Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire Review – Non-Stop Kaiju Brawl with Shōwa Era Fun 

Watching Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire in the theatre reminded me of childhood – it embraces the campiness from the Shōwa era and Heisei era kaiju flicks and sets two iconic movie monsters up for some good old classic destruction fun. It is a film that is unconcerned about making it all sensical, rather it’s just having fun. It’s like a Saturday morning cartoon, but triple the epicness and bombard you with unapologetic destructions.

This is the second Monsterverse film with Adam Wingard at the directorial helm after 2021’s Godzilla vs. Kong, and he is sure to let loose all his creativity with this entry. The New Empire serves as a direct sequel to Godzilla vs. Kong, taking place largely in the newly discovered Hollow Earth, an ancient subterranean ecosystem within our planet’s core, littered with fantastical creatures and lush beautiful nature. As a sequel, you might want to catch up with the previous movies, before hopping into this one because it references past events quite a bit.

Despite its title, this film puts Kong in the spotlight with Godzilla mostly there as a support, appearing once in a while to do what Godzilla always does – collateral damage and breaking down cities like loose Lego. Searching for a place or family where one belongs is the central theme of the movie as we follow Kong as being the “last” of his kind, seeking the possibility of his species still out there somewhere. He did find his kin, but one of them, as shown in the trailers is evil and out to spread its tyranny and thirst for destruction to the world.

This, of course, means that both Kong and Godzilla have to put their differences aside and have a colossal-size superhero team up to take down this other, cartoony evil overgrown ape. Sounds like a cheesy comic book plot? Well, it is just as it sounds – a movie that embraces all its campiness and care not of taking itself seriously. It is tremendously self-aware and goes out of the way to present itself as such.

Humans! 

Some of the key human players from previous films also made their return, with Rebecca Hall back as Dr. Andrews, while her adopted daughter Jia (Kaylee Hottle) played an important role in the movie. Jia essentially is the human counterpart to Kong, going through a similar journey as the last of her tribe, looking for a place where she belongs. Brian Tyree Henry reprised his role as the conspiracy theorist Bernie, playing mostly as comic relief throughout the film. Meanwhile, Dan Stevens joins the cast as Trapper, a Kaiju veterinarian who blurts out one-liners and acts all charismatic while presenting crazy ideas that have even Bernie questioning him.

Humans have always been the weaker parts of Kaiju movies, but they are still a necessity to tell a story. While they aren’t as boredom-inducing this time around, their screen time does in ways hamper the movie’s pacing. Some scenes feel unnecessarily long and ultimately, some emotional moments do not pay off well enough such as Dr. Andrews and Jia’s mother-daughter dynamic.

Planet of the Oversized Apes 

Funnily, the animation and CGI work on Kong showcased more emotions than some of the human scenes. Even without dialogue, Kong’s expressions and gestures tell a story of what was going on. This is not limited to Kong either because other giant apes are equally as expressive, such as the Mini Kong, who shows subtlety and nuances to his behavior and motivations. The CGI is indeed impressive, especially with all the close-up shots of Kong and Godzilla, with their flowy furs and glowing scales.

The New Empire is straight-up a visual splendor, especially if you get a chance to watch it in a ScreenX cinema, with dual-sided 270-degree screens that immerse you into the wonders of Hollow Earth and Kaiju destruction with excellent cinematography that captures the grandeur of it all. That said, it can at times feel sensory overloading with so many elements on screen with a variety of textures from forests and rocks to plasma laser lighting up the scene.

As mentioned, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is almost like a Shōwa era, Heisei era Kaiju movie in the modern age. It plays into the fantastical elements and puts kaiju brawls at the forefront, taking itself just seriously enough for a story, but unleashing unfiltered destruction at any given opportunity.

A New Empire for Kaiju Fans 

Unlike previous Monsterverse films, which come with moments of seriousness, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire goes all out on nonsensical elements and results in a movie that is pure popcorn fun. Not to say it did not attempt at a deep story, but it embraces the silly nature of its cartoony themes boldly and lets that carry the enjoyment of the film.

What is not to love about a gargantuan gorilla smacking another kaiju with a powered mechanized glove or seeing Godzilla showing off its new pink glow like a new fashion statement? There are certainly pacing issues, or scenes that overstayed their welcome but at the end of the day, this movie is targeted toward giving fans destructive kaiju madness with moments that have you going “Hell, yeah! That was so cool!”.

You gotta respect Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire for knowing its audience and giving them some over-the-top kaiju action fun time that will remind fans of classic Toho Godzilla movies with “versus” in their title. Simply put, it cares not about being serious and gives us camping Godzilla and Kong Avengers-level team-up for some cartoon-level epicness.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is now available in cinema from 28 March 2024. Early screening is provided by Warner Bros. Malaysia.

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