GODZILLA: KING OF THE MONSTERS
Year of Release: 2019
JR's Rating:
(7.2 out of 10, Slightly Good)
JR's Rating:
(7.2 out of 10, Slightly Good)
"The Rise of the Titans"
Note: I highly suggest you don't read my review if you haven't yet watched the movie.
SPOILERS AHEAD! 🚩
Man playing god by supposedly releasing the same titans that ruled the earth for so long doesn't seem to be a good idea especially when they are very humongous and dangerous. Dr. Emma Russell and an eco-terrorist Alan Jonah believe otherwise. They believe the titans are man's last shot at rehabilitating a world of pollution and calamity that was caused by them. Things go out of order when a "Monster Zero" (Ghidorah) is set loose and instead causes a possible apocalypse of the planet. Despite initially viewed as a threat, Godzilla is entrusted by man to defeat and end this monster once and for all proving indeed he is the king of all monsters.
Releasing the titans into the world seems like a Pandora's Box of disaster yet with hope at the very end. That theory proves wrong when one of those they released isn't filled with any sign of hope after all. Man playing god has been contextualized as an ongoing moral issue up to today. Godzilla: King of the Monsters delves into that and makes us wonder how man's inquisitiveness might intervene with the natural and peaceful circle of life.
Godzilla: King of the Monsters did great on three things - cinematography, visual effects and sound. Else, everything didn't really do well for me. The story and screenplay seems lackluster and convoluted because much of the film focused on the battles of the titans. There was nothing to root for with the human characters leaving all our cheers for Godzilla (and Mothra). With that being said, watch Godzilla if you're for monsters fighting monsters or if you want to be awed by amazing visual effects not if you are looking for a substantial story.
Here are some noteworthy points I had on watching "Godzilla: King of the Monsters":
➕ Godzilla
- Godzilla has proven himself time and time again that indeed he is the king of all monsters. Godzilla is impressively shown once more to be that massive creature under the sea ready to fight against another monster who seems to give him a challenge. The outstanding design of Godzilla never fails to impress me even by the second time I'm seeing him.
➕ Mothra
- This you just have to look forward to. Mothra is born from a facility early on but needs to be matured through a cocoon before eventually being the humongous moth-like appearance the titan is known to be. I was filled with awe upon seeing it's massive glowing blue wings when she finally manages to show her entire form during the recuperation of Godzilla underwater and her fight against Rodan in Boston. When Mothra dies though, I can't hold back a portion of my emotion and tears.
➕ Ghidorah
- You can't have a Godzilla movie if you don't have a villain to fight against Godzilla. Born is a fake king dubbed as "Monster Zero" that is to wreck havoc and to control all titans for his own accord. Ghidorah has three dragon heads with a body that is capable of flight and release of lightning bolts of attack. It's another impressive moment of visual effects just by how massive this creature is. It's the beast that is surely a match for Godzilla's strength.
➕ Impressive Visual Effects
- If there's a potential award this film can take during the awards season is its outstanding Visual Effects. The film impressed me so much with the presentation of its titans as well as Boston, Washington DC and Mexico at the foot of its destruction. From birth to death, the titans were beautifully designed and motioned.
➕ Impressive Cinematography
- With impressive visual effects comes the need for impressive cinematography to complement the scenes. This film didn't fail on that aspect utilizing impressive coloration and lighting as the monsters born and eventually fight. Red, blue and yellow were put into great use in this film.
➕ Monster Sounds
- With giant monsters come a unique sound for each one. While I'm already familiar with the roar of Godzilla from its first movie, Mothra, Rodan and Ghidorah had their own unique voices in this film. Their sound gives them that sense of dominating personality that a monster or titan should have.
