Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)

**Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024)**

New Godzilla movies always come with a mix of excitement and caution for me. My younger brother was obsessed with Roland Emmerich’s 1998 *Godzilla*—he watched it so many times on VHS that it’s a wonder the tape didn’t wear out. But he also explored Toho Co.’s original films, albeit in their poorly dubbed versions and the Americanized edit of the first movie featuring Raymond Burr. These were the background to much of my childhood, a source of mild annoyance that later turned into a genuine appreciation—even for Emmerich’s version, which I rewatched with my family during lockdown and still find highly entertaining.

However, any Godzilla movie released this year faced an additional challenge: the end-of-2023 American release of *Godzilla Minus One*, a Japanese production from Toho Studios set in post-World War II Japan. It’s the 37th film in the long-running Godzilla franchise and one of the best, blending some of the most visually impressive monster sequences ever filmed with the thematic weight of the original, where Godzilla symbolized the devastation caused by nuclear weapons.

**Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire**

Unfortunately, if you look beyond the creature brawls and spectacular destruction of global landmarks in *Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire*, you won’t find any meaningful commentary on contemporary fears and concerns. Even more disappointing, the film doesn’t deliver much of what should be the easiest thing to get right in a monster movie: entertainment. The fifth installment in Legendary Pictures’ MonsterVerse series (which includes solo films for both Godzilla and King Kong, as well as their 2021 showdown) is somehow even gloomier than its predecessors. The franchise seems to be suffering from diminishing returns, bogged down by a plot that manages to be both frustratingly convoluted and overly simplistic.

Walking out of the theater, I couldn’t have summarized the plot of *Godzilla x Kong* without help. So here’s a summary, with a little help from Wikipedia: Three years after the events of *Godzilla vs. Kong*, the two monsters peacefully rule separate territories—Kong in Hollow Earth and Godzilla above ground, protecting humanity from the Titans. But when a Monarch observation post in Hollow Earth picks up a mysterious signal, it triggers erratic behavior in Godzilla and causes Jia (Kaylee Hottle), the last survivor of Skull Island’s Iwi tribe and the adopted daughter of Dr. Ilene Andrews (Rebecca Hall), to experience hallucinations.

From here, the story splits. A sinkhole near Kong’s home leads him to a new world inhabited by a tribe of his species. Meanwhile, Andrews, conspiracy theorist Bernie Hayes (Brian Tyree Henry), and newcomer Trapper (Dan Stevens) team up with Jia to investigate the signal in Hollow Earth.

**Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire**

If this sounds like a movie with little Godzilla in it, you’d be correct. Despite being top-billed, our favorite atomic fire-breathing monster is mostly absent until the film’s climactic battle. And while Kong has some fun moments, particularly in his resourceful battle tactics, much of the movie is weighed down by human characters delivering nonsensical exposition that’s hard to care about. It’s baffling how this series continues to cast talented actors and then wastes them in roles that don’t do them justice. Even Dan Stevens, usually a scene-stealer, can’t inject much life into the film, as the writing undermines any potential chemistry between him and Henry.

There are some intriguing aspects to *Godzilla x Kong*, like the retro, psychedelic feel of Hollow Earth’s brightly-colored, crystalline environment. It’s a refreshing change from the bland scenery that dominates many blockbusters today. But this artificial world is also a drawback; too much of the film takes place in an unrealistic setting, making it hard to connect with the story. The scenes set in the real world fail to capture the grand scale needed for a Titan battle, and the visual effects, particularly the character designs, often veer into the uncanny valley—Kong’s big-eyed juvenile buddy is especially off-putting. These flaws are even more noticeable following *Godzilla Minus One*, whose Oscar-worthy visual effects (produced on a fraction of this film’s budget) are far more convincing.

Ultimately, *Godzilla x Kong* doesn’t offer much to satisfy either longtime fans or casual viewers looking for a good popcorn flick.

*Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire* is now playing in theaters. Runtime: 115 minutes. Rated PG-13.