While many long-running American media franchises are facing dwindling financial returns in recent outings due to what many moviegoers are often perceiving as quantity over quality or perhaps being so far removed from the original creator’s visions that fans cannot even recognize the series they grew to love as kids. Despite all the obstacles, Japanese entertainment company Toho’s almost 70 year-plus Godzilla series has managed to become more relevant than ever with merchandise selling all over the states in the past several years.
Godzilla in Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire (2024), Warner Bros. Pictures
I recall back in 2010 becoming a Godzilla fan at a time where the franchise was known for a hokey nostalgic appeal, but was seen as far too niche for common movie goers. The award-winning Godzilla series was often hailed for its deep political messages against nuclear war and fun monster action in Japan, but state side, the series often failed to see a comparable financial turnout.
However, all of this would change in 2014 with director Garreth Edwards and his 2014 success Godzilla (2014). This film would kick start a new series of American-made Godzilla movies that would become part of a greater cinematic universe shared with the King Kong series at a time when “Cinematic Universes” in movies were seen as a “bold” new concept as opposed to now, where many audiences are starting to see the trend of watching several movies and shows more as “homework” and many new films often coming off as 2-hour trailers for the “next installment.”
Despite the recent financial failures of the cinematic universes of Marvel and DC, Godzilla has finally hit the public zeitgeist in the West with several financial successes in Warner Bros’ “Monsterverse” series.
King Kong in Godzilla X Kong: New Empire (2024), Legendary Pictures
Godzilla films can be extremely tricky to review without spoilers, due to how many of the films rely on how exciting the third act of the film is from as far back as the movies of the 50s and 60s to the most recent entries in the “Monsterverse” series, some things never seem to change.
There will be a spoiler section with my overall thoughts on the third act and a more concise summary for those moviegoers “on the fence” on seeing this newest entry.
Ok, I’ll start off being blunt, I hate the effects in this movie. I respect the people involved in making this big production and it is nothing personal towards their achievements, but movies are at a point where big CGI monster fights do not land like they did a decade ago. They can somehow feel more “fake” because CGI can do basically anything. Complaining about an overuse of CGI is basically me being the “old man yells at cloud” meme at this point, but more and more we are seeing a rejection of these “Big CGI effect Fests” that lack soul and need more heart.
Godzilla in Godzilla X Kong: New Empire (2024), Legendary Pictures
Godzilla Minus One shocked the world with how it managed to turn a “thirty-something movie entry” CGI monster movie into a heartfelt, dramatic film that left the viewer on the edge of their seat at almost every turn, all on a very small budget compared to Hollywood standards, which unfortunately also seems to include Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.
Minus One made every CGI scene “impactful and creative” with its mixture of CGI and practical effects, GxK: The New Empire has many wonderful ideas and surprising twists, in particular the third act, but it can’t make up for how “inauthentic” everything feels. There is a feeling far more charming with the older Godzilla movies where the filmmakers were challenged to do creative film techniques to get their vision as close to reality as possible.
The CGI can do almost anything, yet can leave the viewer, somehow, feeling far more empty. The film doesn’t feel real, not in a realistic sense, realism left this franchise back in the 1950s, but it doesn’t feel “real” in the sense that it is missing that sense of “illusion” that bridges that “perfect gap” between the movie and the imagination of the viewer watching. It’s a phenomenon that is far greater than how much detail can be added to a lizard or an ape. I’ve played video games that lack the detail, but still have that extra charm needed to build a “fantasy-like” connection with this fictional world and GxK: The New Empire just never seemed to transport me to that world it wanted me to “live in”, which is the most important part.
Godzilla and Kong in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024), Warner Bros. Pictures
What can make up for average effects that look like most modern-day blockbusters is a unique captivating story that takes the franchise in new directions while staying true to what fans love. This film does half of that, it stays true to what Godzilla means to its most passionate fans who will buy the merchandise. I already bought Godzilla-themed chocolate bars prior to the show, but the film fails at having a unique story.
