“Godzilla vs. Kong:” An Avengers-Level Film or Just an Average Blockbuster?

Sam Cooperman ‘22

    The Monsterverse is Warner Bros’ attempt at a cinematic universe to rival the massively popular Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the upcoming “Godzilla vs. Kong” will be the make or break moment for this titan franchise.

While the franchise originated with 2014’s “Godzilla” produced by Universal Studios and Legendary Entertainment, Legendary left to work with Warner Bros and managed to take Godzilla with them, along with some less famous monsters such as Roden, Mothra and King Ghidorah. Warner Bros currently owns the rights to King Kong and plans were quickly set in motion to unite the two behemoths in an on-screen battle.
    2014’s “Godzilla” was planned to be another one-off iteration of the character, so Warner Bros and Legendary had to work hard to transform the film into the start of a cinematic universe. The studios were actually fairly clever with their strategy, creating the fictional company Monarch that tracks the ancient race of Titans and tries to stop their re-emergence. Any more detail and the universe begins to get fairly messy.
    2017’s “Kong: Skull Island” was set during the 1970s as Monarch researchers are stranded on an island crawling with prehistoric creatures, most notably, Kong, who turns out to be friendly. Years later in 2014, “Godzilla” emerges due to radioactive weapons testing, attacks Chicago and fights off another race of Titans called Mutos. He then somehow disappears back into the ocean for years until 2019 and the events of “King of the Monsters.”
    “Godzilla vs. Kong” might seem like an impressive culmination of seven years of films, but when there are only three over the course of those seven years along with rapidly decreasing box office numbers and critical reception, it seems almost silly.
During the credits of “King of the Monsters,” it is revealed that the Titans are restoring the earth to its “more natural state” by simply walking around. For example, the Sahara Desert spontaneously grew an entire rainforest after a Titan walked through it. None of this serves as an intriguing set up between why Godzilla and Kong want to fight each other. Even “Godzilla vs. Kong’s” trailer recognizes how strange this is as multiple characters wonder what provoked Godzilla to instigate the fight.
Poor build-up and previous reception aside, the internet seems excited to see what Warner Bros has in store. The trailer reached number one on YouTube’s trending list in a few hours and over 60 million views in its first few days. An onslaught of memes about “Fire Lizard v. Big Monkey” filled social media. It seems a majority of people are willing to overlook the most likely nonsensical story for some incredible visuals. In this department, the Monsterverse clearly delivers.
Computer-Generated Imagery (CGI) has come quite a long way since the men in monster suits of the mid-1900s. Now, though silly, a team of people can create massive photorealistic apes and lizards punching each other in the face on an aircraft carrier in the middle of the ocean. “King of the Monsters” especially had stunning visuals that could distract you from its less than realistic story.
However, Warner Bros executives cannot afford to overlook the numbers. If box office returns get any lower than “Godzilla: King of the Monsters,” which made less than 200 million in profit worldwide, an incredibly low number for such a big-budget blockbuster, it might be time to pull the plug on the Monsterverse. There are no further films currently in development after “Godzilla vs. Kong” which is a bad sign for Warner Bros’ confidence in their franchise.
“Godzilla vs. Kong” doesn’t have the build-up of a movie such as 2012’s “The Avengers” but it certainly has the scale. Maybe after much time in quarantine with plenty of political, social and mental strain, all viewers wish is to turn their brain off and watch King Kong smack Godzilla with an axe.
So I’ll ask you, who do you think is going to win? The atomic fire breathing lizard who rules his fellow Titans or a big monkey. Find out as “one will fall” when “Godzilla vs. Kong” releases on Mar. 31 exclusively on HBO Max.