Somehow the Toho/Legendary/Warner Bros Monsterverse has made it three movies. I never thought it would make it this far, but I am glad it did. I have loved the Toho monsters ever since I was a kid, and these movies have brought them to life better than I could have hoped for. The latest movie Godzilla: King of Monsters is both the best and the worst of the franchise. If, like me, seeing these giant beasts on screen is something you have been pining for, King of Monsters gives you the most kaiju action ever, but if that is not your bag, there is not a lot to the rest of the movie. King of Monsters is all kaiju all the time, and some annoying people making bad decisions.
Godzilla: King of Monsters takes place five years after the first Godzilla. The world is still reeling from the destruction of San Francisco and Las Vegas. Monarch, the secret monster finding organization, is wrestling to keep control of its operations and not be absorbed in the military. The military wants to kill all the kaiju, but Monarch wants to study them and learn how to live with them. A few dumb things happen and bada bing bada boom monsters are destroying the place.
Story wise, there is not a lot here, and that hurts the movie. I think the producers heard the complaints that there wasn’t enough Godzilla in the first Godzilla, so they amped it up a bit. Which is good for people who just want monster destruction, but bad for people who want involving story. Though why those people would come to a giant monster movie is beyond me.
There are a lot of actors in this movie, and they are all fine. They are given one note to play, and they all mostly play it well, but they are not the stars. Godzilla and his kaiju crew are, and they are amazing. The CG doesn’t hold up all the time, but for the most part everything looks great, and the fights are epic. While the trailer promises a ton of monsters, the movie focuses on four: Godzilla, Ghidorah, Mothra, and Rodan. If there was someone else you were expecting, you may be disappointed.
It is hard to fault a movie about monsters for focusing on the monsters. Though, because of this focus everything else suffers, but for kaiju fans there is a lot to like, and I think this movie will find its audience. I don’t think it is as big as Warner Bros was hoping for, but it will be remembered fondly. Still, out of the three movies in the Monsterverse: Godzilla, Kong: Skull Island, and King of Monsters, King of Monsters is probably the weakest if viewed as a complete movie. If viewed as a way to see giant monster destruction, it is the best.