The throne of Kong

 

Credit: Thurundir

"Godzilla vs. Kong" (2021) is the latest but apparently not last film in the so-called MonsterVerse series. One of the lead actors is Swedish: Alexander Skarsgård (I admit I had no idea). While the film isn´t terribly interesting, I admit that it was better than I expected and can work as light entertainment on a rainy Saturday evening. Some standard tropes have been reimagined in fun ways. Thus, the crackpot conspiracy theorist who turns out to be right is African-American, while the ugly computer nerd who knows everything turns out to be just ugly, knowing essentially nothing at all! Some other tropes are the usual ones, such as the mad scientist being eaten by his own monstrous creation (bye bye!). 

I did enjoy all the "in-house" references to the Illuminati, lizard people, the breakaway civilization, and so on. Indeed, the entire MonsterVerse concept is  woven around one of the crazier alternative ideas out there (pun intended): the Hollow Earth. The monstrous "Titans" inhabiting these nether regions of our planet get their enormous powers from a mysterious source even deeper down, and naturally the bad guys (called Apex) want to tap it for their own nefarious ends: to energize "Mechagodzilla", a robot interfacing with the extracted neural pathways of a particularly evil Titan, the famed hydra-like Ghidorah. Unfortunately for Apex, the robot spins out of control and becomes the apex predator. The only thing that can save the human race (and, I suppose, the franchise) is a temporary alliance between two other Titans who are usually at each other´s throats: King Kong and Godzilla...

The final battle between the cryptid monstrosities is set in Hong Kong, but before we reach that point, the film takes us on an extended trip through the Hollow Earth, which turns out to be anything but a paradise. Sure, the jungles are lush, but the titantic beings dwelling there are engaged in an apparently never-ending bellum omnium contra omnes, with Kong as the "king" sitting on a mountain throne, trying to uphold some semblance of order with his huge battle-axe, powered by the enigmatic energy from further below. I can´t say that´s much of an improvement over life on the surface, to be honest! Apparently, the sequel will be called "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire", a rather ominous title and pit these titanids against an even bigger terror from the bowles of our hardboiled planet, the identity of which isn´t revealed by Warner Bros just yet. OK, let me guess. Sorath? Cthulhu?

I´m already bracing myself for that extravaganza!