Godzilla II: King Of The Monsters is a film which comes directed by Michael Dougherty who some may know as the director of Krampus (2015) or Trick ‘r Treat (2007). The film stars Kyle Chandler, Vera Farmiga, Millie Bobby Brown, Ken Watanabe, Sally Hawkins and Charles Dance. The film is a sequel and direct followup to Godzilla (2014), you read our review for that film here.
I’ve always liked watching a Godzilla film and there’s been many over the years to see, with the character having a long history of films ever since the first Godzilla film appeared in 1954. The recent reboot of the Godzilla franchise from Warner Brothers, was something I didn’t mind, but I remember sitting there wishing we got to see much more of the monster in that film. With this sequel, I wouldn’t say I was super excited to see it, but I was still a little interested in what they would do the second time around now that the Godzilla origin story was out of the way.
When I go to see a movie like Godzilla at the cinema, I am not really going there for the story. The reason I am going to see something like Godzilla is because I want an action film experience. I want Godzilla to be smashing stuff, I want some monster to be fighting Godzilla and I want all sorts of environmental destruction to occur in the process of this fight. Does Godzilla II: King Of The Monsters deliver this? I have to say yes. The run time of the film is a massive 2 hours and 12 minutes and during that time, I felt that I had gotten everything that I was hoping for when it came to big action moments. Everything I wanted and more was there in this film.
When it comes to the story. I think actually it wasn’t too bad. The story is essentially filled with themes of overpopulation. Similar to Thanos in the MCU, Dr. Emma Russell (Vera Farmiga) has gone mad. She is determined to wake up all the monsters on Earth and have them wipe everything out because all the humans aren’t using the planet properly. After they’re all gone, the Earth can survive and some sort of balance can be restored. During her madness, she wakes up King Ghidorah and no one can control that monster. Will Godzilla be able stop all this though? You’ll have to see it to find out.
In the end, I didn’t mind this film and was quite immersed with all the action and massive battles between Godzilla and King Ghidorah. From this point of view things are well done. Actors are also quite good. I enjoyed seeing Kyle Chandler, Vera Farmiga, Ken Watanabe and Charles Dance act in this film. All of these four fit in well with the serious tone which the film stuck to throughout much of its run time.
As a film, Godzilla II: King Of The Monsters has very few moments or characters placed there for comedic relief. The tone is consistently serious with the exception of a few minor moments for a joke. This makes this blockbuster, quite different to others currently showing at cinemas currently. It’s a little darker than most blockbusters you may see this year and for some that’s great but for others maybe not, just depends on preference I suppose. But I think it’s something worth knowing before going along to see it.
Overall Godzilla II: King Of The Monsters is a film which I do recommend you go out and see if you are looking for nothing else but action this weekend at the cinema. The story line in this is actually okay, with the tone of the film being rather serious and a little dark. The actors in this film which include Kyle Chandler, Vera Farmiga, Millie Bobby Brown, Ken Watanabe, Sally Hawkins and Charles Dance all do quite well and were a joy to watch on the big screen. This film is a strong followup and actually a better film than the first one in the franchise and I’d be happy to see another one from this franchise again some day.
Images provided Courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures