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Showing posts with label King Kong. Show all posts
Showing posts with label King Kong. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 31, 2021

Double Movie Review: Godzilla vs. Kong

Godzilla vs. Kong
Release Date Mar 31, 2021
Director: Adam Wingard
Producer: Mary Parent, Alex Garcia, Eric McLeod, Jon Jashni, Thomas Tull, Brian Rogers
Writer: Eric Pearson, Max Borenstein
Cast: Alexander Skarsgård, Millie Bobby Brown, Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Shun Oguri, Eiza González
Runtime: 1h 53m
Production Co: Warner Bros., Legendary Entertainment
Rating: PG-13 (Destruction|Brief Language|Intense Creature Violence)
Genre: Adventure, Sci Fi, Action
Legends collide in "Godzilla vs. Kong" as these mythic adversaries meet in a spectacular battle for the ages, with the fate of the world hanging in the balance. Kong and his protectors undertake a perilous journey to find his true home, and with them is Jia, a young orphaned girl with whom he has formed a unique and powerful bond. But they unexpectedly find themselves in the path of an enraged Godzilla, cutting a swath of destruction across the globe. The epic clash between the two titans--instigated by unseen forces--is only the beginning of the mystery that lies deep within the core of the Earth.


Reviewer: SharonS

4 1/2 "villain hair" Sheep
My husband and I have been waiting for this! I'll cut to the chase...it was worth it! The writers and director knew what we wanted, EPIC BATTLES! There are people running around to give a flimsy reason for the EPIC BATTLES.

The actors did their job, especially little Jia. That kid is awesome and her connection with Kong tugs at your heartstrings. If you are looking for the sci-fi part to make sense, don't. I mean...Godzilla makes a massive hole through the earth to Hollow Earth!

My husband and I both give it 4 1/2 sheep based on the entertainment value. We will watch it again. And I will make fun of all the plot holes again.

Reviewer: Pamela Kinney
The pandemic has been a time where theaters closed in 2020 with some opening end of the year or 2021, and Regal reopening finally on April 1, 2021. Most of us have been binging on television, and movie production companies finally realized putting movies forward might cause many films to be forgotten, so they turned to streaming. Even Disney Plus is releasing its big films not just in theaters but on their streaming service. And Warner Bros. made a deal with HBO Max. Godzilla Vs. Kong not only premiered in theaters, but it also premiered on HBO Max (a better deal in my opinion as you have it for 30 days and can rewatch it as many times you want, unlike one time seeing on the movie screen.

Godzilla Vs Kong is not a film you watch to think or for social commentary—there are art house films for that. So, this movie will not be your cup of tea. But if you enjoyed those giant dinosaur movies as a kid and watch all the Godzilla and other monsters of Toho movies, then this movie is for you. 

I was a kid when my parents dropped me off at the movie theater to see Toho’s King Kong vs. Godzilla. I sat up front and met two other kids and we had a blast. No, Toho’s King Kong was cheesy and not the more superior King Kong from 1933, but still, it’s a giant gorilla taking on a dinosaur because sorry, people, Godzilla began as a dinosaur who due to radiation, got the breath that way—I suggest not seeing the original Godzilla redone for America, but the original Japanese version which was darker.

In this latest rendition of the atomic-breath monster, Godzilla has attacked Florida, in particular, Apex Corporation. So, now it appears Godzilla no longer leaves humans alone but is out to get them. 

Back on Skull Island, it appears only Kong and a mute girl, Jia (played by Kaylee Hottle) who communicates with Kong by sign language, but also psychically, is all that is left, and the island is now a containment for Kong, where a scientist, Rebecca Hall (played by Ilene Andrews), studies him and has care of Jia. When Nathan Lind (played by Alexander SkarsgÃ¥rd) approaches her with an idea to take Kong to Antarctica to the entrance that leads to the Hollow Earth, she is not sure at first, but in the end, they do it, by transporting Kong by ship and guarded by Navy ships. Sadly, they must go through Godzilla’s territory and the alpha attacks. Let us just say you get your first taste of the battle we have seen some of in the trailers here. I won’t go on and spoil it for you, so you can go see it for yourself, but there are more fights, monsters, and of course, there is a bad guy (Isn’t there always?). 

