Disney+ announced today that “The Book of Boba Fett”— the new Lucasfilm series teased in a surprise end-credit sequence following the Season 2 finale of “The Mandalorian”— will premiere on Wednesday, December 29, exclusively on the streaming service. Disney+ also debuted the key art for the series.
“The Book of Boba Fett,” a thrilling Star Wars adventure, finds legendary bounty hunter Boba Fett and mercenary Fennec Shand navigating the Galaxy’s underworld when they return to the sands of Tatooine to stake their claim on the territory once ruled by Jabba the Hutt and his crime syndicate.
“The Book of Boba Fett” stars Temuera Morrison and Ming-Na Wen. Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni, Robert Rodriguez, Kathleen Kennedy and Colin Wilson are the executive producers. Karen Gilchrist and Carrie Beck serve as co-executive producers, with John Bartnicki producing and John Hampian as co-producer.
Today, Disney+ debuted the trailer and announced the Japanese and English dub voice casts for “Star Wars: Visions,” an upcoming anthology series from Lucasfilm that tells new Star Wars stories through the singular style and tradition of Japanese anime. Disney+ also released four exciting images from the trailer.
The new trailer provides a glimpse of the captivating tone and stunning visuals from each of the animated shorts, which can all be viewed both with the original Japanese voice cast or the English dub cast when the series launches on Disney+ on September 22.
“Lucasfilm is partnering with seven of the most talented anime studios in Japan to bring their signature style and unique vision of the Star Wars galaxy to this inspired new series,” says James Waugh, executive producer and Lucasfilm Vice President, Franchise Content & Strategy. “Their stories showcase the full spectrum of bold storytelling found across Japanese animation; each told with a freshness and voice that expands our understanding of what a Star Wars story can be, and celebrates a galaxy that has been such an inspiration to so many visionary storytellers.”
The English dub cast includes the voice talents of returning Star Wars actors and talent new to the Star Wars universe:
The Duel: Brian Tee (Ronin), Lucy Liu (Bandit Leader), Jaden Waldman (Village Chief)
Tatooine Rhapsody: Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Jay), Bobby Moynihan (Geezer), Temuera Morrison (BobaFett), Shelby Young (K-344), Marc Thompson (Lan)
The Twins: Neil Patrick Harris (Karre), Alison Brie (Am), Jonathan Lipow (B-20N)
The Village Bride: Karen Fukuhara (F), Nichole Sakura (Haru), Christopher Sean (Asu), Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa (Valco), Andrew Kishino (Izuma), Stephanie Sheh (Saku)
The Ninth Jedi: Kimiko Glenn (Kara), Andrew Kishino (Juro), Simu Liu (Zhima), Masi Oka (Ethan), Greg Chun (Roden), Neil Kaplan (Narrator), Michael Sinterniklaas (Hen Jin),
The studios creating the nine shorts include Kamikaze Douga – “The Duel”; Geno Studio (Twin Engine) – “Lop and Ochō”; Studio Colorido (Twin Engine) – “Tatooine Rhapsody”; TRIGGER – “The Twins” and “The Elder”; Kinema Citrus – “The Village Bride”; Science Saru – “Akakiri” and “T0-B1”; and Production I.G. – “The Ninth Jedi.”
For more on “Star Wars: Visions,” visit StarWars.com.
Today, Disney+ announced the second season of the critically acclaimed animated series “Star Wars: The Bad Batch,” which will launch in 2022.
“Fans have enthusiastically embraced the action and drama of “Star Wars: The Bad Batch,” and we are excited to see the Star Wars animated universe continue to expand on Disney+,” said Michael Paull, President of Disney+ and ESPN+. “As the dedicated streaming home for the Star Wars franchise, we can’t wait for the second season of this fan-favourite animated series.”
Commenting on the second season announcement, executive producer Dave Filoni said, “The entire Lucasfilm Animation team and I would like to thank Disney+ and our fans for the opportunity to continue telling the story of the Bad Batch.”
Part 1 of the two-part finale of Season 1 of “Star Wars: The Bad Batch” will be available to stream tonight, only on Disney+.
