The latest clash of legendary pop culture Titans moves from HBO Max and select theaters to ultra-high definition home entertainment centers in Godzilla vs. Kong (Warner Bros. Home Entertainment, rated PG-13, 2.39: 1 aspect ratio, 113 minutes, $ 29.96)
Five years after Godzilla saved humanity from King Ghidorah, the story begins when the unusually enraged giant lizard is on the warpath destroying the evil APEX Cybernetics’ Pensacola base while a captured Kong remains subdued and unhappy in the center of secret containment of the government agency Monarch.
However, as the multi-story ape is dragged across the planet and finally used as a guide to find the mysterious Hollow Earth (the supposed homeworld of the Titans), he encounters the King of the Monsters.
Once the battles begin, it’s multiple rounds of takedown and drag fights highlighted by Hong Kong’s computer-generated explosive destruction.
And, true fans of the Godzilla mythos will be in for a real treat when a certain mechanized Titan shows up to the fight challenging the two popular giants in a real team.
As with all Japanese-style monster movies, humans primarily become collateral damage as the main events unfold, but some are certainly noticeable here.
Among them are the young orphan Jia (Kaylee Hottle), who helps Kong as a performer; Madison (Millie Bobby Brown), the daughter of Monarch scientist Mark Russell, who seeks to find the root of Godzilla’s aggression; Hollow Earth researcher Nathan Lind (Alexander Skarsgård); and cartoon villain, APEX CEO Warren Simmons (Demian Bichir), who instructs his henchmen to exterminate all Titans.
Director Adam Wingard’s sequel to Legendary Pictures’ Monsterverse is successful thanks to the head-shaking action and loving embrace of his creative team from the Kaiju film genre.
Suffice it to report, it requires viewers to arrive with a king-size bowl of popcorn and a wide-eyed appreciation of these classic Alpha predators.
4K in action: In the first few minutes of the film, as an astonishingly realistic older Kong walks down a waterfall, viewers know they are in for a treat, thanks to this quality presentation created from 4K digital intermediate and encompassing high dynamic range enhancements. .
Moments like the towering Kong touching his index finger to the little female helper Jia’s finger as rain drips from his jagged nail overnight reveal immaculate detail and clarity. Equal visual perfection finds Kong and Godzilla’s first fight underwater devoid of darkness.
Color saturation and tones remain strong throughout, as shown by Godzilla’s blue atomic breath blasting through an aircraft carrier and glowing behind Kong, the psychedelic and gravitationally crushing journey to Hollow Earth, and Godzilla rampaging through Honk Kong amid super skyscrapers illuminated by neon lights.
For those with a speaker setup to take advantage of the Dolby Atmos soundtrack, they’ll be immersed in familiar roars and ominous orchestral crescendos whenever the beasts appear on screen.
Best extras: Although viewers should take the time to rewatch the film with an optional commentary track provided by Mr. Wingard, the included version of the film is packed with feature films that further expand on its limited reflections.
Recorded before the film’s release, it’s not as talkative as I’d hoped, and often focused on trivia as a die-hard fan rather than a filmmaker headlining a $ 150 million movie.
Every now and then he breaks down some of the best shots with reviews of the story and some technical points and locations; He calls his catalog of movies “costumed musicals” because of his appreciation for music; and mentions how 200 extras were in awe of Miss Brown’s performance on set and how much she enjoys drawing children’s art.
It also explains the importance of being able to see monsters in night scenes, creating a scruffy Kong acting like a retired gunslinger or an older Elvis and wishing he had enlarged Godzilla’s head.
It would have been helpful if the writers joined him during the track or any resident Kaiju film historian to complete the fluffy speech.
For those looking for more, the 10 feature films are divided into sections: El Dios, El Rey and Las Batallas, and offer approximately 75 more minutes on the making of the film, reinforced by interviews not only with the director and main actors, but also with production designers. Thomas S. Hammock and Owen Paterson and producer Alex Garcia.
The best of the bunch are a couple of segments covering the earlier Kong and Godzilla movies with words from directors Gareth Edwards (cover “Godzilla”), Michael Dougherty (“Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters”) and Jordan Vogt-Roberts ( “Kong: Skull Island”); and actors Bryan Cranston (“Godzilla” version) and Vera Farmiga (“Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters”); as well as genre history expert Stephen Asma.
