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‘the empire’ review: bruno dumont’s artsy space spoof is beautifully crafted and certifiably insane.

The director of 'Humanity' and 'Li'l Quinquin' returns to Berlin's main competition with a sci-fi satire starring Fabrice Luchini and Camille Cottin.

By Jordan Mintzer

Jordan Mintzer

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Out of the many movies you could imagine emerging from the mind of French auteur Bruno Dumont, a Star Wars parody was probably somewhere at the bottom of the list.

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In the press notes, the director claims The Empire is supposed to be a prequel to The Life of Jesus . That seems like a major stretch, although it does feature some of the same stunning landscapes and impressive widescreen photography, this time courtesy of DP David Chambille (who shot Dumont’s last few features). The difference here is that those landscapes are occasionally interrupted by the arrival of a giant floating ship that looks exactly like the Sainte-Chapelle in Paris and houses a powerful interstellar Queen, appearing in the form of a hologram, played by Call My Agent ’s Camille Cottin.

Are you a little thrown off? Well good, because Dumont isn’t trying to make anything real or believable. That’s pretty much been his modus operandi for a decade now, with his recent output consisting of two nutso Joan of Arc biopics , a goofy belle époque murder mystery called Slack Bay and the modern media satire France , which was the tamest of the bunch.

As for the plot, just like in Star Wars it involves forces of good and evil. Good is represented by the church (there’s always been a mystical side to Dumont’s work) and evil by the monarchy, with veteran Fabrice Luchini playing a Darth Vader-like figure called Belzébuth. The latter is dressed in a court jester’s costume that looks like a cast-off from Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland . In one scene, Luchini sits on the throne in his floating castle and watches what looks like a giant, gyrating butt dance around to a three-piece jazz band.

Back on Earth in the seaside city of Boulogne-sur-Mer, the epic battle centers around a child named Freddy, whom both good and evil believe is a future king called the Margat. His father, Jony (Brandon Vlieghe), has been raising him to service Belzébuth, and he’s aided by the very extraterrestrial-like newcomer Line (Lina Khoudri). But their plans are thwarted by Jane (Anamaria Vartolomei from Happening ), a Princess Lea dressed in a bikini and accompanied by a rebel (Julien Manier) who goes around town decapitating people with his light sword.

The Empire is light years away from the works of Lucasfilm, and yet when you take a step back and look past all the weird northern Frenchiness, it can feel pretty close at times. It’s too bad, then, that Dumont couldn’t make something more entertaining so that the satire would go down smoothly.

Like his other recent films, this one isn’t easy to sit through, though it’s definitely original and, per custom, impeccably made. You can accuse Dumont of many things, including testing the viewer’s patience, but at least he hasn’t sold out yet and gone over to the dark side.

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• Cast & crew
• User reviews

A small village of Northern France is the battleground of undercover extraterrestrial knights. A small village of Northern France is the battleground of undercover extraterrestrial knights. A small village of Northern France is the battleground of undercover extraterrestrial knights.

• Bruno Dumont
• Lyna Khoudri
• Anamaria Vartolomei
• Camille Cottin
• 5 User reviews
• 18 Critic reviews
• 53 Metascore
• 1 win & 1 nomination

• Jane de Baecque

• Commandant Van der Weyden
• Lieutenant Carpentier
• La mère de Jony
• See all cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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User reviews 5

• Feb 19, 2024
• How long is The Empire? Powered by Alexa
• February 21, 2024 (Belgium)
• L'Empire
• Caserta, Campania, Italy
• Tessalit Productions
• Red Balloon Film
• Ascent Film
• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• €7,990,000 (estimated)

Technical specs

• Runtime 1 hour 50 minutes
• Dolby Digital

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BERLINALE 2024 Competition

Review: The Empire

by  Fabien Lemercier

19/02/2024 - BERLINALE 2024: Featuring lightsabres, spaceships and a war between Good and Evil set in an everyday human context, Bruno Dumont delivers a hilarious satire to be taken with a pinch of salt

"The times are nigh. Darkness rules. La Motrice is at work and will have impregnated the chosen one". You might think you’re watching Lord of the Rings , a John Carpenter film, or being whisked away to "a galaxy far, far away". Well, think again: you’re simply watching a movie by Bruno Dumont , the former philosophy teacher and eminent (and increasingly) iconoclastic arthouse cinema director who has decided, by way of The Empire   [ + see also: trailer interview: Bruno Dumont film profile ] - unveiled in competition at the 74th Berlinale - to push the goalposts even further in his search for a satirical film vehicle to give his ideas wings. But even if we’re dealing with a galactic battle between two antagonistic metaphysical forces fighting for control over Earth (with one of them aiming for apocalypse and the other envisaging a reign of solidarity and egality), the director has once again set his story on the Opal Coast, amidst those "little people" in northern France whom he’s so fond of, to the point of gently teasing them (through works ranging from Slack Bay   [ + see also: film review trailer Q&A: Bruno Dumont film profile ] to Li'l Quinquin   [ + see also: film review trailer film profile ] , to name the most obvious examples).