➕ Movie / TV Easter Eggs
- The titans itself are a look back at the iconic monsters from the films of yesteryears. Mothra, Ghidorah and Rodan are a throwback to the many monsters that Godzilla came to fight or work with in the past. ORCA is a reference to Jaws, the horror classic with a giant shark as its villain. Argo is a reference to the film Argo (distributed by Warner Bros.) and Jason and the Argonauts. The shot when Rodan was flying over Mexico seems like the same from that of Game of Thrones, it's possibly a reference or just a coincidence. Else, I loved seeing the evil Tywin Lannister as one of the main villains in this film. "Long live the king" seems but an iconic nod to Godzilla movies of the past.
➕ Subtle Comedy and Biology
- Some might possibly find the jokes blurted by its actors as not really that funny but I find them an ease for the action that brews in this film. They made me smile at the most random of times most especially those one-liners by Dr. Rick Stanton, reminds anyone of Cabin in the Woods? Also, I enjoyed when facts about Biology specifically on Ecology are made. I remembered lessons on Symbiosis when it was referenced in this film.
➕ Sacrifice of Dr. Ishiro
- Ken Watanabe played Dr. Ishiro Serizawa on both the first two modern films of Godzilla. Him sacrificing for the sake of Godzilla was an emotional one. It's a heroic tribute to the same guy who invested so much time on researching, saving and believing on Godzilla. That's the only death scene that mattered to me on this film.
➖ Weak Character Development
- Unlike the first film where I emphatized with the main human characters of the film, the family of Dr. Russell I failed to resonate with in this film. Even with the presence of Millie Bobby Brown didn't save me any emotions for the main characters. The motivation was for me confused and weak. Else the linear presentation of the introduction of ORCA was the only thing I find useful with the characters.
➖ Convoluted Background Story
- The story felt confused and convoluted for me. It took difficulty to understand what's going on, except, of course, that titans are fighting. I could have appreciated if the story focused more on the titans not anymore on the human characters. The movie is named as Godzilla to begin with; the focus should be him as proving he is indeed the "King of the Monsters."
With 9 positive points and 2 negative points,
"Godzilla: King of the Monsters" is a slightly good 7.2/10 for me.
#Godzilla #MonsterVerse #KingoftheMonsters #Mothra #Ghidorah #GodzillaKingoftheMonsters
#2019Movies #MovieReviews #JRMovieReviews
Note: I highly suggest you don't read my review if you haven't yet watched the movie.
SPOILERS AHEAD! 🚩
Man playing god by supposedly releasing the same titans that ruled the earth for so long doesn't seem to be a good idea especially when they are very humongous and dangerous. Dr. Emma Russell and an eco-terrorist Alan Jonah believe otherwise. They believe the titans are man's last shot at rehabilitating a world of pollution and calamity that was caused by them. Things go out of order when a "Monster Zero" (Ghidorah) is set loose and instead causes a possible apocalypse of the planet. Despite initially viewed as a threat, Godzilla is entrusted by man to defeat and end this monster once and for all proving indeed he is the king of all monsters.
Releasing the titans into the world seems like a Pandora's Box of disaster yet with hope at the very end. That theory proves wrong when one of those they released isn't filled with any sign of hope after all. Man playing god has been contextualized as an ongoing moral issue up to today. Godzilla: King of the Monsters delves into that and makes us wonder how man's inquisitiveness might intervene with the natural and peaceful circle of life.
Godzilla: King of the Monsters did great on three things - cinematography, visual effects and sound. Else, everything didn't really do well for me. The story and screenplay seems lackluster and convoluted because much of the film focused on the battles of the titans. There was nothing to root for with the human characters leaving all our cheers for Godzilla (and Mothra). With that being said, watch Godzilla if you're for monsters fighting monsters or if you want to be awed by amazing visual effects not if you are looking for a substantial story.
Here are some noteworthy points I had on watching "Godzilla: King of the Monsters":
➕ Godzilla
- Godzilla has proven himself time and time again that indeed he is the king of all monsters. Godzilla is impressively shown once more to be that massive creature under the sea ready to fight against another monster who seems to give him a challenge. The outstanding design of Godzilla never fails to impress me even by the second time I'm seeing him.
