Being a movie collector is lots of fun. You go to the store or the online site and shop for hours looking for deals on your favorite movies. But, a problem for me is I go to secondhand stores and will sometimes buy movies that maybe I wasn’t crazy about when I saw them but now it’s only $6, so I figure “Why not?”
I have mentioned before that my wife is supportive of my collecting, but she also gets annoyed because I buy movies and they sit on my shelf, never seeing the inside of my blu-ray player.
At first, I told my wife “I’ve watched most of them!” But recently I decided to separate the films that I have not watched. And darn it, my wife is right!
So, I took all those discs and placed them on the bottom of my shelf. My movies are organized alphabetically, so I thought for fun I would mix them up, place them back on the bottom of the shelf and watch whatever movie is next.
I will review the discs as it will keep my focused on completing my task of finally being able to tell my wife, “I have watched them all!”
Welcome to Blu-Buried!
Godzilla: King of the Monsters-Best Buy Exclusive Steelbook
Set after the event of 2014’s Godzilla, the giant lizard returns to vanquish more Titans. Dr. Emma Russell (Vera Farmiga) is a scientist who, after the loss of her son at the hands of Godzilla’s destruction in San Francisco develops a device called Orca, that can mimic the sounds the Titans (monsters) make. Emma also believes she can control the titans and stop them from destroying more of the Earth.
Emma and her daughter, Madison (Millie Bobby Brown) live at a Monarch research facility. Her father, Dr. Mark Russell (Kyle Chandler) is no longer with them. He is in Colorado studying wolves.
Mark is brought back to Monarch after his wife and daughter are kidnapped by an eco-terrorist named Alan Jonah (Charles Dance) who forces Emma to use Orca to revive the Titans to eliminate the harmful effects man has had on the Earth. Basically, having the Titans course correct man’s mistakes.
Godzilla: King of the Monsters, is a fun, somewhat dumb sequel to Godzilla. The action and the monsters look incredible. The sound design is top notch. The score by Bear McCreary is loads of fun. But the biggest weakness in Godzilla: King of the Monsters is the human element. The plot feels overstuffed and at the same time doesn’t flesh out its characters well. I will not spoil the film but there is a twist involving a character that comes across as shallow and unnecessary and goes against what we are told this character believes.
There are moments that are well done, Kyle Chandler always delivers. His struggle with saving his daughter and trying to save the world is handled by the actor with the right amount of weight. The humor is hit and miss, maybe the best of the “comedic” side kicks is Bradley Whitford’s Dr. Stanton.
As for the CGI stars, Godzilla: King of the Monsters delivers. Godzilla looks amazing. You get a good sense of his power throughout the film as director Michael Dougherty tends to keep the camera at human level, giving these Titans an incredible feeling of height and strength. A cool element has each Titan represented by a distinct color palette. Godzilla is an electric blue, Ghidorah is a yellow and Rodan is a redish-orange. The fights are epic, and Dougherty never over crowds the screen so much that you don’t know what is going on, they are all well thought out and choreographed.
The UHD release of Godzilla: King of the Monsters crushes the format with an absolute stunning release. When a movie like Godzilla relies on darkness the 4K format is a blessing. Gone are the crushing, pixelated black levels of the DVD and in some cases blu-ray discs. Here we are treated to silky smooth blacks and incredibly detailed monsters and scenery. This is one sharp looking film.
Being a monster movie, Godzilla: King of the Monsters tears into your audio system. The roars have never sounded better and with more weight. The destruction of cities, the eruption of volcanoes is truly epic. This is the kind of movie that you can show off to your friends to convince them to upgrade to UHD.
Godzilla: King of the Monsters Best Buy exclusive Steelbook comes with both the UHD and the standard blu-ray. The UHD does contain one feature, a fun commentary with director Michael Dougherty, producer Zack Shields and actor O’Shea Jackson Jr. It is a fun track and you should listen to it as they reveal the Easter Eggs and other fun tidbits about the shoot.
The blu-ray comes packed with extras, which is really nice as most films today have extras that really just amount to fluff, Godzilla: King of the Monsters delivers a titan sized potion of extras.
Monsters 101: You will learn about the monsters of the film.
Evolution of the Titans: a pretty decent run time for this bonus feature, clocking in at about 30 minutes that explores the visual effects.
Monarch in Action: Another 30 minute bonus feature that explores the locations.
Millie Bobby Brown: Force of Nature: I guess if there was one fluff piece it would be this brief talk with the actress.
Monster Tech: Monarch Joins the Fight: Looking at the real life military tech used in the film.
Monsters are Real: This reminds me a lot of the Tales From Camp blood on the Friday the 13th blu-rays. A hokey, fun mix of fantasy and real life.
Welcome to the Monsterverse: Hey! There’s two other films you can check out, Godzilla (2014) and Kong: Skull Island.
Deleted and Extended Scenes: Cool but nothing stands out.
The Best Buy exclusive Steelbook is awesome. Godzilla is the lone Titan on the front, Ghidorah on the back. On the inside you will find Rodan and Mothra. Incorparting the color scheme for each creature in the film, this is what a special edition Steelbook is all about, giving collectors a reason to spend $5 more. It stands out amongst some of the duller cover art that is on the shelves.
Godzilla: King of the Monsters might not be the lizard’s best film; it is nonetheless a really fun monster movie. At times when the humans bring the film to a halt with their petty troubles, just keep telling yourself that soon monsters will be fighting, and it will be awesome. The Best Buy exclusive Steelbook is the way to go if you are buying the film. The Steelbook looks incredible and the on-disc content is stellar, highly recommended for fans of Godzilla, recommended for everyone else.
Film: C+
Video: A+
Audio: A+
Extras: A
Steelbook: A+
Overall: A