“Star Wars: The Bad Batch” is executive produced by Dave Filoni (“The Mandalorian,” “Star Wars: The Clone Wars”), Athena Portillo (“Star Wars: The Clone Wars,” “Star Wars Rebels”), Brad Rau (“Star Wars Rebels,” “Star Wars Resistance”), Jennifer Corbett (“Star Wars Resistance,” “NCIS”) and Carrie Beck (“The Mandalorian,” “Star Wars Rebels”) with Josh Rimes (“Star Wars Resistance”) and Alex Spotswood (“Star Wars: The Clone Wars,” “Star Wars Rebels”) as producers. Rau is also serving as supervising director with Corbett as head writer.
Visit StarWars.com for more information about the series.
Summary: Based on Disneyland’s theme park ride where a small riverboat takes a group of travelers through a jungle filled with dangerous animals and reptiles but with a supernatural element.
Year: 2021
Cinema Release Dates: 29th July 2021 (Australia), 30th July 2021 (UK), 30th July 2021 (USA)
VOD Release Dates: Out now in all regions
Country: USA
Director: Jaume Collet-Serra
Screenwriter: Glenn Ficarra, Michael Green, John Requa
Cast: Al Saif Alshad (himself), Rapheal Alejandro (Zaqueu), Emily Blunt (Lily Houghton), Dan Dargan Carter (Gonzalo), Veronica Falcon (Trader Sam), Faith Fay (Hotel Guest – Savannah), Paul Giamatti (Nilo),Quim Gutierrez (Melchor), Nicholas Ryan Hernandez (Young Aguirre), Ben Jenkin (Proxima), Dwayne Johnson (Frank Wolff), Simone Lockhart (Anna), Philipp Maximilian (Axel), Andy Nyman (Sir James Hobbs-Coddington), Jesse Plemons (Prince Joachim), Edgar Ramirez (Aguirre), Dani Roviro (Sancho), Tom Vodnik (Tanner), Jack Whitehall (MacGregor Houghton)
Running Time: 127 mins
Classification: M (Australia), .12-A (UK), PG-13 (USA)
OUR JUNGLE CRUISE REVIEWS
David Griffiths’ Jungle Cruise Review:
A film based on a Disneyland ride. Don’t laugh, remember that was the premise behind one of Disney’s highest earning franchises, The Pirates Of The Caribbean, and now Disney is hoping that lightning can strike twice as they are set to release Jungle Cruise a film that once again is based on one of their favourite theme-parks rides.
Directed by Jaume Collett-Sera (Unknown) Jungle Cruise is a mix of epic adventure and super-natural scares as rugged adventurer Lily Houghton (Emily Blunt – Edge Of Tomorrow) goes against the norms of World War II society and sets about solving the mystery behind the Tears Of Heaven legend.
In a bid to solve the mystery that her father failed to achieve Lily sets off to Brazil with her reluctant brother, MacGregor (Jack Whitehall – Mother’s Day), to head up the Amazon and solve the mystery using her father’s map. On arrival in Brazil they quickly find talented river captain and part-time scammer Frank Wolff (Dwayne Johnson – Moana) who is only too eager to take the job of carrying them up river if it means he can escape the clutches of shrewd businessman Nilo (Paul Giamatti – Gunpowder Milkshake) who is coming after the money that he is owed.
However, Lily and MacGregor are not the only ones eager to solve the mystery and hot on their heels is the evil Prince Joachim (Jesse Plemons – The Irishman) who has recruited the undead, led by the warrior Aguirre (Edgar Ramirez – Point Break), to help in his mission to solve the mystery and use the magical tree’s petals to help Germany win the war.
Jungle Cruise is certainly a fun film to watch. It takes the best elements of films like Indiana Jones and Jumanji and mixes it with a definite Pirates Of The Caribbean super-natural vibe. Then to top it off the characters of Lily and Frank are reminiscent of the roles played by Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn in the Oscar winning epic The African Queen from 1951.
