Somebody sure watched Planet of the Apes. After already hitting the climax of this Monarch film series which gave us Godzilla versus King Kong, the pair are brought back together to mostly ignore each other in separate storylines, battle each other (briefly), and team-up against a threat that is underwhelming to say the least in a crazy ape and his miniature frost-shooting Godzilla. Other than merging the franchises with something like Pacific Rim or Transformers there was really nowhere for the series to go. And that's where it goes, absolutely nowhere.
The film starts out focusing on the displaced Jia (Kaylee Hottle) and her relationships with Ilene (Rebecca Hall) and Kong who has been searching in vain to find other apes in Hollow Earth. There's nothing we haven't seen before, but these relationships work. That's more than I can say for the rest of the film. We're teased with a warning coming from Hollow Earth. Well, actually, it turns out to be coming from a secret part of Hollow Earth within Hollow Earth.
Because having one over-the-top comedic sidekick isn't enough, the film brings back both Brian Tyree Henry and Dan Stevens who take turns being the most annoying thing about the movie (when you aren't focused on the screenwriting). I viewed the film in 3D which wasn't enough of a distraction once the film hits the crazy button with the hidden sections of Hollow Earth, the crazed monkey king, telepathic messages from the center of the planet, and so on. And, of course, there's a virtual smorgasbord of CGI vomited up for your viewing pleasure.
Kong is fine here, although after the initial bit of story he's basically in reactive mode for most of the film. Godzilla gets a big, albeit short, fight in the Arctic which is a nice moment for him but otherwise feels underutilized as our two heroes together, with a third kaiju thrown in for good measure, are pretty damn overwhelming for the likes of some wimpier apes and a knockoff Godzilla. While the exploration of hidden parts of the Hollow Earth within Hollow Earth, a Hollower Earth if you will, might make for an interesting film, but this film doesn't have any interest in exploring that world other than to deliver some cool (and problematic) looking sequences.
Watch the trailer- Title: Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire
- IMDb: link
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