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My Godzilla x Kong gripe - lack of visual perspective & scale with Monster footage

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Chris

AdminSpaceGodzillaMar-29-2024 11:56 AM

I've noticed a trend with Legendary monster movies as they progress through their sequels. They progressively diminish the scale perspective of their Monsters. What I mean by this is when watching the movie, the spectacle of witnessing giant monsters on screen becomes less and less impactful. I just saw Godzilla x Kong and as fun of a ride as the film is, it felt the least like a Godzilla movie of the entire franchise - not for lack of story or fan service, but purely based on the lack of scale and perspective I experienced as a viewer.

The first installment always gets it right. Gareth Edwards and Guillermo del Toro set the stage with Godzilla (2014) and Pacific Rim (2013), providing the right camera angles and visual effects to make it feel like we were actually witnessing giant monsters and mechas on screen.

The formula worked tremendously and made each film stand out as a visual spectacle, captivating audiences regardless of what they thought about the film's storyline or events. What happened with the sequels that we lost this awe-inspiring perspective?

Giant Monsters should NOT move quickly.

The biggest issue is in later sequels, GvK and GxK specifically, as well as Pacific Rim: Uprising, the Monsters and Mechs moved way too quickly. They're huge creatures governed by the same laws of physics as we are. They simply should not move as quickly as they do. Remember in G14 and Pacific Rim how the movements of Godzilla and the Jaegers were slow, hulking and looked like it required tremendous effort to move their bodies and limbs through the space they occupied? It was believable - cause that's exactly how creatures and machines would move if they ever were to exist in real life. Our brains process these images with a certain level of rationale that gets blurred and dismissed when we're presented with something that's too "unrealistic".

I'm not sure if it's a creative decision made by the director or a VFX budget constraint, but the visual effects of the Monsters themselves just seem to lose their awe-inspiring effects on me as a viewer, the faster and more unrealistic they have them move around.

Even Mike Dougherty had some phenomenal shots in KOTM that made it feel like we were witnessing legitimate giant monsters brawl it out.

Hell, even a few shots in the Monarch TV series had a sense of scale to their VFX shots.

I don't understand why as these franchises age and produce more and more sequels, the attention to this one crucial detail gets missed or ignored. But I find it really takes away from the visual storytelling these directors are trying to give us.

What do you think?

Predator: Badlands - coming November 7th, 2025

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Xenotaris
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I haven't seen GxK yet but yeah I can see where you are coming from

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MilqueChocolate
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Hey Chris! Very long time no see! I actually was making my own little post about this myself since I just saw it for the second time in a row haha. I completely agree with a lot of the points you made and that second viewing really helped me make some criticisms I wasnt thinking about too much the first time.

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Chris
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Right back at ya Chris! See you changed your display name lol good to see you on here again! And yeah, for me I just recall how awe-inspiring the visual effects weee for the first Godzilla and Pacific Rim films and it really boils down to the realistic representation of these giant beings moving around. Same reason the Dinosaurs in Jurassic Park looked so much more believable than the ones in Jurassic World.

Predator: Badlands - coming November 7th, 2025

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