Favorite Monsterverse Film

king_ghidorah · Post by **king_ghidorah** » Mon Mar 21, 2022 8:59 am

I thought it would be nice to create a thread for us all to discuss what our favorite film is from the Monsterverse so far.

No need to bash the ones that didn’t make your top slot.

Just chime in with the film you like most and why.

I’ll post my thoughts later, but I’m going with Godzilla (2014).

Handsome Shrek · Post by **Handsome Shrek** » Mon Mar 21, 2022 9:48 am

Going to post my ranking of the MV because why not. 1 is my favorite:

1. King of the Monsters
2. Godzilla 2014
3. Skull Island
4. Godzilla vs Kong

I will say that Godzilla vs Kong has the best fight scenes (Godzilla vs Kong in Hong Kong being the best in the MV IMO), but overall the movie is just really messy and I would’ve preferred a more serious tone like G14 and KotM

king_ghidorah · Post by **king_ghidorah** » Mon Mar 21, 2022 9:55 am

Agreed. G 2014 and GvK have shared the top spot for me off and on lately.

GvK is a hell of a lot of fun but it completely abandoned the world and tone of an 2014. Some would argue that it’s for the better.

I think GKOTM and KSI had a good balance of serious but fun tones.

My current ranking would be
G 2014
GVK
KSI
GKOTM

And KSI has some of the best effects work of the bunch I’d like to add and also the best fights in my opinion.

Lastly, I like them all to varying levels. It’s been my favorite era of Godzilla on film post Showa.

Smuggers · Post by **Smuggers** » Mon Mar 21, 2022 10:14 am

2014. The cinematography is leaps and bounds ahead of its ilk, the monsters have a great sense of scale and the first half has the most engaging human story in the MV. The Mutos were a cool addition and while the film's approach to holding back the title character has been divisive, there isn't really a moment where I feel totally unengaged with what's happening.

For the MV in general, I rate them in order of release with the exception of KOTM and GVK. I hope the series can begin an upward trend with new movies going forward. It's a shame how they feel less and less like actual films as the series progresses.

Gojira1604 · Post by **Gojira1604** » Tue Mar 22, 2022 7:05 am

GVK because of the build up and fun monster moments. For now.

king_ghidorah · Post by **king_ghidorah** » Tue Mar 22, 2022 7:10 am

It was certainly exactly what we needed when it was released in the pandemic

GodzillaFan1990's · Post by **GodzillaFan1990's** » Tue Mar 22, 2022 7:30 am

1. Kong: Skull Island
2. Godzilla vs. Kong
3. Godzilla: King of the Monsters
4. Godzilla (2014)

king_ghidorah · Post by **king_ghidorah** » Tue Mar 22, 2022 7:56 am

GodzillaFan1990's wrote: ↑Tue Mar 22, 2022 7:30 am 1. Kong: Skull Island
2. Godzilla vs. Kong
3. Godzilla: King of the Monsters
4. Godzilla (2014)

Monsterverse has certainly nailed the character of Kong. I love 2014 but this is a nice list.

Spuro · Post by **Spuro** » Tue Mar 22, 2022 8:09 am

Best: Godzilla 2014. Nothing else comes close.

Favorite: King of the Monsters. It's a very flawed movie, but I waited ten years to see Ghidorah and Rodan on the big screen with Akira Ifukube music blaring in the background. It was a pretty cool experience, and that experience is going to outweigh my intellectual criticisms of the movie.

Added in 2 minutes 18 seconds:

king_ghidorah wrote: ↑Tue Mar 22, 2022 7:56 am Monsterverse has certainly nailed the character of Kong.

Actually, I don't know about that.

Kong, at least in GvK, feels a bit too friendly/tamed to me. He feels more like a gigantic Mighty Joe Young or even Kiko, the Son of Kong.

king_ghidorah · Post by **king_ghidorah** » Tue Mar 22, 2022 8:13 am

You raise a good point about Kong….but there’s still a fierceness to him. Kind of reminds me of the Kong from King Kong Escapes which is a movie I adore.

Pkmatrix · Post by **Pkmatrix** » Fri Mar 25, 2022 5:00 am

Favorite is easily KOTM for me. That movie is LITERALLY my dream Hollywood Godzilla come to life, I can't express how overjoyed I was seeing that movie in theaters and how much I enjoy rewatching it. ^_^

From favorite to least favorite, mine are probably:

1. KOTM
2. K:SI
3. GvK
4. G'14

Honestly, I like all of them, but I tend to return to KOTM and K:SI the most. That said, I've watched a LOT of GvK in the last year. ^_^

Anguirus · Post by **Anguirus** » Sat May 14, 2022 3:32 pm

I love G14 and GVK, I really like KOTM, and I despise Skull Island. G14 wins for me since I like the dark tone.

ShinGojira14 · Post by **ShinGojira14** » Sat May 14, 2022 3:46 pm

Definitely Kong: Skull Island for me, with 2014 slightly edging out GvK as my second favorite.

KotM is not only my least favorite of the MV, it's my least favorite Godzilla movie, period.

king_ghidorah · Post by **king_ghidorah** » Sat May 14, 2022 3:55 pm

ShinGojira14 wrote: ↑Sat May 14, 2022 3:46 pm Definitely Kong: Skull Island for me, with 2014 slightly edging out GvK as my second favorite.

KotM is not only my least favorite of the MV, it's my least favorite Godzilla movie, period.

Why is KotM your least favorite?

Post by **GoKelley85** » Sat May 14, 2022 4:05 pm

I think all four films fall into the "flawed, but a lot of fun" category. They all have their flaws but also have major positives that make me like them.

- Godzilla (2014) has the atmosphere and pacing of films I miss. I like the slow build, I like the building tension that leads to an explosive climax, and I like the reverence and God-like presence of the Monsters. Its a shame that Cranston was killed off so soon because it took the wind out of the human drama and prevented the film from being truly great.