➕ Mothra
- This you just have to look forward to. Mothra is born from a facility early on but needs to be matured through a cocoon before eventually being the humongous moth-like appearance the titan is known to be. I was filled with awe upon seeing it's massive glowing blue wings when she finally manages to show her entire form during the recuperation of Godzilla underwater and her fight against Rodan in Boston. When Mothra dies though, I can't hold back a portion of my emotion and tears.
➕ Ghidorah
- You can't have a Godzilla movie if you don't have a villain to fight against Godzilla. Born is a fake king dubbed as "Monster Zero" that is to wreck havoc and to control all titans for his own accord. Ghidorah has three dragon heads with a body that is capable of flight and release of lightning bolts of attack. It's another impressive moment of visual effects just by how massive this creature is. It's the beast that is surely a match for Godzilla's strength.
➕ Impressive Visual Effects
- If there's a potential award this film can take during the awards season is its outstanding Visual Effects. The film impressed me so much with the presentation of its titans as well as Boston, Washington DC and Mexico at the foot of its destruction. From birth to death, the titans were beautifully designed and motioned.
➕ Impressive Cinematography
- With impressive visual effects comes the need for impressive cinematography to complement the scenes. This film didn't fail on that aspect utilizing impressive coloration and lighting as the monsters born and eventually fight. Red, blue and yellow were put into great use in this film.
➕ Monster Sounds
- With giant monsters come a unique sound for each one. While I'm already familiar with the roar of Godzilla from its first movie, Mothra, Rodan and Ghidorah had their own unique voices in this film. Their sound gives them that sense of dominating personality that a monster or titan should have.
➕ Movie / TV Easter Eggs
- The titans itself are a look back at the iconic monsters from the films of yesteryears. Mothra, Ghidorah and Rodan are a throwback to the many monsters that Godzilla came to fight or work with in the past. ORCA is a reference to Jaws, the horror classic with a giant shark as its villain. Argo is a reference to the film Argo (distributed by Warner Bros.) and Jason and the Argonauts. The shot when Rodan was flying over Mexico seems like the same from that of Game of Thrones, it's possibly a reference or just a coincidence. Else, I loved seeing the evil Tywin Lannister as one of the main villains in this film. "Long live the king" seems but an iconic nod to Godzilla movies of the past.
➕ Subtle Comedy and Biology
- Some might possibly find the jokes blurted by its actors as not really that funny but I find them an ease for the action that brews in this film. They made me smile at the most random of times most especially those one-liners by Dr. Rick Stanton, reminds anyone of Cabin in the Woods? Also, I enjoyed when facts about Biology specifically on Ecology are made. I remembered lessons on Symbiosis when it was referenced in this film.
➕ Sacrifice of Dr. Ishiro
- Ken Watanabe played Dr. Ishiro Serizawa on both the first two modern films of Godzilla. Him sacrificing for the sake of Godzilla was an emotional one. It's a heroic tribute to the same guy who invested so much time on researching, saving and believing on Godzilla. That's the only death scene that mattered to me on this film.
➖ Weak Character Development
- Unlike the first film where I emphatized with the main human characters of the film, the family of Dr. Russell I failed to resonate with in this film. Even with the presence of Millie Bobby Brown didn't save me any emotions for the main characters. The motivation was for me confused and weak. Else the linear presentation of the introduction of ORCA was the only thing I find useful with the characters.
➖ Convoluted Background Story
- The story felt confused and convoluted for me. It took difficulty to understand what's going on, except, of course, that titans are fighting. I could have appreciated if the story focused more on the titans not anymore on the human characters. The movie is named as Godzilla to begin with; the focus should be him as proving he is indeed the "King of the Monsters."
With 9 positive points and 2 negative points,
"Godzilla: King of the Monsters" is a slightly good 7.2/10 for me.
#Godzilla #MonsterVerse #KingoftheMonsters #Mothra #Ghidorah #GodzillaKingoftheMonsters
#2019Movies #MovieReviews #JRMovieReviews
Watched on 06 June 2019 at SM Baguio
Image Reference: Reddit Movies
Time Published: 02 July 2019 (08:00 PM)
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