Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) Review  

Here in the UK Godzilla vs Kong finally comes out so my last step in prep work came today with watching Godzilla: King of the Monsters and here is my review for it. The premise of the film sees 5 years after the events of the previous film Godzilla has gone missing and is forced to resurface when other Titans rise up to threaten the world. 

Main Character

The film has Godzilla in the title so I guess that is where I should start and Godzilla is awesome in this film. He gets more to do and we see way more of him in his epic glory as he fights more interesting Titans in this film and this is finally the Godzilla we truly deserve and the film does a great job in making him super cool in this film. Aaron Taylor-Johnson is out as the main human lead replaced by Kyle Chandler and though he is a bit better then Johnson he still is a weak element of the film. In a film where lets face it we are rooting for Godzilla, it doesn't help when one of the main characters on screen is basically against him and it makes him a character that is hard to like or care for. 

Supporting Characters

Millie Bobby Brown plays his daughter and I thought she was good, she is the character we are meant to root for other then Godzilla and her character is actually handled pretty well. I mean she isn't amazing or anything but she is a young actress who does a good job with the material that she is given to work with. Ken Wantanabe is back as the number 1 Godzilla fan and he is good again, he is a fun character and clearly he is somebody who enjoys himself when making these Godzilla films for sure. Charles Dance plays a bad guy and he is entertaining, the character is rubbish which holds it back but Dance is really trying to make it work and because he is so good it almost works. Also the Titans are much cooler in this film and they are way more interesting then the majority of human characters. The issue is there are other characters where it doesn't work Vera Farmiga's character is awful here, her whole motivation and character arc is absurd and really pulled me away from the interesting parts of the film . The team of protagonists is much larger here and there are these generic army guys and comic relief scientists and they just don't work, there are good actors here and it just feels like there talents are wasted. 

Story 

The story involving Godzilla and the rest of the titans is easily the best part of the film. As we find out more about them and there backstories, the fights are given way more weight and depth to them because of the time taken with the lore and time the Titans get. The problem is like the majority of these monster films is that the human characters and their story just falls flat, There is a twist quite early on in the film and it made me just kind of check out of the human story line and though not terrible it just makes me wish the focus would go more onto the Titans but I don't think that will ever happen. 

Script 

The script is okay, there is some good drama and emotional moments that despite my lack of interest rises the human characters up a bit and its decent enough for an okay script. Though this film isn't as stoic as the first film the humour is pretty weak and just didn't work despite the obvious attempt. 

Style 

Easily the best part of the film is the style. This film looks amazing and finally gives these Titans the presence and fight scenes that they truly deserve. The previous film spent way too long hiding Godzilla but this film shows him in all of his glory and the action fits the magnitude that it deserves. The pacing of the film is very good too and it the film seemed to flow very nicely and kept the tians on screen for as long as possible. 

Overall

Overall, Godzilla: King of the Monsters is an above average film. In terms of these Monster films this is the best one yet but it still falls flat, it is clearly style over substance and if you want to see these monsters fight then yeah this is worth a watch but be prepped for the weaker human elements. 

Rating - 6/10