The film’s plot is “Big, Stupid and Cheesy” as I call it, but that’s not always a bad thing. The plot makes as much sense as the cheesier Godzilla films in the 60s, it’s only missing the charming monster movie suits to wrap everything with a nice, theoretical, bow. Honestly, I think this is the cheesiest movie since both 1973’s Godzilla vs Megalon and 1964’s Ghidorah the Three-Headed Monster. The first featured a robot humanoid that would grow in size, complete with a cheesy vocalized theme song, and the second featured little fairies “translating” the monster’s opinions on each other and life.
The Scar King in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024), Warner Bros. Pictures
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire seems to attempt to recapture that “old school” Godzilla cheese and I believe it succeeded in many elements, but effects. The characters are a lot of fun and my friend and I found ourselves laughing several times during the show. Personally, laughing out loud several times to where I was afraid I was being too loud for the rest of the audience.
Human scenes have finally gotten much better in Godzilla movies after inconsistent characters and stories in many of the older Godzilla movies, but the characters can only do so much to save a very “by the books” story.
Overall, the plot feels very much like a video game story, in which it is very basic, but it has fantastic characters to keep the viewer or player caring. There were unexpected elements that happened in the story, which was refreshing in an age of “the trailer gives away everything”. The pacing was good, which will hopefully keep viewers old and new entertained with something fun always around the bend.
The Scar King in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024), Warner Bros. Pictures
Godzilla films are often separated by just how good the final “monster mash” of the movie was. I was very happy with the beginning of the third act after a rather lackluster and “by the books” second act. The “sub-zero” type attack on the beach with the music vocals slowly turning into a “vaporwave” type song was pretty original and bringing in Mothra to the final climax was a great decision to keep the monster fight interesting. I do have a Mothra bias as she is one of my favorite characters and this film takes advantage of her character’s appearance, abilities, and presence in the narrative.
The biggest thing I will remember this film for is the “genius” idea of doing a zero gravity type fight for the monsters in the final act/fight. It was a great twist and a concept I had never seen done or accomplished in a Godzilla movie before.
The second half of the “final fight” becomes rather mundane compared to the far more exciting fight against MechaGodzilla in 2021’s Godzilla vs Kong, however, the cool ice concepts of the new Kaiju Shimo make for an entertaining finale. The new little Kaiju Suko isn’t too annoying either compared to Minya in the older Godzilla movies…for the sake of this writer, thank the heavens from which these movies came.
Suko in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024), Legendary Pictures
CGI is a wonderful tool for movie making, but in a Godzilla movie where the side human characters are what makes the movie feel most alive, the over usage of CGI without substance starts feeling like a misstep for making you connect with these giant monsters in what has often been many strange ways over even the most recent of Godzilla films. The characters are fun, but they unfortunately can’t save a Godzilla movie where it feels the “soul” of the monsters just isn’t there.
CGI characters can give a heartfelt connection without realism, we’ve seen this with Paramount’s Sonic the Hedgehog movies. CGI monsters can leave you “speechless,” we’ve seen this with Godzilla Minus One from only a few months ago, but GxK: The New Empire feels like half of a great movie. The human characters are fun, but ironically the monster scenes just can’t “hit the homerun.” However, this twenty-something-year-old can fill in the gaps during the fight scenes on how “it should have been a guy in a suit” or whatever else he finds to whine about and appreciate how the quirky monster scenes can move along this fun movie.
King Kong in Godzilla X Kong: New Empire (2024), Legendary Pictures
What I believe will be the difference maker in how well this film does financially will be if it can land with kids. Marvel is seen as “tired” and Star Wars is currently in a grave of irrelevance until “somehow it can return.” Warner Bros. “Monsterverse” has a prime opportunity to really land with kids like Sonic the Hedgehog and Five Nights at Freddy’s before it, with a solid toy line and great pacing that is sure to be great fun for the younger viewers. If it can land with young movie lovers, the film could be a great success if the studio didn’t break the bank on the budget, and with the CGI effects in this movie, I sure hope they didn’t.
