince Godzilla to help him end the war that’s coming.
THE BIG HELP- MOTHRA shows up and guides Kong and Godzilla in working together.
THE TEAM UP- Kong and Godzilla team up to put an end to the SKAR KING’S reign.
THE FIGHT- Kong fights the SKAR KING and Godzilla fights Shimo.
THE STAKES- Godzilla and Kong are teleported to Brazil, where they have a big fight. Buildings begin to crush.
There is also a big twist and epic fun in the last scene, you have never seen before.
The cinematography in the film is awesome. The use of close ups and wide shots gives an epic feel of the emotion and action. The tilt camera shots make you dive into the world of Hollow Earth. The slow mo shots elevate the fun and adrenaline of the film. It is the wow of an epic spectacle. The POV shot of the ship diving into Hollow Earth makes you feel you are in a roller coaster ride. One of the best shots is, the extreme close up shot of the SKAR KING generating scare and tension. Another is the low angle shot of Godzilla rising out of the ice, injecting a lot of amazement, fun and enjoyment. There are also artistic meaning in each shots, such as, when the SKAR KING is introduced in silhouette, it depicts him as a darker being with a strange vendetta of his own. The fog shots depict how you can’t sense the evil near you, but it manages to get you. Another heart-beating shot is, the zoom in close up of SHIMO, when he opens his eyes. It brings in the creeps and keeps your heartbeat raised.
The VFX in the film is awesome. Hence, the entire landscape and character is computer generated, leaving the human characters. This is the first monster verse film to use heavy CG elements , like Avatar. The VFX team did best in giving human like expressions to Kong. His expressions serve his character growth and change. He is even pretty realistic than an animated figure. One great VFX element is the animation and expression of Mini-Kong. It makes the audience deeply care for him. Whereas Godzilla’s animation is pure fun and detailed. The best CG animation is SKAR KING. The way he walks and expresses makes him real and scarier. Another best CG element is, Kong and Godzilla battling their enemies. Including the serpent fight.
There are few flaws in the film, only little. One flaw is, when the human characters speak dialogues that don’t serve the story. Another flaw is, when there are a few scenes that confuse us the most and humans having no arc. Third flaw is when, the story falls flat in the middle for action extravaganza. For eg- the serpent battle. 4th Flaw- some little scenes lack some adrenaline and artistic purpose. Rest is all fine.
Overall it is a wonderful film. It heavily fixates itself on storytelling. But, it is not the franchise’s best, but good. I think it can be more better, with the extensive hyped adrenaline and wanting to go for more. Otherwise its awesome !