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[tab title="Movie Review"]

Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)

The King has returned - along with 17 other classic Titans - but, hey, long live the King!

Continuing the plot of 2014’s Godzilla and 2017's Kong: Skull Island as far as the Monarch Corporation is concerned, Godzilla: King of the Monsters is a creature-centered film that wastes little time in giving moviegoers EXACTLY what they want to see: MONSTERS.  Yes, this time you can actually SEE Godzilla and a whole bunch of other TITANS as they wreak havoc in reclaiming their territory and stomping out the problem of humanity’s recklessness.  Sure, there is a darkness to much of the production and, sure, most of the fights take place in the rain, but the creature designs here, paying their respects to TOHO, are simply BRILLIANT.  

"ABSOLUTELY delivers when it comes to monster-sized throwdowns and epic battles by land, sea, and air"


And, yeah, being a total fan of Godzilla and his 35 films helps in your appreciation of this movie . . . just ask my girlfriend who nodded off three times during the movie.  

Godzilla: King of the Monsters picks up where 2014’s Godzilla left off.  The world is forever changed.  Why?  Because monsters DO exist.  And it is up to Paleobiologist Emma Russell (Vera Farminga) to figure out how to co-exist with them.  Except, because she is still grieving over the loss of her son after the San Francisco attacks, she doesn’t exactly do that and teams up with Colonel Alan Jonah (Charles Dance) to build a device that only the Titans can hear. Their mission is to wake up all the known Titans and let them cleanse the earth and restore balance.

She first uses the device to control Mothra, the feminine kaiju that first appeared in 1961.  Yes, you read the correctly.  Mothra is here in King of the Monsters (and so are shout-outs to the Mothra twins).  Thanks to the nods in this film, her connection to Godzilla has never been stronger.  But the Monarch Corporation is hiding all sorts of monsters.  From Rodan to King Ghidorah and BEYOND, Godzilla has some work to do.  Because Russell and Jonah want all the Titans awakened so that the earth can re-stabilize itself.  Kinda messed up, right? {googleads}

So much for protecting her 12-year-old daughter, Madison (Millie Bobby Brown) and her estranged ex-husband, Mark (Kyle Chandler), an animal behavior and communication specialist that Monarch ropes into helping them in their handling of the re-awakened Godzilla.  She’s gone all out in her quest for logical revenge and, as the realities of what she’s done begins to register, finds herself and the world in over their heads as the monsters assemble to kill them all. 

Turns out that Godzilla is the only one who can restore order, but is there a fighting chance against the three-headed monstrosity that is King Ghidorah?

Co-starring a returning Ken Watanabe as Dr. Ishirō Serizawa, Bradley Whitford, Sally Hawkins, Thomas Middleditch, Aisha Hinds, O'Shea Jackson Jr., and David Strathairn, the human component of this monster mash-up is served with quality performances, even if the film, directed by Michael Dougherty and written by Dougherty, Zach Shields, and Max Borenstein, gives them little to do except stand in awe at the battling monsters around them.Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)

While the movie might be a little light in the character department, it ABSOLUTELY delivers when it comes to monster-sized throwdowns and epic battles by land, sea, and air.  These monsters are raging hardcore and the effects deliver a spectacle that is, at once, brighter than what came before (as you can actually see the fights), more deadly (Godzilla takes King Ghidorah through a building), and a lot more fun as Godzilla goes from baddie to main good guy and fights alongside a bunch of jets and armed forces against the rest of the Titans.

The Titans have assembled.  With Godzilla vs. Kong on the way, I think it is safe to admit that it’s their planet now.

4/5 stars

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[tab title="Blu-ray Review"]

Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)

Blu-ray

Blu-ray Details:

Home Video Distributor: Warner Bros.
Available on Blu-ray
- April 27, 2019
Screen Formats: 2.40:1
Subtitles
: English SDH; English; French; Spanish; Portuguese
Audio:
English: Dolby-Atmos-TrueHD; Dolby Digital 5.1
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; two-disc set, DVD copy, digital code
Region Encoding: Locked to Region A

Warner Bros. unleashes a hellstorm of 1080p kaiju with its blu-ray + DVD + Digital two-disc edition of Godzilla: King of the Monsters. Accompanying the 2.40:1 hi-def feature is a DVD disc and a digital code that can be redeemed and added to your digital movie collection. Included in the presentation are an audio commentary by director Michael Dougherty, executive producer Zach Shields and actor O'Shea Jackson, Jr., several extensive featurettes totaling more than an hour and a half, and deleted scenes. Long live the King... on blu-ray!

Video
Warner Bros. has been on a roll of late with a nice string of solid transfers. That streak certainly continues with Godzilla: King of the Monsters that invades our homes with a gorgeous 1080p 2.40:1 transfer. If you were fortunate enough to have caught the film when it showed on iMax screens during its theatrical release, then you won't top that experience here. However if your system has what it takes, this will definitely be the next best thing.