If the film doesn’t vibe with kids for whatever reason or excuse may be, failing to make the landing on a “sillier” movie might be even more impactful for the older fans of these movies, especially in an oversaturated market of “less serious” franchise movies as of late. Thankfully Godzilla seems to adapt to the times and if a darker take is needed again, the franchise should see no issue with winning the hearts of the viewers.
Needless to say, Godzilla has made an impact in the West due to a nearly 70-year history of passionate filmmakers who truly cared about and respected the iconic character. With the many new, more easily accessible, movies finally bringing more attention to the overall franchise.
Godzilla in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024), Legendary Pictures
It is mind-blowing as a long-time fan to now be seeing vinyl action figures in a public book store based off films from Japan that were seen as “niche” in my childhood and early teenage years. Godzilla is finally respected in the West in a franchise that is very true to the character, so in my personal eyes, the “Monsterverse” has succeeded.
While Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is one of the weaker entries in the franchise’s long-running history, I knew the series would be ok, because of Godzilla Minus One’s success. The film is a fun time and is “Big, Stupid and Cheesy.” I am excited to hopefully be seeing this film again with my cousin when he comes back to my state before it leaves the screens because Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is a film worth talking about. While the film falls on expectations set by the legacy and effects standards set by the franchise’s past, it is far from a “tired” entry in a series that “just won’t die,” which is ironic as the King of the Monsters never truly dies.
Godzilla and Kong in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024), Legendary Pictures
What do you think of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire? How would you handle a Godzilla installment? Do you think we will see more “Monsterverse” movies and what would you like to see in a new installment?
NEXT: ‘Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire’ Director Describes Kong And Godzilla’s Relationship As A “Buddy-Cop Dysfunctional Relationship Dynamic” While Sharing New Details About The Movie
While many long-running American media franchises are facing dwindling financial returns in recent outings due to what many moviegoers are often perceiving as quantity over quality or perhaps being so far removed from the original creator’s visions that fans cannot even recognize the series they grew to love as kids. Despite all the obstacles, Japanese entertainment company Toho’s almost 70 year-plus Godzilla series has managed to become more relevant than ever with merchandise selling all over the states in the past several years.
Godzilla in Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire (2024), Warner Bros. Pictures
I recall back in 2010 becoming a Godzilla fan at a time where the franchise was known for a hokey nostalgic appeal, but was seen as far too niche for common movie goers. The award-winning Godzilla series was often hailed for its deep political messages against nuclear war and fun monster action in Japan, but state side, the series often failed to see a comparable financial turnout.
However, all of this would change in 2014 with director Garreth Edwards and his 2014 success Godzilla (2014). This film would kick start a new series of American-made Godzilla movies that would become part of a greater cinematic universe shared with the King Kong series at a time when “Cinematic Universes” in movies were seen as a “bold” new concept as opposed to now, where many audiences are starting to see the trend of watching several movies and shows more as “homework” and many new films often coming off as 2-hour trailers for the “next installment.”
Despite the recent financial failures of the cinematic universes of Marvel and DC, Godzilla has finally hit the public zeitgeist in the West with several financial successes in Warner Bros’ “Monsterverse” series.
King Kong in Godzilla X Kong: New Empire (2024), Legendary Pictures
Godzilla films can be extremely tricky to review without spoilers, due to how many of the films rely on how exciting the third act of the film is from as far back as the movies of the 50s and 60s to the most recent entries in the “Monsterverse” series, some things never seem to change.
There will be a spoiler section with my overall thoughts on the third act and a more concise summary for those moviegoers “on the fence” on seeing this newest entry.
