Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is I suppose one of the better offerings in the MonsterVerse but that may be faint praise given, outside of Kong: Skull Island, these movies tend to be forgettable and this one pays less focus on the humans at least.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire
(2024)
Genre(s): Action, Science Fiction
Warner Bros. | PG13 – 115 min. – $29.99 | June 11, 2024
Date Published: 06/17/2024 | Author: The Movieman
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Warner Bros. Home Entertainment provided me with a free copy of the Blu-ray I reviewed in this Blog Post.
The opinions I share are my own.
THE MOVIE — 3¼/5 |
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Plot Synopsus: The new installment in the Monsterverse puts the mighty Kong and the fearsome Godzilla against a colossal deadly threat hidden within our world that threatens the existence of their species and our very own, as well as diving deep into the mysteries of Skull Island and beyond. Quick Hit Review: Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is the fifth entry in the Monsterverse, a franchise I haven’t been overly enthralled with though I did find Kong: Skull Island moderately entertaining at least. This latest one wasn’t great for sure but it did correct one of the issues I’ve had with these movies and the useless and mostly boring human elements that took a bulk of the already long running times. Here, director Adam Wingard has dwindled the human actors down to four main actors — Rebecca Ferguson, Brian Tyree Henry, Kaylee Huttle (all reprising their roles from Godzilla vs. Kong) and Dan Stevens — and placing most of the focus on King Kong and his place within Hollow Earth while Godzilla mostly globetrot to power up for some ultimate fight. Generally I’m not a fan of these movies where you have CGI characters fighting other CGI characters, this includes the Transformers franchise. As great as the technology has gotten over the years, there’s still the eye test that never quite aligns and same goes when Kong goes up against other computer generated creatures, in that it lacks any really gravity even with top-notch sound design. That begin said, I never tuned out when Kong and/or Godzilla were fighting and so in that regard it was a step up from the previous movies. Adam Wingard returns to helm this follow-up to Godzilla vs. Kong and based on what I’ve seen in the behind-the-scenes featurettes, he seems to really love the material, kind of like a big kid and you can definitely feel that he isn’t just a placeholder director. |
SPECIAL FEATURES – 4¼/5 |
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This release comes with a glossy slip cover and inside a redemption code for the Digital HD copy. There’s a good selection of featurettes totaling 71-minutes. Audio Commentary by Director Adam Wingard, Visual Effects Supervisor Alessandro Ongaro, Production Designer Tom Hammock and Editor Josh Schaeffer GxK: Day of Reckoning (5:58) — This featurette is an overarching look at the addition to the MonsterVerse. Evolution of the Titans
Both of these featurettes looks at the respective Titans and their evolution over the course of the MonsterVerse. Into Hollow Earth
The Battles Royale
The Intrepid Director: Adam Wingard
The above set of featurettes gives in-depth looks at the various visual elements whiles the last two on the fun and passion with Adam Wingard. The Imagination Department (3:47) — Featurette chronicles the ideas by the Wingard and members of the crew to include in this sequel. The Monarch Island Base: Portal to Another World (5:32) — This looks at the portal base debuting in the film. The Evolution of Jia: From Orphan to Warrior (5:58) is on the development of Kaylee Huttle’s character. Bernie’s World: Behind the Triple Locked Door (3:28) is a tour of Brian Tyree Henry’s character’s domain. |
VIDEO – 5/5 |
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Warner Bros. releases Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire where it’s presented in the original 2.39 widescreen aspect ratio and given a 2160p high-definition transfer. The picture here does look excellent with sharp and well defined detail while colors are bright and balanced. Black levels were stark yet still able to discern the action in the more darkly lit sequences. |
AUDIO – 4¾/5 |
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The movie comes equipped with a strong Dolby Atmos track that’s not exactly incredible or the best sounding track I’ve come across yet still there is very good depth during the many action-centric sequences with dialogue coming across the center channel with nice clarity. |
OVERALL — 3½/5 |
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Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is I suppose one of the better offerings in the MonsterVerse but that may be faint praise given, outside of Kong: Skull Island, these movies tend to be forgettable and this one pays less focus on the humans at least. |