Millie Bobby Brown (Eleven of Stranger Things fame) returns as Madison Russell from Godzilla King of the Monsters along with Kyle Chandler as Madison’s father, Mark Russell, now working for Monarch. Kaylee Hottle as Jia is a breakout star for me as Kong’s deaf friend. It was interesting to find she comes from an all-deaf family, spanning four generations of deaf relatives on her father's side. Her native fluency in American Sign Language has provided her with opportunities to perform in commercials and Mother’s Day.

Like I said earlier if you are looking for a movie to challenge your mind, search for art house films. Or read a book. But if you want a movie to forget the pandemic and just relax, cheer for your favorite, Godzilla Vs. Kong fits the bill. It is better than the first two films in my opinion, and even triumphs over Kong: Skull Island. Forget the humans, except for Jia, they are there to help the monsters or cause their demise, the monsters are the stars and that was what I wanted to see. Besides, you can always find some art house films on Netflix, Prime, or elsewhere if that is what you want. But I think this will be a winner, even for movie theaters. Let the clash of the century commence!


Sunday, March 12, 2017

Movie Review: Kong: Skull Island (2017)

Kong: Skull Island (2017)
Directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts
Screenplay by Dan Gilroy, Max Borenstein, and Derek Connolly.
Story by John Gains.
Produced by Legendary Entertainment
Official Site: http://kongskullislandmovie.com/
Studio: Warner Bros.
Runtime: 118 minutes
March 10, 2017
A diverse team of scientists, soldiers and adventurers unites to explore a mythical, uncharted island in the Pacific, as dangerous as it is beautiful. Cut off from everything they know, the team ventures into the domain of the mighty Kong, igniting the ultimate battle between man and nature. As their mission of discovery becomes one of survival, they must fight to escape a primal Eden in which humanity does not belong.

Besides eating out dinner out for our 40th anniversary, my husband and I decided to go see Kong: Skull Island. The basics about Kong first begin in 1944, in the South Pacific during WWII when two planes are shot own on the beaches of the island. Survivors, American pilot Hank Marlow (Will Brittian) and Japanese pilot (complete with a katana!), Gunpei Ikari (Miyavi), set out fighting and chasing each other deeper into the interior. They are interrupted by a giant gorilla. Fast forward to 1973, there is this organization called Monarch looking to prove that ancient species are returning to maybe take back the earth from us humans. One of these people, Bill Randa (acted by John Goodman), puts together a team of U.S. Army soldiers (the Sky devils), led by Preston Packard (Samuel Jackson), two of his own experts, San and Houston Brooks, a former British Special Air Service captain renowned for his tracking abilities, James Conrad (Tom Hiddleston), and a war photographer (Brie Larson) who applied to join them. They head out on a ship for a mysterious island shaped like a skull. Once there, they run into a gigantic gorilla, Kong, and immediately out of fear, they shoot at him. You know where this is going—big mistake on their part! 


Then they meet Hank Marlow (now much older and acted by John C. Reilly) and a tribe of painted people who live on the island, protected by Kong from the monstrous skull crawlers—as Hank calls them. From there, it’s all about finding the other survivors and escaping the island. After the movie ends, don’t leave the theater, but stay until after the credits end, for a special piece, that appears to lead to the next film in this series (like Marvel does), Godzilla 2.

Kong: Skull Island is a roller-coaster of a monster film that takes you back to those giant monster films that you watched as you grew up, beginning with Lost World in 1925 and ending after the 70s. The movie doesn't disappoint, and except for a few minor points I could argue with, it gives you what it promises: monster battles, terror, and action. Good old monster mash fun.

I give Kong: Skull Island 5 sheep.




Pamela Kinney