While the super-natural scenes created by Collett-Sera and his team of screenwriters are entertaining and suspenseful they do rest heavily on things that we have all seen before in other Disney films. The key though to the film working all comes down the amazing acting performances of its leads.
Dwayne Johnson mixes comedy and action together brilliantly well here like he has done in films like Jumanji while he shares a definite on-screen chemistry with Emily Blunt who re-creates some of the strong performances of some of the Hollywood greats like Hepburn and Fay Wray in a role that she seems like she was born to play. Like Johnson she is only too happy to deliver the odd witty line while also not afraid to put her body online in some pretty amazing stunts.
These two are also well supported by Jack Whitehall who seems to enjoy stealing the odd laugh or two as he portrays the clumsy and terrified side-kick while Jesse Plemons puts his acting skills into over-drive as he gets to play the over-zealous villain. Once again Plemons shows why he is one of the most under-rated actors in Hollywood at the moment.
Watching Jungle Cruise does feel like an adventure for the whole family, although parents should be aware that some of the supernatural themes may scare small children. Still the screen-writing team does more than enough to provide some cheap laughs for younger members, plus a very cute animal side-kick for Dwayne Johnson, while older audience members are going to love the fact that the film is a definite throw-back to some of the best action-adventures that Hollywood had to offer during its Golden Age.
Spectacular special effects and a suspenseful story-line are further enhanced by Blunt and Johnson putting in some of the best performances of their career and together this recipe has created a film that is guaranteed to become yet another family favorite from Disney.Jungle Cruise is now available on Disney+ and will be released in Phuket cinemas at a later date.
Summary: The mercurial villain Loki resumes his role as the God of Mischief in a new series that takes place after the events of “Avengers: Endgame.
Year: 2021
Cinema Release Dates: N/A
VOD Release Dates: Out now in all regions.
Country: USA
Director: Kate Herron
Screenwriter: Michael Waldron
Cast: Sophia Di Martino (Sylvie), Tom Hiddelston (Loki), Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Ravonna Renslayer), Wunmi Mosaku (Hunter B-15), Owen Wilson (Mobius)
Running Time: N/A
Classification: TBC
OUR LOI REVIEWS
David Griffiths’ Loki Review:
One of the biggest complaints that some film lovers have levelled at Marvel films over the years is that the films have been the same. Epic battle sequences and cities crumbling to dust while muscle-bound heroes yell lines at the top of their voice. With the arrival of Wanda Vision on Disney+ it felt like Marvel had listened and created something vastly different. Something so different that the haters then decided it was ‘too different.’
Perhaps though the perfect middle-ground is the latest Marvel show to be released on Disney+ Loki. Set after the events of The Avengers: Endgame the show sees Loki (Tom Hiddleston – Kong: Skull Island) brought before the mysterious Time Variance Authority whose job it is to monitor the timelines through space and time.
Charged with breaking a timeline Loki is sentenced to being erased from time and space by Ravonna Renslayer (Gugu Mbatha-Raw – Beauty And The Beast) but her colleague Mobius (Owen Wilson – Wedding Crashers) begs for Loki’s life to be spared and instead his punishment should be working for the TVA and helping them with their investigations. Mobius’ ultimate plan is to not only have Loki for them but to also study him so that they can track down the various Loki variants that are causing havoc across timelines, including the female Loki (Sophia Di Martino – Yesterday) named Sylvie.
Created by Michael Waldron (Ricky & Morty) Loki is unlike anything that Marvel has previously created. It is epic in a completely different to anything that Marvel done before. While other Marvel productions have gone with an epic scale of crashing spaceships and battle sequences here Loki goes into epic fantasy worlds that H.P. Lovecraft would be proud of.
That different feel sees the creators take Loki into a steam-punk world while the scenes set in the halls and offices of the Time Variance Authority seem to have taken inspiration from The Ministry Of Magic in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter franchise. The similarities to the Potterverse also don’t end there with Wilson’s Mobius often dressing like Arthur Weasley.
The story that weaves through Loki is complex but compelling. While often kids can watch a Marvel movie and completely understand the plot that certainly isn’t the case with Loki. As the characters time-travel and jump through time-lines the plot itself does require its audience to totally evolve themselves with it and not even look away for a moment. Even hardened fans of the show have admitted that if they have become distracted by something while watching it they have had to rewind the show in order to work out what happened while they were distracted.