- Kong: Skull Island (2017) had an awesome setting. With the island setting away from civilization, it had the feel of a story that is a night in hell with Monsters lurking around every corner. Like G14, I had issues with how some of the human drama was handled and how some characters (namely Goodman's character) were killed off too soon, but overall, it works in delivering a solid Monster movie.

- Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) is a dream come true for fans like myself who always wanted co-stars like Mothra, Ghidorah, and Rodan to be present in a big budget American made film alongside Godzilla, and the film showcases them all beautifully. However...yeah, it would have been nice if the Monsters had actually been shown in sunlight rather than always covered in rain, snow, and darkness. It creates some great images, but also undercuts those images at times by obscuring the Monsters a little too much.

- Godzilla Vs. Kong (2021) was a purely fun and bombastic spectacle here to show off the Monster fights. Paper thin on story, sure, but by making Kong the protagonist, the film kind of gets away with it. The Monster fights are probably the best in the MV thus far.

I'd never say any of these films rank among my all time favorite Kaiju or Monster movies, but they have all been entertaining in their own right, and considering how much disdain I have for modern filmmaking (Star Wars is dead to me, I've become sick of Marvel's oversaturation, and most everything else is pure garbage), its a miracle that the MonsterVerse has turned out to be as enjoyable as it is.

If I had to pick a favorite, my fanboyism leans me towards King of the Monsters, mainly because I love Rodan and Ghidorah so much and Rodan got a huge showstealing scene, and this version of Ghidorah was probably my favorite that we've ever gotten. He truly lived up to the "World Destroyer" concept that the character has had since his debut in 1964.

Honestly though, if we could get a movie with the pacing of the 2014 film, the Monsters of KOTM, the setting of Skull Island, and the fight quality of GVK, we'd have the perfect MonsterVerse film, lol.

ShinGojira14 · Post by **ShinGojira14** » Sat May 14, 2022 4:10 pm

king_ghidorah wrote: ↑Sat May 14, 2022 3:55 pm
ShinGojira14 wrote: ↑Sat May 14, 2022 3:46 pm Definitely Kong: Skull Island for me, with 2014 slightly edging out GvK as my second favorite.

KotM is not only my least favorite of the MV, it's my least favorite Godzilla movie, period.
Why is KotM your least favorite?

It makes a lot of mistakes that seriously rub me the wrong way, from cringe dialogue that sounds like it was written by a five year-old, to misuse of the original Godzilla's anti-nuclear themes, to turning two of the most intimidating Kaiju of all into chumps. Just to name a few; I'm too mentally tired to name them all.

Angilasman · Post by **Angilasman** » Sat May 14, 2022 4:20 pm

Godzilla 2014. No contest. It's the only MonsterVerse film I'd recommend as an alltheway good movie and not, you know, an okay movie with fun bits in it,

godjacob · Post by **godjacob** » Sat May 14, 2022 4:36 pm

Godzilla vs. Kong was the most fun I had in a theater in a LONG time. While I enjoy Godzilla (2014), Kong: Skull Island and KoTM well enough (KoTM has bonus points for my fav Ghidorah incarnation to date) it is an easy answer for me.

Thatguy4683 · Post by **Thatguy4683** » Sat May 14, 2022 4:46 pm

Here my ranking of the Monsterverse

1. GvK=KotM
2. Skull island
3. Godzilla (2014)

Post by **LSD Jellyfish** » Sat May 14, 2022 8:32 pm

Honestly, it's a real tossup between Godzilla (2014), Kong Skull Island, and Godzilla vs. Kong. I like all three for different reasons.

Godzilla (2014) has a very distinct style that sets it apart from most entries in the genre, both American and Japanese. I appreciate it's source of scale and tone, and I absolutely love the MUTOs. It has it's faults, but it works excellently as a disaster film. Unlike it's sequels (and many other modern films) I appreciate how it feels like a very modern big-budget film that isn't so reliant on CGI/fake sets. You can tell a lot of effort went into pretty much all aspects of it.

Kong Skull Island is another fantastic film. I love the adventure vibe, and I think the Kong vs. The Helicopters is another highlight of the genre. So much great imagery. Likewise, some of the characters like Sam Jacksons's and John C Reily' s characters are fun as well. It's simple and straight forward, and has some good monsters and sequences. Like the Muto's, the Skull Crawlers were excellent designs.

Godzilla vs. Kong was just fun. I thought all the monster action was some of the best we've seen in years. The only thing that comes close to it, is Shin Ultraman, but I think the film set massive expectations on what we should see in subsequent films. I liked the core of the film with Kong and Jia. I liked that Godzilla got to be scary again. I think the spectacle of Godzilla, Kong, and Mechagodzilla, appearing in the same frame and fighting against each other is an accomplishment within itself. I think that, out of all the MV films, it's the closest that emulates the Showa Era of the Godzilla films, and is the most "accurate" to the capturing some of the franchise's feelings. Mind you, it still has a ton of issues, but I love it.

At this point, I don't hate KOTM, but I take the most issues with it, and when compared to other Kaiju movies it ranks pretty lowly for me. If we ignore political messages/phislophy, I was just never blown away by its monster action or depictions of classic creatures. Godzilla vs. Kong rectified a lot of those issues. Still, I can sort of appreciate it, for once again being visually distinct from the other films surrounding it.

In conclusion I think all three of these films are worthy entries in the genre. I think both Godzilla (2014) and Kong Skull Island, are very distinctly American films. I respect both of them a lot for that. KOTM and Godzilla vs. Kong are trying to emulate a lot of the Japanese films, and do so on varying levels. It's impossible for me to think one better than the other.

Toho Kingdom