GODZILLA VS. KONG

Godzilla tackles Kong

GODZILLA VS. KONG (2021.) Director: Adam Wingard. 

Of the two monster icons  Godzilla is behaving badly since his last appearance in Godzilla, King of the Monsters, attacking a Florida compound, and the equally gigantic Kong wants out of the artificial habitat he has been imprisoned in since Kong: Skull Island. It is decided that Kong will be taken to a hole in the earth through which he can descend to the hollow world inside the planet (think: Edgar Rice Burroughs' Pellucidar) where he may find others of his kind; others are only after a new energy source. Meanwhile Godzilla attacks the ship transporting Kong, and then turns his wrath on Hong Kong while a kind of "mecha-Godzilla" -- a Godzilla robot -- shows up to battle the big guy. Will Kong fight Godzilla or help him beat up on the big robot? More importantly, will anyone over the age of five give a damn?

Admittedly striking scenic design of inner-earth

I am a big fan of monster movies, having written Creature Features: Nature Turned Nasty in the Movies, but I am appalled by the current state of the genre. The special effects in Godzilla vs Kong can not be faulted, but the direction and editing are simply terrible, the photography is cluttered and unappealing, and there isn't a single moment in the movie that I could call thrilling or especially suspenseful. The scenic design is wonderful and a lot of gifted technicians and artists have made major contributions, but when the whole project is bankrupt to begin with because of a mediocre screenplay, all of this effort is simply wasted. 

Where's my agent? Alexander Skarsgard

Godzilla vs Kong may not be as silly as the Japanese King Kong vs. Godzilla made in the sixties, but despite the great FX, it isn't much more entertaining. As for the human characters, most of them are irritating nerds, and the little deaf girl who can communicate with Kong (who speaks one word at one point), while adorable, is also annoying. While I won't compare Godzilla vs Kong with a cheap Syfy channel movie, I'd have to say that any actor who appears in stuff like this should have a serious talk with their agent. Alexander Skarsgard, who plays a scientist, may not be a major star, but surely he can do better than this? (He's done a lot of TV lately and that seems to be his future.) As usual all the dead people of Hong Kong are completely forgotten at the end. 

Verdict: Great FX work, yes, but little else. **. 

BLAIR WITCH (2016)

BLAIR WITCH (2016). Director: Adam Wingard. 

In this second sequel (after Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2) to The Blair Witch Project, James (James Allen McCune), goes with friends to see if he can find his long-missing sister, Heather, who disappeared 15 years ago in the woods supposedly haunted by the Blair Witch, who was murdered there many, many years before. The group, which includes Peter (Brandon Scott) and Ashley (Corbin Reid), hooks up with two locals, Lane (Wes Robinson) and  Talia (Valorie Curry), who are more familiar with the area. These last two fake a little evidence at first to get the group intrigued, but eventually when weird things begin to happen it is clear that they couldn't be behind the mysterious and frightening happenings. James is determined to find the spooky house that appeared in the original found footage (that forms the first movie) and he does -- more's the pity. 

the talented cast of Blair Witch

As found footage movies go, Blair Witch is better than most, and while the film engendered some serious hate, I found it much better and more professional than the original. If I recall correctly, the 1999 movie meandered along and was somewhat boring with only a creepy final few minutes, but Blair Witch manages to sustain the eerie atmosphere and tension almost throughout the entire movie. The climax, especially the discovery and exploration of the horrible old house, not to mention a bit when Lisa (Callie Hernandez) crawls her way through a narrow underground tunnel to, hopefully, escape and you get the disquieting feeling that you're down there with her, is marvelously effective and chilling (excruciating for claustrophobes). All of the actors are on top of things. The movie includes a drone camera that can fly over the woods to give the group some aerial views, but this doesn't add too much to the movie, and there's a little gore as well. 

Verdict: Atmospheric and suspenseful and for my money much better than the original film. ***.