Also coming to the fore with this series has been the acting capabilities of Tom Hiddleston. Often in the movies the character of Loki has been restricted to being the ‘villain’ or the comic relief, so it has been quite refreshing to see his character grow throughout the Loki series. This has shown just how talented Hiddleston is as an actor especially during sequences when Loki has been shown the repercussions of his actions throughout history and some of the more touching scenes he shares with Sylvie.
Owen Wilson has also adapted well to a more serious role than we would normally expect from him but the star of this show to date has been Sophia Di Martino. Sylvie is an interesting character – she is capable of great evil but also at other times shows that she cares for people who are close to her. Di Martino has really relished the role and it is obvious that this will give her a spring-board to bigger roles in Hollywood very soon.
Loki is very much a must see for fans of the Marvel universe and while some of the Marvel shows available on Disney+ are more like mini-series Loki has just been given the green-light to film a second season so it seems that longevity is on its side. There are currently five episodes of Loki on Disney+ in Phuket.
Today, Disney+ debuted “Meet Sylvie,” a new featurette for Marvel Studios’ “Loki” featuring Sylvie, the extremely capable and dangerous variant who just happens to be another version of Loki. Watch the new “Loki” featurette to find out more about her and Sophia Di Martino, the talented actress who brings her to life.
“Loki,” Marvel Studios’ newest original series, launched on Disney+ Wednesday, June 9, with new episodes streaming every Wednesday through July 14.
Marvel Studios’ “Loki” features the God of Mischief as he steps out of his brother’s shadow in a new series that takes place after the events of “Avengers: Endgame.” Tom Hiddleston returns as the title character, joined by Owen Wilson, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Sophia Di Martino, Wunmi Mosaku and Richard E. Grant. Kate Herron directs “Loki,” and Michael Waldron is head writer.
Summary: Seven years after he survived the monster apocalypse, lovably hapless Joel leaves his cozy underground bunker behind on a quest to reunite with his ex.
Year: 2020
Cinema Release Dates: TBA
VOD Release Dates: 14th April 2021 (Australia), 14th April 2021 (UK), 16th October 2020 (USA)
Country: Canada, USA, Australia
Director: Michael Matthews
Screenwriter: Brian Duffield, Matthew Robinson
Cast: Donnie Baxter (Parker), Thomas Campbell (Anderson), Dan Ewing (Carp), Damian Garvey (Bill), Amali Golden (Ava), Ariana Greenblatt (Minnow), Tre Hale (Rocko), Jessica Henwick (Aimee), Ellen Holman (Dana), Helen Howard (Rose), Julia Johnson (Betty), Pacharo Mzembe (Ray), Dylan O’Brien (Joel), Hazel Phillips (Janice), Joel Pierce (Connor), Senie Priti (Karen), Tanseem Roc (Anna Lucia), Michael Rooker (Clyde), Ariu Lang Sio (Roberto), Miriama Smith (Maya), Bruce Spence (Old Pete), Te Kohe Tuhaka (Tim), Melanie Zanetti (Kala/Voice Of Mavis)
When it comes to the Academy Awards genre flicks rarely get a look in but this year one found itself on the nominations list and it raised eyebrows everywhere. Love And Monsters was the little film that found itself boxing well and truly out of its weight division.
An American/Australian co-production Love And Monsters found itself amongst the heavy hitters when it was nominated in the Best Achievement in Visual Effects category, it didn’t win but it did suddenly have the world asking – “what on earth is that film?” Well to answer that question the film has now been made available on streaming platforms right around the world.
Directed by Michael Matthews (Five Fingers For Marseilles) Love And Monsters is set in a world that was saved by nuclear weapons when a meteorite threatened the Earth’s existence but the resulting fallout caused every cold blooded creature to mutant into gigantic ‘monster’ versions of themselves.
