Godzilla: King of the Monsters [Steelbook] [4K Ultra HD] [2019] [Blu-ray]

This is a review of the 2019 All Region Blu-ray from Warner Home Video.At the end of July, I reviewed the first of California-based Legendary Entertainment’s ‘Monsterverse’ films, ‘Godzilla’(2014). My considered view was that although it provided viewers with a super-spectacular trash-a-city-fest, it really did not contain much besides. The story was slight, the screenplay was light on explanation, some good actors were under-used, and as for any humour or heft in the script ~ well, there wasn’t any. My summation was a very average 4 Stars.Well, what was true of ‘Monsterverse I’, is also true of ‘Monsterverse III’. In the meantime, the franchise had looked at Kong, in ‘Kong: Skull Island’(2017), and had made a much better fist of it. We thought it was outstanding, and that it stood on it’s own merits as a 5 Star film. But here, Legendary managed again to lose the plot somewhat. We begin with an explanation as to why the main characters Drs Mark and Emma Russell, and their precocious daughter Madison (apparently aged 12, but behaving more like some angst-ridden older teenager), are involved in this plot. They are played, rather underwhelmingly, by the usually-reliable Kyle Chandler, Vera Farmiga and Millie Bobby Brown. The explanation we are given is delivered at the speed of ‘fast-forward’, and then we are into the action.As with the other Legendary ‘Monsterverse’ films, the 'look' is what it is all about. And it is genuinely jaw-dropping. The CGI is fantastic, the action fabulously choreographed. The single strongest aspect is probably the range of very interesting and spectacular ‘Titans’ that the designers put in front of us. ‘Mothra’, a beautiful giant butterfly, is quite lovely, and the film’s villain, ’Monster Zero’, genuinely horrific. But as with all the Godzilla films in the franchise, the action is actually far too relentless. It keeps up a hurricane-like blitz of action for virtually the entire 132 minutes, and there is no light and shade here. The consequence is that one is left feeling slightly hung-over, rather than entertained!This effect is enhanced by the fact that the script is decidedly sketchy, bland and basic. Again, there is no leaven of wittiness or humour. And again, we have to contend with singularly annoying characters, in particular the aforementioned teenaged daughter, Madison. At one point Charles Dance, cast as an eco-warrior ex British SAS colonel (yep, I was bemused too!) asks if Madison is being allowed to run the show. I really sympathised with him!At the end, my husband (who is a huge fan of the Batman films, for example) said he had been left totally cold by the entire enterprise. He is 100% correct. So, again, this film REALLY flatters to deceive, and Legendary certainly didn’t learn from the mistakes of ‘Godzilla’. It looks SO super, but has a big empty space for a heart. 3 tepid Stars.

Not everyone taste but these new gorilla movies are great, fantastic effects, good story line, definitely worth a watch

* The 4k upgrade certainly enhances the Special-Effect sequences, you'll notice the difference in picture quality if you have also seen the Blu-ray version of the movie.This the follow-up of the 2014 Godzilla movie, kinda following on some five years later (must admit found the 2014 film somewhat disappointing)The film starts with the closing moments of the titan battle on the streets of San Franciso when Godzilla reigned supreme, the battle witnessed by Dr Mark Russell (Kyle Chandler) and his wife Dr Emma Russell (Vera Farmiga)Five years on, the couple now separated, Emma works for Monarch a Titan studying organisation, Mark now a former employee.Emma with her daughter Maddison ( Millie Bobby Brown) witness the birth of a larva dubbed Mortha at the research centre, which appears out of control initially, however, Emma manages to calm it down using a device she'd developed with ex-husband Mark.At this point, the centre is attacked by eco-terrorists led by Alan Jonah (Charles Dance) who kill all other than Emma and her daughter, the group needing Emma's expertise with her orca-device.In the mayhem, Mortha escapes the compound....Mark is persuaded to return if but reluctantly to the fold to help track down the escaped monster and find the eco-terrorists holding his ex-wife and daughter.Meanwhile, Jonah with the help of Emma frees the three-headed Titan known as monster-zero which kills several monarch members before escaping.Monsters begin to emerge from their controlled Monarch environments, Godzilla will do battle with monster-zero who had already seen off Rodan, however, the U.S military launch a high-powered missile toward the battling giants, they believe Godzilla died in the blast, but, monster-zero ( Ghidorah) survives.Ghidorah will awaken many Titans who'll escape their controlled environment.With the world's cities under attack, a miracle is needed to change the course of inevitability..........Dr Ishiro Serizawa (Ken Watanabe) hopes that Godzilla survived the military attack as weapons against the titans on the loose are futile, only the king of the titans is capable of saving the dilemma.Can mankind and Titans co-exist?The script and storyline are pretty thin in truth, the film relies heavily on its visual effects to carry the day.Though the film strays away from the titan battles to tell the story of the Russell family's involvement in proceedings, I did in the main find the film quite watchable, though I can understand the Godzilla purists dislike for the way the action was portrayed.If you like myself have just been looking forward to the spectacle, I'd say you'll probably enjoy the movie in the main.