Ok, I’ll start off being blunt, I hate the effects in this movie. I respect the people involved in making this big production and it is nothing personal towards their achievements, but movies are at a point where big CGI monster fights do not land like they did a decade ago. They can somehow feel more “fake” because CGI can do basically anything. Complaining about an overuse of CGI is basically me being the “old man yells at cloud” meme at this point, but more and more we are seeing a rejection of these “Big CGI effect Fests” that lack soul and need more heart.
Godzilla in Godzilla X Kong: New Empire (2024), Legendary Pictures
Godzilla Minus One shocked the world with how it managed to turn a “thirty-something movie entry” CGI monster movie into a heartfelt, dramatic film that left the viewer on the edge of their seat at almost every turn, all on a very small budget compared to Hollywood standards, which unfortunately also seems to include Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire.
Minus One made every CGI scene “impactful and creative” with its mixture of CGI and practical effects, GxK: The New Empire has many wonderful ideas and surprising twists, in particular the third act, but it can’t make up for how “inauthentic” everything feels. There is a feeling far more charming with the older Godzilla movies where the filmmakers were challenged to do creative film techniques to get their vision as close to reality as possible.
The CGI can do almost anything, yet can leave the viewer, somehow, feeling far more empty. The film doesn’t feel real, not in a realistic sense, realism left this franchise back in the 1950s, but it doesn’t feel “real” in the sense that it is missing that sense of “illusion” that bridges that “perfect gap” between the movie and the imagination of the viewer watching. It’s a phenomenon that is far greater than how much detail can be added to a lizard or an ape. I’ve played video games that lack the detail, but still have that extra charm needed to build a “fantasy-like” connection with this fictional world and GxK: The New Empire just never seemed to transport me to that world it wanted me to “live in”, which is the most important part.
Godzilla and Kong in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024), Warner Bros. Pictures
What can make up for average effects that look like most modern-day blockbusters is a unique captivating story that takes the franchise in new directions while staying true to what fans love. This film does half of that, it stays true to what Godzilla means to its most passionate fans who will buy the merchandise. I already bought Godzilla-themed chocolate bars prior to the show, but the film fails at having a unique story.
The film’s plot is “Big, Stupid and Cheesy” as I call it, but that’s not always a bad thing. The plot makes as much sense as the cheesier Godzilla films in the 60s, it’s only missing the charming monster movie suits to wrap everything with a nice, theoretical, bow. Honestly, I think this is the cheesiest movie since both 1973’s Godzilla vs Megalon and 1964’s Ghidorah the Three-Headed Monster. The first featured a robot humanoid that would grow in size, complete with a cheesy vocalized theme song, and the second featured little fairies “translating” the monster’s opinions on each other and life.
The Scar King in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024), Warner Bros. Pictures
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire seems to attempt to recapture that “old school” Godzilla cheese and I believe it succeeded in many elements, but effects. The characters are a lot of fun and my friend and I found ourselves laughing several times during the show. Personally, laughing out loud several times to where I was afraid I was being too loud for the rest of the audience.
Human scenes have finally gotten much better in Godzilla movies after inconsistent characters and stories in many of the older Godzilla movies, but the characters can only do so much to save a very “by the books” story.
Overall, the plot feels very much like a video game story, in which it is very basic, but it has fantastic characters to keep the viewer or player caring. There were unexpected elements that happened in the story, which was refreshing in an age of “the trailer gives away everything”. The pacing was good, which will hopefully keep viewers old and new entertained with something fun always around the bend.
The Scar King in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024), Warner Bros. Pictures
Godzilla films are often separated by just how good the final “monster mash” of the movie was. I was very happy with the beginning of the third act after a rather lackluster and “by the books” second act. The “sub-zero” type attack on the beach with the music vocals slowly turning into a “vaporwave” type song was pretty original and bringing in Mothra to the final climax was a great decision to keep the monster fight interesting. I do have a Mothra bias as she is one of my favorite characters and this film takes advantage of her character’s appearance, abilities, and presence in the narrative.