These creatures then killed a majority of the human population and the human’s left, which include the very innocent Joel (Dylan O’Brien – The Maze Runner), are left to live in colonies hiding underground. While he is a nice guy Joel freezes when he comes face-to-face with danger and as a result his colony see him as a liability. While the others go out to hunt he is left to stay behind and cook, and while the rest of the members of his colony have paired of Joel finds himself alone lost in his own thoughts.
However, after making radio contact with the girl, Aimee (Jessica Henwick – Game Of Thrones), that he was in love before the world went to hell he decides that he is going to make the dangerous journey from his colony to hers.
As a film Love And Monters has the feel of Zombieland all over it. You’ve got the ‘weak’ main character, a world that he doesn’t fit in to and for good measure the inclusion of a grumpy allie, Clyde (Michael Rooker – Guardians Of The Galaxy) who actually cares a lot more than he is letting on. Like Zombieland the film also has an injection of humour that isn’t enough to destroy the fantasy element of the film but is just enough to provide you with a laugh here and there.
The key to this film working though are the characters. Joel is a likable guy and the audience soon warm to him and want to see him succeed – due largely to the fact most audiences will realise that Joel is exactly what they would be like in the middle of the apocalypse. Add in a cute dog called Boy and a trusty side-kick, Minnow (Ariana Greenblatt – Avengers: Infinity War), and you soon have a group of characters that nobody wants to see anything bad happen to.
The inclusion of the other-worldly creatures does give the film a Stranger Things vibe throughout the film while the screenwriting team do just enough to create scenes with heart, like Joel bonding with a robot, to go alongside the action sequences. To their credit those action sequences and creature effects look pretty stunning, especially when you realise the film was made for the same sum as some film’s catering budgets. This is a filmmaking team that have a huge future ahead of them.
Just like he did in The Maze Runner franchise of films Dylan O’Brien once again shows Hollywood what he has to offer with his role here. He is brilliant throughout this film and whether it comes to a emotional scene or an action sequence he is the kind of actor that can shine through both.
Love And Monsters is one of the biggest surprises of 2021. It certainly deserved its Oscar nomination and you get the feeling that this film will become a family favourite for the younger generation in the same way films like Never Ending Story and The Labyrinth had for generations in the past.
Summary: A dystopian world where there are no women and all living creatures can hear each other’s thoughts in a stream of images, words, and sounds called Noise.
Year: 2021
Cinema Release Dates: 4th March 2021 (Australia), 11th March 2021 (Thailand), 5th March 2021 (USA)
VOD Release Dates: 2nd April 2021 (UK)
Country: USA, Canada, Hong Kong
Director: Doug Liman
Screenwriter: Christopher Ford, Patrick Ness
Cast: Olunike Adeliyi (Piper), Tyrone Benskin (Hammer), Claudia Besso (Gwen), Demian Bichir (Ben), Tomar Boyd (Farbranch), Bryce Buckbauer (Young Davy), Blane Crockarell (Young Todd), Mylene Dinh-Robic (Julie), Jazzy Ellis (Lilly), Cynthia Erivo (Hildy), Frank Fontaine (Mr Phelps), Patrick Garrow (Ivan), Francois Gauthier (Charlie), Isabelle Giroux (Jenny Hewitt), Bobby Hernandez (Captain Alvarez), Tom Holland (Todd), Oscar Jaenada (Wilf), Nick Jonas (Davy Prentiss Jnr.), Don Jordan (Tam), Vincent Leclerc (Daws), Bethany Anne Lind (Karyssa Hewitt), Ray McKinnon (Matthew), Mads Mikkelsen (Mayor Prentiss), Tara Nicodemo (Tara), Yadi Nieves (Jackie), David Oyelowo (Aaron), Petra Post (Sweet Julie), Julian Richings (Gault), Daisy Ridley (Viola), Peter Seaborn (Caleb), Kurt Sutter (Cillian)
Running Time: 109 mins
Classification: M (Australia), 15 (Thailand), 12-A (UK), PG-13 (USA)
OUR CHAOS WALKING REVIEWS
David Griffiths’ Chaos Walking Review:
Tom Holland and Daisy Ridley! When it comes to pop culture film stars you couldn’t get two bigger. She is the face and main star of the latest batch of Star Wars adventures and he… well he is Spider-Man. The fact that the pair of them have joined forced in a film that very few people know about despite the fact it is in cinemas now is deeply astounding.
