The Early Numbers Are In On Godzilla x Kong, And It’s A Surprise
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire held its red carpet premiere on March 25, with an international release on March 27 and a US release on March 29. Well, the early numbers from the premiere and the international release are in, and while they paint a pretty clear picture about the film’s undeniable box office success, the reviews aren’t so great, and they paint an entirely different picture.
Box Office Returns Look Great, The Reviews Look Horrible
It would seem that Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is headed towards a rather strong opening weekend in the US if the film’s earning trend continues. For reference, the film made $10 million in its early Thursday previews, which is more than double what the new Ghostbusters film made last week and on par with Dune: Part Two. However, the reviews for the movie aren’t as hot as its earnings, mostly because it came too soon after Godzilla Minus One, and the fact that Godzilla actually plays more of a supportive role in the film.
Bad Reviews Aren’t Surprising
The mediocre reviews might end up affecting Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire‘s overall performance and ratings, but it isn’t unfounded. Don’t get us wrong, the movie isn’t bad by any stretch of the imagination, but there are certain things that could have been done better, considering just how great the previous films were. So, the great earnings the film made on its preview screening and international release could be attributed to the hype built up by the marketing and the expectations set by previous MonsterVerse films.
Expectations Were Too High
And we’d say that the mixed reviews Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire has been receiving are the result of those high expectations not being met because the audience expects subsequent releases to be more awe-inspiring than their predecessors. Well, that’s somewhat what’s happening here: Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is delivering on the monster battles we’re already accustomed to but fails to produce that awe-inspiring effect that would make you forget about the previous films.
Focusing On The Monsters Rather Than The People
However, not being better than the previous movie is one of the rare things Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire does wrong. What it does right is putting the emphasis on the monsters and their battles while sidelining the human element. In fact, most of the characters from the last few movies, including Godzilla vs. Kong, aren’t even in the new film. Most of them have disappeared from the film’s narrative without any explanation.
A New Hero
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire gives us a new protagonist, Dr. Ilene Andrews (Rebecca Hall), who’s an adoptive mother to a member of the Iwi tribe—the tribe that inhabits the Hollow Earth and Skull Island in the MonsterVerse—who can actually communicate with Kong via sign language. However, there are some recurring cast members, like Brian Tyree Henry, whom we previously saw in Godzilla vs. Kong.
Godzilla Takes A Backseat
Another downside is that Godzilla has been sidelined as well—though thankfully not to the extent humans have been—which is odd because the titan’s name is right there in the film’s title. It’s like watching a Batman movie in which Batman goes around helping Robin fight the bad guys. With that said, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire does have its stronger points as well, like monster battles, which are really epic, and if you’re buying a movie ticket just to see some titans smack each other around, you most definitely won’t be disappointed.
Source: Deadline