It’s incredibly hot at the beginning of The Empire , a film which sees Bruno Dumont seemingly stripped of all serious intent. The two opposing sides swiftly emerge on Earth as in Heaven. In terms of the demons, who ride white Percheron horses, the meta-human clique is led by fisherman Joni ( Brandon Vlieghe ) who’s father to a babe-in-arms, Le Margat (whose real name is Freddie) who is destined to bring about the domination of Evil on Earth. In order to thwart their dark designs ("the extermination of all races bar one") and throw Le Margat off course, Jane (the brilliant Anamaria Vartolomei ), flanked by Rudy ( Julien Manier ), serve as sentries, their lightsabres poised to decapitate their enemies. Above them, in the clouds, two spaceships monitor the evolution of the situation, one (nestled in a gossamer-thin black hole and consisting of a spectacular palace with assorted gardens similar to Versailles) is under the control of Beelzebub (an unhinged Fabrice Luchini , in the vein of Doctor Strangelove ), the other (a space cathedral) helmed by The Queen ( Camille Cottin ). These two forces ("you know who I am, I know who you are, we don’t mix") can only exist through humans who are undeniably corruptible but who are also “endearing and so funny", and, crucially, they have bodies. The way is clear, therefore, for a definitive showdown, because "here, people are torn between good and evil. Our battle takes place in their hearts".

Buoyed by some wonderfully executed special effects, The Empire offers up a hilarious parody version of the galactic movies which have fuelled audiences’ imaginations to bursting point over the past fifty or so years, Star Wars first and foremost. Intermingling this dimension with an ultra-offbeat and earthly sense of irony vis-à-vis the working classes (with wild sex to boot), Bruno Dumont signs his name to a cult film which also happens to be brilliantly directed. Some might find it all a bit too WTF (the filmmaker balks at nothing), while others will suspect ulterior artistic pretensions, but all we can say to these people is: relax, a little bit of humour doesn’t hurt.

Produced by Tessalit Productions in co-production with Furyo Films , Germany’s Red Balloon Film , Italy’s Ascent Film and Belgium’s Novak Prod , The Empire is sold by Memento International .

(Translated from French)

Photogallery 19/02/2024: Berlinale 2024 - The Empire

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more about: The Empire

Interview: Bruno Dumont • Director of The Empire

"It’s not by telling others how to behave that you educate them, people need to be enlightened"

BERLINALE 2024: The French filmmaker revisits the sci-fi genre in his own unique style, exploring the inevitable porosity of Good and Evil   

Filming enters the home straight on Pierre Schoeller’s Rembrandt

Camille Cottin, Romain Duris, Celeste Brunnquell, Denis Podalydès and Bruno Podalydès all star in this Trésor Films production sold by Playtime   

26/02/2024 | Production | Funding | France/Belgium

Mati Diop’s Dahomey bags the Berlinale Golden Bear

BERLINALE 2024: The 74th edition also saw the triumph of Hong Sangsoo’s A Traveler’s Needs , Nelson Carlo De Los Santos Arias’ Pepe and Bruno Dumont’s The Empire    

24/02/2024 | Berlinale 2024 | Awards

BERLINALE 2024: Featuring lightsabres, spaceships and a war between Good and Evil set in an everyday human context, Bruno Dumont delivers a hilarious satire to be taken with a pinch of salt   

19/02/2024 | Berlinale 2024 | Competition

Ten films we’re looking forward to at the 2024 Berlinale

This anticipated edition of the festival sees new work from established auteurs like Olivier Assayas and Mati Diop, whilst Adam Sandler, Kristen Stewart and Renate Reinsve will light up the red carpet   

13/02/2024 | Berlinale 2024

Memento International is selling a contender for Berlin’s Golden Bear

The Empire by Bruno Dumont steals focus in the French sales agent’s line-up, alongside the equally promising movies The Divine Sarah Bernhardt and Arenas    

01/02/2024 | Berlinale 2024 | EFM

The Berlinale unveils its Competition and Encounters titles

New efforts by Mati Diop, Viktor Kossakovsky, Bruno Dumont, Olivier Assayas and Andreas Dresen are just some of this year’s Golden Bear contenders   

