Godzilla vs. Kong

[neatoman]

Originally Posted by Cowabung-Gal

https://media1.tenor.com/m/GG3Abjuno...ene-wilder.gif

https://www.looper.com/img/gallery/w...691678188.webp

Retroactively, that is not Godzilla. Toho's official stance is that this creature is an unrelated monster and was just mistaken for being Godzilla.

[Cowabung-Gal]

Originally Posted by neatoman

Retroactively, that is not Godzilla. Toho's official stance is that this creature is an unrelated monster and was just mistaken for being Godzilla.

But at the time it was released, it was officially recognized as Godzilla, even though most of the fandom argued otherwise due to how weak and vastly different this Jurassic Park ripoff was from the original Japanese kaiju. In fact, Toho was presented the final design and the initial response by the board was stunned silence. But they later gave Emmerich their approval. So as much as they like to dump on America for “ruining” Godzilla, it was their fault too. They were that desperate to make more money off their most popular monster, and since 1994 the American Godzilla was revised and rejected over and over again until it eventually fell into Emmerich’s hands, and he could produce a disaster movie at a much cheaper budget. They would later try to cover up their mess by saying that this Godzilla was an imposter and an entirely different creature named “Zilla”, which is no different than comic writers retconning certain events that upset many fans and drove them away.

[oldmanwinters]

Originally Posted by neatoman

I'm pretty sure not even Godzilla Final Wars is this dumb.

Yeah, Final Wars is WAY dumber. I recently recorded a podcast on it, and it is one big play on The Matrix and X-Men movies headlined by a former wrestler born to play the role of live-action Mike Haggar and you feel every one of its 125-minute runtime. That said, I still enjoy it, as I did this new film (but to a much greater degree).

Another thing that threw me in GxKtNE is trying to keep the scale of the titans believable. How big is "Lil' Kong", exactly? Dinosaur-size like a T-Rex that could be comparable to the original 1933 Kong? And does Kong tower so high above the trees of Hollow Earth that he makes them look like tall grass? How tall does a waterfall have to be to allow him to take a shower?

Originally Posted by neatoman

It's gonna be kind of nice when King Kong Goes public domain in 5 years, then nobody can abuse an exclusivity deal like this anymore.

I was thinking Kong is technically public domain already, even though certain trademark rights and the original film are still protected under WB for a few more years. Universal and Paramount probably have their own trademarks on their versions of character as well.

Godzilla's copyright status in Japan is another interesting question, as the film could become public domain over there long before it ever would in the USA (2025-2031 has been batted around online), although because Japan has a history of being even more protective of their national IPs than the USA, it's likely Toho will continue to keep their legal rights over BigG's trademark for a long time to come.

[TigerClaw]

Adam Wingard teases Baby Godzilla for Godzilla x Kong 3.
https://discussingfilm.net/2024/04/0...rverse-sequel/

[Cowabung-Gal]

I noticed that Skar King had his own harem. So it’s possible that Suko is his son.



“It isn’t fair. He gets all the girls.”

[Powder]

I loved this movie. It was so lovingly referential to the Showa-era Godzilla films that I adore, & I was surprised that it seemed to take a lot of influence from Rebirth of Mothra II (though any similarities could be coincidental I guess). This series has definitely gone the same route of the original Showa-era films, starting in a very grounded, dark way, & gradually becoming more absurd, comedic, & sci-fi driven. I'm all for it, personally.

I don't expect or want American studios to make hyper-realistic, poignant, profound Godzilla movies. Defeats the purpose entirely. Godzilla exists only because of the USA's crimes against man, God, nature, through the lens of the Japanese survivors of WW2. Shin Godzilla, Minus One, you want that, there it is. I like that the American ones quickly began to feel... American. It sets them apart. Goes to show that we're playing graciously with borrowed toys, having fun in the sandbox rather than trying to one-up the source material.

This flick felt like something right out of my growing up in the early 90's. Extreme, neon, absurd, over-the-top, a monumental crossover of epic proportions filled with cannon fodder creatures & awe-inspiring fantastical landscapes. The crystal caves, lava pits, icey abysses, apes fighting lizards, can you say "Donkey Kong Country", or perhaps even "Primal Rage"? It was like an arcade game, a comic book, & a toyline all at once. I mean, yeah, much like those works of my youth, it was definitely made with selling toys in mind. The evolved forms, robotic limbs, wild colors, even handheld weapons, yeah, for sure. I grew up on that kind of crazy stuff though, so I'm biased towards it when it suits me. I'm often critical of media that feels too much like a toy-shilling cartoon, but I think this movie did the best it could with having to hit those surely Playmates-mandated bullet points. It was genuinely fun in its silliness.

That said, there was a LOT of silliness. I think it's on-brand silliness, though. I normally wouldn't want a film like this to be so full of humor but thankfully it wasn't so much your typical Marvel movie quippy dialogue but rather relatable levity (through Bernie) or visual gags (Kong swinging Suko like a weapon, taking showers, getting dental work, knocking over the pyramids, etc). I was pleasantly surprised by how much I laughed out loud. Pretty much smiling on cruise control the whole way, either by the jokes or the sheer coolness factor of a lotta stuff shown.

Loved the clever callbacks like using the flying creatures' electric signals to not only camoflague their vessel but also to herd & weaponize their flock in the final conflict, or Kong's satisfying tooth mocking redemption bit between he & Skar. I've really really enjoyed the world building on Kong's side of this cinematic universe, so it's cool to see how much of that has paid off over time. The lore, his relationship with the young girl, & now her subsequent ties to Mothra, it's great. Something to be invested in emotionally without it getting into complicated geopolitics.

I enjoyed all of the new characters, human & kaiju alike. Though, once more, it seems pretty obvious, at least by my own assumptions, that a lot of the new monsters were intended to be or are otherwise inspired by previous Toho kaiju. The serpent is clearly a riff on Manda, & Shimu is basically just an arctic Anguirus. I've been calling her Anguirice. Skar was cool, a real dirtbag, just your solid evil-for-evil's-sake baddie. Fine by me. His spine whip with the crystal tip made the fight scenes with an axe-wielding Kong all the more exciting.

The CGI was great, I loved the color treatment of just about everything, the new environments were beautiful, fun soundtrack, I was thoroughly entertained by all that I saw & heard. It's no Citizen Kane, but boy was it a perfect popcorn flick. Exactly what I would want from an American Godzilla movie, barring the fact that he's hardly in it. It's OK, though. This King Kong is so damn likeable.

[oldmanwinters]

Well said, Powder!