The degree of difficulty is quite high with a film of this complexity, but hats off to the Warner/Legendary technicians who nail the transfer with a clean, crisp presentation that breathes with bright colors, deep, dark blacks and laser-sharp visuals.

Check out the Mothra scene at the 1:09:00 mark and marvel at the beauty and vibracy of the colors.

 

Audio

From helicopters to transport craft to the earth-shattering monster brawls, the Dolby Atmos-TrueHD English audio track steps front and center as the main star of the show here once the disc is popped into your player. There's a greater than 0% chance that your home audio system will explode and your walls will crack as the sub stomps to life with deafening percussions, while the rears awaken with ear-splitting surround, and bumps, explosions and roars rain down from above.

This is an extremely loud presentation. In fact, one of the most rambunctious tracks to come down the pike in quite some time. But it is all in service of the enormous scale and proportion that must be adhered to. The action fills the screen from top to bottom and side to side, likewise the sound engulfs us in a 360 degree dome of pure audio delight.

Surprisingly however, one thing that doesn't get lost in the monster melee is the human dialogue which always remains crisp, clean, and perfectly audible while all hell breaks loose elsewhere in the room.

This release begs to be enjoyed in home theater systems. Gather your family, invite your friends, and fast-forward to the 54-minute mark. Let the awakening of Rodan wreck the house. Your general contractor will appreciate the work.

Supplements:

Commentary:

  • A feature-length audio commentary with director/co-writer Michael Dougherty, writer Zach Shields, and actor O’Shea Jackson Jr.

Special Features:

Monsters 101: Cast and crew sit down for VERY brief discussions about the importance of the monsters who make an appearance in the film while statistics of the each creature display on the screen. These are mainly spec sheets for the creatures.

  • • Godzilla: Nature's Fearsome Guardian (00:59)
  • • Mother: Queen of the Monsters (02:01)
  • • Ghidorah: The Living Extinction Machine (01:30)
  • • Rodan: Airborne God of Fire (01:13)

Evolution of the Titans (27:24) - Cast and crew join quite extensive sit-down conversations that get into the importance of each of the monster characters that appear in the film. This is undoubtedly the best of the bunch as it gets into storytelling, CGI visuals, motion-capture effects, and how each is designed to its relative importance within the film.

  • • Godzilla 2.0 (02:02)
  • • Making Mothra (07:00
  • • Creating Ghidorah (06:23)
  • • Reimaginingg Rodan (05:21)
  • • Monarch in Action

The Yunnan Temple (06:58) - Gets into the origins of Mothra and the importance of the character to the film. Includes live-action, pre-visuals and storyboard sketches of the character.

Castle Bravo (06:18) - Writer/director Michael Dougherty, cast and crew sit to discuss storyboards, concept art and the origins of the Monarch Organization.

The Antarctic Base (06:24) - Ghidora's awakening as told via storyboards, concept art, and cast and crew.

The Isla de Mara Volcano (05:55) – A look at Rodan's rise from the volcano.

The Undersea Lair (07:18) - Godzilla's emergence from the depths of the ocean. Finally gives us a look at where the giant lizard goes when he returns to the ocean at the end of every Godzilla movie.

Millie Bobby Brown: Force of Nature (04:07) - A glowing appreciation piece about the actress who plays the heroine of the film.

Monster Tech: Monarch Joins the Fight (08:34) - Writer/director Michael Dougherty, production designers, cast, and crew get into the killer vehicles and weapons deployed by Monarch to fight the Titans.

Monsters Are Real (14:18) - Discussions that get into the origins of monsters, monster stories, and how humans process our fears of these supernatural beings.

Welcome to the Monsterverse (03:42) - Hear from Legendary Pictures and the Monsterverse multimedia franchise who are laying out this ongoing universe of monsters and creatures featured in Godzilla and King Kong films.

  • • Deleted Scenes
  • • Theatrical Trailers

Blu-ray Rating:

  Movie 4/5 stars
  Video  4/5 stars
  Audio 5/5 stars
  Extras 5/5 stars

Overall Blu-ray Experience

4.5/5 stars

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[tab title="Film Details"]

Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sequences of monster action violence and destruction, and for some language.
Runtime:
131 mins
Director
: Michael Dougherty
Writer:
Michael Dougherty, Zach Shields
Cast:
Kyle Chandler, Vera Farmiga, Millie Bobby Brown
Genre
: Horror
Tagline:
One King To Rule Them All.
Memorable Movie Quote: "So you'd want to make Godzilla our pet."
Theatrical Distributor:
Warner Bros.
Official Site: https://www.godzillamovie.com/
Release Date:
May 31, 2019
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date:
Digital August 13; Blu-ray August 27, 2019
Synopsis: The new story follows the heroic efforts of the crypto-zoological agency Monarch as its members face off against a battery of god-sized monsters, including the mighty Godzilla, who collides with Mothra, Rodan, and his ultimate nemesis, the three-headed King Ghidorah. When these ancient super-species—thought to be mere myths—rise again, they all vie for supremacy, leaving humanity’s very existence hanging in the balance.

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[tab title="Art"]

Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)

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