In 2010, Legendary Pictures acquired the rights to the Godzilla franchise after Yoshimitsu Banno failed attempts to make a 40 minute American IMAX Godzilla movie from 2003-2008. On May 16, 2014, Legendary Pictures released Godzilla. This marked a new era for Godzilla movies because it had been ten years since any Godzilla movies came out. More importantly, it was a new Godzilla series to show America what a Godzilla movie should be like. On March 31, we cap off this American Godzilla series with a rematch 59 years in the making, Godzilla vs. Kong!

Godzilla vs. Kong is the best American Godzilla movie. Personally, I think it’s the best movie of 2021! Let me put my money where my mouth is and tell you why this is a must see.

Story: The story is simple and easy to understand. Throughout the movie, there was never a dull moment. Everything had a reason for happening, even if you think it was dumb to do it.

Characters: The characters are the best they’ve ever been throughout this whole American Godzilla franchise. All characters have motives to what they want to do. The villain of the movie’s motives aren’t “I’m evil because I am” but have reasoning that people can agree with. An interesting character in this movie is an “Iwi” girl named Jia who is deaf. Throughout the movie, you see her close connection with Kong and how he behaves around her.

Effects: This is the best these movies have ever been in effects! Plenty of daytime and sunset shots to really get into the mood of the scene. A big reason for why these daytime shots are good because throughout the last two Godzilla movies (Godzilla (2014), Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019), many important shots are set at night and that causes us to not see anything on screen. Godzilla: King of the Monsters sort of fixed it by giving the night scenes a blue tint, but it was still hard to see. But this movie actually has daytime fight scenes and when the movie is shot at night, it’s lit up, so you can see everything that’s happening.

Monsters: The best part of the movie and the part you have been waiting for, the monsters. And I can safely say that this movie is full of monster action! When Godzilla and Kong first meet, you really feel the power and weight of the fight. The final battle between Godzilla, Kong, and a third monster really makes you want your side to win but with a satisfying conclusion. The movie is more Kong focused, but it still gives you awesome Godzilla action!

Final Thoughts: This is one of the best movies of 2021. Action, cinematography, and acting are all beautiful! I’m going to give it a 9/10, a must watch if you haven’t. And with a shorter length than the other Godzilla movies that came out, you’ll feel like the movie was fast paced. If you can, watch it in theaters, or watch it on “HBOMAX” if you don’t feel safe going back to theaters.