With America’s cinemas still out of commission it feels like some films are being released into cinemas without much fanfare and sadly Chaos Walking is one of those. Not just sadly because it means pop culture fans are likely to miss out on two of their favourite stars on the big screen but also sadly because this is one teenage post-apocalyptic movie that is going to appeal to people of all ages.
Set on a planet called New World Chaos Walking finds Todd (Tom Holland – Spider-Man: Far From Home) living in a woman-less society. Raised by Ben (Demian Bichir – The Hateful Eight) and Cillian (Kurt Sutter – Sons Of Anarchy) Todd has been raised to believe that all woman on the planet were killed by an invading army of aliens. Now he spends the days working on the farm, trying to control his Noise (thoughts that can be heard by others) and trying to avoid a mad priest (David Oyelowo – Selma).
Todd’s fathers become worried though when he starts to find favour with the town’s fearless Mayor (Mads Mikkelsen – Another Round) but even that relationship is put to the test when Todd is the person that finds the crashed space-craft of a young woman named Viola (Daisy Ridley – Star Wars: The Force Awakens).
Directed by Doug Liman, the amazing filmmaker who has brought us films like The Bourne Identity and Edge Of Tomorrow, Chaos Walking goes far beyond your average teenage dystopian film and places itself in that elite side of the category that includes films like The Maze Runner and Divergent. Despite knowing the audience that this film is based at there is something edgy about the film. Todd doesn’t mind dropping the odd profanity and when the heroes do find themselves under the threat you know there is a good chance they may not get out of it alive.
The alternative nature of the film also seems to be embraced by the actors. Mads Mikkelsen brings his A-Game as he portrays a menacing Mayor with a world of secrets while the film also exposes a side of the acting of Ridley and Holland that few would have seen before. Many people have wondered whether or not Ridley has what it takes to make a career for herself outside of Star Wars and this is the film that suggests she certainly can.
The same can also be said for Holland. Unlike Ridley though Tom Holland had runs on the board before the franchise that made him a household name. Anyone who watched The Impossible, a film about the tragic Boxing Day tsunami, knew that Holland was going to become a star. Here in Chaos Walking he does what he did last year with The Current War and shows that he is going to be one of Hollywood’s best actors with or without the label of a superhero behind him.
Much of what there is to like about Chaos Walking also comes to the brilliant work of Doug Liman. Just like he did with The Bourne Identity Liman has audiences on the edge of their seat for a majority of the film and this is a film that he had to work hard to make. There were frequent re-writes and re-shoots throughout the film which of course caused major concerns with the busy schedules of the film’s stars so it really is a miracle that this film has ever made it cinemas. Those that love quality films though will be very thankful that it did.
Chaos Walking is one of the surprise hits of 2021. A step above most teenage sci-fi films this is the kind of film that will be embraced by people of all ages and once you have seen it you will be eagerly waiting to see if they decide to make more films in the franchise.
Dave’s rating Out Of 5
DF-18958.ARW
Alex First, Greg King and Peter Krausz’s Chaos Walking Review
Summary: The epic next chapter in the cinematic Monsterverse pits two of the greatest icons in motion picture history against one another – the fearsome Godzilla and the mighty Kong – with humanity caught in the balance.
