David Song

The Rotten Tomatoes' critical consensus of this movie reads: "Godzilla: King of the Monsters delivers spectacular kaiju action -- and reaffirms that cutting-edge effects are still no substitute for a good story." Now hold up. You had me at "spectacular kaiju action". No one should be going to this movie expecting a richly crafted and gripping plot. That would have been great, but the main point here is heavy, hard-hitting monster action, and in that department, King of the Monsters delivers big time. Unlike the first Godzilla in 2014, which was criticized by some for limiting the screen time of the kaiju, this film puts the pedal to the metal and doesn't stop. You get several iconic Titans: Ghidorah, Mothra and Rodan, alongside Godzilla himself. Although some of the fight scenes suffer from an overuse of shaky-cam and a few too many cut-aways, overall the kaiju battles are as epic and as thrilling as they should be. There are also numerous breathtaking scenes where the CGI shines, from wide shots of devastated cities to close-ups of the kaiju. The plot, I would argue, is serviceable, and that's all you need in a big monster movie. And the human side of the story is more compelling than what we got in the first film, even if incrementally. Long story short: if you like big action, big monsters and grand set pieces, go see King of the Monsters. If you were expecting a rich plot and well-developed human characters, this genre is not for you.

It's certainly not the MCU's best offering, that's for sure. The visuals are nice as always, and the humour is more of the same that Marvel is already known for. Samuel L. Jackson brings levity and his usual swagger to work, but Brie Larson is the lead actress, and that's why Captain Marvel struggles. In my opinion (and I know I'm not alone on this), Larson is at best, a mediocre actress, and she fails to play Carol Danvers in a consistently compelling manner. Unlike, say, Gal Gadot, who was able to make us love and root for Wonder Woman, Larson's performance makes me certain that Danvers in the comics was a more interesting character. It's not that her characterization in the film is necessarily bad, but that Larson was unable to bring said characterization to life as well as she should have. There's also the fact that the action in the movie was surprisingly light, particularly in the third act. There is also an enormous plot twist that diverges greatly from the comics and thus may earn some resentment. Overall it's a 6/10 from me. Not a thumbs up or a thumbs down, but a flat hand.

In short, it was a phenomenal sci-fi movie. Yes, the action is exciting, the visual effects are spectacular and it is actually easy to follow the action because shots are not overly edited or chopped up. But the real soul of the movie is Alita herself, one of the most likable female heroes in recent memory. She is badass, yes, but also cute, funny and sassy. She is strong, but we see her be vulnerable as well. And because you care about Alita, you care about the rich sci-fi world that James Cameron and company have brought to life in the film. This movie deserves a sequel and it deserves more money than it's got right now.