The biggest thing I will remember this film for is the “genius” idea of doing a zero gravity type fight for the monsters in the final act/fight. It was a great twist and a concept I had never seen done or accomplished in a Godzilla movie before.
The second half of the “final fight” becomes rather mundane compared to the far more exciting fight against MechaGodzilla in 2021’s Godzilla vs Kong, however, the cool ice concepts of the new Kaiju Shimo make for an entertaining finale. The new little Kaiju Suko isn’t too annoying either compared to Minya in the older Godzilla movies…for the sake of this writer, thank the heavens from which these movies came.
Suko in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024), Legendary Pictures
CGI is a wonderful tool for movie making, but in a Godzilla movie where the side human characters are what makes the movie feel most alive, the over usage of CGI without substance starts feeling like a misstep for making you connect with these giant monsters in what has often been many strange ways over even the most recent of Godzilla films. The characters are fun, but they unfortunately can’t save a Godzilla movie where it feels the “soul” of the monsters just isn’t there.
CGI characters can give a heartfelt connection without realism, we’ve seen this with Paramount’s Sonic the Hedgehog movies. CGI monsters can leave you “speechless,” we’ve seen this with Godzilla Minus One from only a few months ago, but GxK: The New Empire feels like half of a great movie. The human characters are fun, but ironically the monster scenes just can’t “hit the homerun.” However, this twenty-something-year-old can fill in the gaps during the fight scenes on how “it should have been a guy in a suit” or whatever else he finds to whine about and appreciate how the quirky monster scenes can move along this fun movie.
King Kong in Godzilla X Kong: New Empire (2024), Legendary Pictures
What I believe will be the difference maker in how well this film does financially will be if it can land with kids. Marvel is seen as “tired” and Star Wars is currently in a grave of irrelevance until “somehow it can return.” Warner Bros. “Monsterverse” has a prime opportunity to really land with kids like Sonic the Hedgehog and Five Nights at Freddy’s before it, with a solid toy line and great pacing that is sure to be great fun for the younger viewers. If it can land with young movie lovers, the film could be a great success if the studio didn’t break the bank on the budget, and with the CGI effects in this movie, I sure hope they didn’t.
If the film doesn’t vibe with kids for whatever reason or excuse may be, failing to make the landing on a “sillier” movie might be even more impactful for the older fans of these movies, especially in an oversaturated market of “less serious” franchise movies as of late. Thankfully Godzilla seems to adapt to the times and if a darker take is needed again, the franchise should see no issue with winning the hearts of the viewers.
Needless to say, Godzilla has made an impact in the West due to a nearly 70-year history of passionate filmmakers who truly cared about and respected the iconic character. With the many new, more easily accessible, movies finally bringing more attention to the overall franchise.
Godzilla in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024), Legendary Pictures
It is mind-blowing as a long-time fan to now be seeing vinyl action figures in a public book store based off films from Japan that were seen as “niche” in my childhood and early teenage years. Godzilla is finally respected in the West in a franchise that is very true to the character, so in my personal eyes, the “Monsterverse” has succeeded.
While Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is one of the weaker entries in the franchise’s long-running history, I knew the series would be ok, because of Godzilla Minus One’s success. The film is a fun time and is “Big, Stupid and Cheesy.” I am excited to hopefully be seeing this film again with my cousin when he comes back to my state before it leaves the screens because Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is a film worth talking about. While the film falls on expectations set by the legacy and effects standards set by the franchise’s past, it is far from a “tired” entry in a series that “just won’t die,” which is ironic as the King of the Monsters never truly dies.
Godzilla and Kong in Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024), Legendary Pictures
What do you think of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire? How would you handle a Godzilla installment? Do you think we will see more “Monsterverse” movies and what would you like to see in a new installment?
NEXT: ‘Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire’ Director Describes Kong And Godzilla’s Relationship As A “Buddy-Cop Dysfunctional Relationship Dynamic” While Sharing New Details About The Movie
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