Year: 2021
Cinema Release Dates: 25th March 2021 (Australia), 25th March 2021 (Thailand), 31st March 2021 (USA)
VOD Release Dates: 1st April 2021 (UK), 31st March 2021 (USA)
Country: USA, Australia, Canada, India
Director: Adam Wingard
Screenwriter: Eric Pearson, Max Borenstein
Cast: Demian Bichir (Walter Simmons), Millie Bobby Brown (Madison Russell), Chris Chalk (Ben), Kyle Chandler (Mark Russell), Ronnie Chieng (Jay Wayne), Julian Dennison (Josh Valentine), Eia Gonzalez (Maya Simmons), Rebecca Hall (Ilene Andrews), Brian Tyree Henry (Bernie Hayes), Kaylee Hottle (Jia), Hakeen Kae-Kazim (Admiral Wilcox), Daniel Nielson (Hayworth), Shaun Oguri (Ren Serizawa), John Pirruccello (Horace), Lance Reddick (Guillerman), Alexsander Skargard (Nathan Lind)
Running Time: 113 mins
Classification: M (Australia), G (Thailand), 12-A (UK), PG-13 (USA)
OUR GODZILA VS KONG REVIEWS
David Griffiths’ Godzilla vs Kong Review:
There is perhaps no bigger way to announce that blockbusters are back in post-COVID cinemas then to let two titans like Godzilla and King Kong go head-to-head. The Godzilla/Kong franchise has bubbled along nicely for Warner Bros over the past seven years and now it roars back to life as the two titans come to some pretty impressive blows in Godzilla vs Kong.
Directed by Adam Wingard (Blair Witch) the film sees the giant creatures go to war after Kong expert Ilene Andrews (Rebecca Hall – The Town) and her adopted daughter Jia (newcomer Kaylee Hottle) are persuaded by scientist Nathan Lind (Alexander Skarsgard – The Legend Of Tarzan) to bring Kong out of his protected environment in a bid to help with a scientific discovery that could save humanity.
Meanwhile on the other side of the world the determined Madison Russell (Millie Bobby Brown – Stranger Things) and her friend Josh Valentine (Julian Dennison – Deadpool 2) have joined forces with conspiracy theorist Bernie Hayes (Brian Tyree Henry – Widows) to try and clear Godzilla’s name after it appears that he attacked a city for no apparent reason.
However, once Godzilla realises that Kong is out and in the open he proceeds to attack the giant beast in a bid to become the ‘alpha’ placing the lives of all on Earth at risk.
The plotline of Godzilla vs Kong is pretty thin but of course nobody is going into this film expecting an Oscar-worthy script – no this is a film that is designed to be a visual spectacular and that is certainly the case from start to finish. If you want action then you’ve come to the right place because Godzilla vs Kong delivers it in spades.
The one thing you do very quickly realise with this film is that it is very much a Kong film. The film is largely told through the eyes of those who surround Kong ie. Ilene Andrews, Nathan Lind and Jia, and for the most part Kong is the hero of the tale and Godzilla the villain. That also results in strong storylines developing around those characters and Kong while the interest in the team trying to ‘clear’ Godzilla at times wanes as it is mainly one dimensional.
What saves the film though is the brilliant action sequences that see the two kings of the Monsterverse go head-to-head. To the credit of the filmmakers they don’t hold back on those scenes and the two epic battles are more than enough to fulfil those who criticised Godzilla: King Of Monsters for its lack of action. And yes the rumours are true – both battles easily last longer than 10 minutes on screen each. With some amazing special effects and the brilliant eye of Wingard and cinematographer Ben Seresin (World War Z) these battle sequences come to life in a way that fans of the franchise could only dream they could. They also have the sense not to be cutting away to minor characters during the battles and instead just let the beasts host their own version of Smackdown.
When it comes to the acting side of things you get both good and bad with Godzilla vs Kong. The talented Kyle Chandler (Super 8) feels wasted with his limited screen-time but both Rebecca Hall and Kaylee Hottle shine as the carry most of the ‘human’ side of the film. You expect that someone with the experience of Hall could do that fairly easily but huge credit must be paid for Hottle for doing so. This is the first acting performance for the young hearing-impaired actress and her performance brings back memories of Drew Barrymore in E.T. or Kirsten Dunst in Interview With A Vampire. Like them she never seems to be over-awed by the scale of the film or by the experience of the actors around her and instead she makes her own mark as a star.
Godzilla vs Kong is the kind of film where you are willing to overlook some pretty obvious continuity errors and weak storyline simply because of the amazing special effects and action sequences. While the film is not likely to be an award winner it will certainly win over fans of this franchise with ease.
