From the reviews that’ve been released so far, it appears that Godzilla: King of the Monsters is a film you either love or hate. While I enjoyed it, I can understand why people have problems with it. If you’re familiar with the original Toho Godzilla films and can tolerate cliché two-dimensional characters, then you’ll love it as much as I do. However, if you’re hoping for a more grounded realistic narrative like that of 2014’s Godzilla, then you’re going to be a bit disappointed.

The world is in havoc as countless monsters emerge and battle for supremacy. Among them are the great Godzilla, the Goddess Mothra, the volcanic bird Rodan and the most powerful of them all, the three headed King Ghidorah. Meanwhile a father, Mark Russell, a mother, Dr Emma Russell, and their daughter, Madison, try to unite to stop the creatures.

The Plot

King of the Monsters takes a pretty big leap as a sequel to the 2014 film. Instead of a grounded slow burning sci-fi plot, we have an action packed, sci-fi fantasy one. In this film not only do we have a device that can communicate with giant monsters but a bird that can live inside a volcano (Rodan) and a three-headed dragon that can, after losing a head, grow it back (Ghidorah). Hence those who preferred 2014’s more realistic set up may be disappointed in the sequel’s more fantastical premise.

For a Godzilla fan like me however the sci-fi fantasy elements are wonderful. The plot is very reminiscent of films like Godzilla Vs Gigan and Godzilla, Mothra and King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack as Godzilla and a few other monsters unite to fight a single threat, specifically King Ghidorah.

Unlike the 2014 film, the monsters have a lot more to do in King of the Monsters and seem more like characters with weaknesses and desires than walking environmental disasters. Godzilla in particular has an arc in the film as he and King Ghidorah fight over the position of apex predator. Almost like a superhero in a comic book film, Godzilla fights and loses to Ghidorah numerous times, gaining more experience and strength after each defeat until eventually he is able to equal the dragon in combat. This of course results in some incredible monster action.

The human characters also have a lot more to do as they fight each other over what they think is the best way to deal with the monsters. However, without getting into spoilers, towards the end of the film some of their actions question believability and logic. While they’re more compelling than the bland shallow characters in the 2014 film, they’re still not empathetic or well written.

The Characters

Many have said that King of the Monsters feels like it was written in the 90s’ and I can see why.

The characters are two-dimensional archetypes that everyone’s familiar with. For example, Mark, Emma and Madison Russell are your typical estranged family separated by tragedy. We’ve seen them before and we know they’ll be reunited by the end of the film.

Another example are the human antagonists, which include Emma and Colonel Jonah (played by Charles Dance). Avoiding spoilers once again, their desires and motivations aren’t original and, if they are to work, need more fleshing out to be convincing.

Would I recommend King of the Monsters? That depends on what you’re looking for. All I can I say is that for me, the action-packed plot and the cliché but relatively engaging characters absolutely satisfied me, both as a viewer and a Godzilla fan. If you liked the 2014 film and Kong: Skull Island, I say go see it but beware of its weirder, sillier premise.

I give Godzilla: King of the Monsters a nice 7 out of 10.