Monster mash-up
LET’S get ready to grumble. In his first foray into the MonsterVerse in 2021 with Godzilla Vs Kong, director Adam Wingard orchestrated an overblown monster-mashing smackdown between a reptilian apex predator with atomic breath that cuts through metal like a hot knife through butter and a lovable chest-beating primate armed with expressive eyes. It was a one-sided affair.
Rivals become wrestling tag team partners in the cacophonous sequel Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire, which pits the titular titans against a power-crazed ape christened Scar King, who is entombed within the fantastical Hollow Earth ecosystem but yearns to wreak havoc on the surface of our planet.
Like a wrestling match, the outcome of this brawl is predetermined and any tears shed inside the ring are purely for show.
Before the inevitable clash of digitally rendered behemoths, battalions of special effects wizards take over the asylum and excitedly decimate or desecrate some of the world’s most breathtaking landmarks including the Colosseum in Rome, the pyramids in Egypt and the statue of Christ the Redeemer, which gazes serenely down on Rio de Janeiro.
Relatable humans are the endangered species. Not just the men, women and children crushed underfoot by hulking monsters in the bombastic action sequences, but also flesh and blood actors including Rebecca Hall, Dan Stevens and Brian Tyree Henry.
They are sidelined for prolonged periods and when their characters do materialise, they squeeze into pigeonholes – the maternal protector, the quirky love interest, the comic relief – and casually distil a ramshackle plot in expository dialogue.
Compared to the Japanese blockbuster Godzilla Minus One released at the end of last year, which used its Oscar-winning visual effects sparingly and never lost sight of the human lives impacted by large-scale devastation, Wingard’s film is Godzilla Minus Heart and Soul.