22/01/2024 | Berlinale 2024 | Competition/Encounters

20 European films we’re anticipating in 2024

Leos Carax, Andrea Arnold and Audrey Diwan head our round-up of the coming year’s cinematic treats   

09/01/2024 | Distribution | Releases | Exhibitors | Europe

Memento International to present a highly promising trio in Cannes

Sales look set to soar thanks to Omen in the Un Certain Regard section, Bonnard, Pierre et Marthe in Cannes Première and Lost Country in Critics’ Week   

09/05/2023 | Cannes 2023 | Marché du Film

25 European films we’re anticipating in 2023

This year will bring an exciting and diverse spread of new movies with European backing: returning legends, hybrid non-fiction and provocative genre work all feature – something for everyone!   

17/01/2023 | Distribution | Releases | Exhibitors | Europe

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Godzilla x kong: the new empire : release date, trailer, cast & more, we break down what it's about, where it takes place, who's in it, and what we might see... if we're lucky..

TAGGED AS: Action , godzilla , king kong , movies , Sci-Fi

It’s all coming up Titans. Legendary’s Monsterverse is a surprisingly successful take on the Toho kaiju creations of Japan. And Godzilla is seemingly more popular than ever before with a well-received TV show ( Monarch: Legacy of Monsters ) and Godzilla Minus One – Toho’s own addition to its mainline Godzilla series. But for Legendary, moving the Monsterverse forward is a priority, and the latest installment is the upcoming Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire .

But where do you go after Godzilla vs. Kong ? Are the pair finally allies? Will Kong leave his throne in the Hollow Earth long enough for a good fight? Will Toho’s Space Godzilla make an unlikely appearance? And what does it mean for this cinematic universe to continue when it changes out cast and characters on the regular? Let’s take a look at everything we know about the film to see if we can’t determine a surprise cameo and how the world might continue to expand.

The New Story

(Photo by ©Warner Bros.)

Godzilla vs. Kong ended with Kong settling in the Hollow Earth, the long-fabled realm in the center of the Earth that Monarch has been searching for since the 1950s (as revealed in Legacy of Monsters ). The group also set up research facilities there to monitor Kong and learn more about his new kingdom, which was previously ruled by his ancestors. Godzilla, meanwhile, returned to the sea after he and Kong defeated a Mechagodzilla powered by one of King Ghidorah’s severed heads.

According to Legendary and Warner Bros., Godzilla x Kong will see the pair reunite as a new threat emerges from somewhere within the Earth to imperil the Titans and all of humanity. It will be up to the duo (and a handful of human characters) to stop this new antagonist force – be it a new Titan, a mysterious signal, or a group of antagonistic giant apes. Additionally, more of the origins of the Hollow Earth, the Great Apes, and the Titans themselves will be revealed.

Going by the trailer, the Iwi who originally migrated to the Hollow Earth, and then Skull Island, may be involved. The preview seemingly offers a glimpse into their more advanced civilization deep underground, suggesting not all of their tribe were wiped out by Camazotz (as revealed in Godzilla vs. Kong ). Or, perhaps, it is all a flashback to highlight how and why the Iwi allied with Kong’s species.

The possibility of greater clarity regarding the Hollow Earth might be the most compelling element of Monsterverse world-building, considering the effort expended across four films and a television series to tie Skull Island, the Hollow Earth, and Toho’s Kaiju characters together. A concrete answer at this point would be welcome. Also, the lore has avoided the extraterrestrial origins of some of the monsters (other than Ghidorah). Will this be the film to really add an alien component to the story, or will it stick with its Edgar Rice Burroughs-inspired concepts?

Oh, and just for flavor, the most recent trailer makes it clear that Kong has a power glove.

The New (Old) Setting

Like a few other cinematic universes, the Monsterverse has a pretty expansive setting: the Earth and its hollow realm at the center. That means action can take place anywhere, from San Francisco to Tokyo, or from Skull Island to Hong Kong – although we imagine the latter will still be rebuilding after the Titan fight in Godzilla vs. Kong . One location teased in a film poster is Buenos Aires, bringing the monster mayhem to South America. The trailer also prominently features the Giza pyramids and an arctic environment as the the new threat makes its way to the surface, but it is unclear if these are just cutaways to denote the scale of the problem (a la Independence Day ) or featured locations.

And if the Hollow Earth’s origins truly matter to the plot, we may spend a lot of time there learning the why of it all. Also, since we’re always hoping for a little bit of the Showa Era wackiness, we wouldn’t mind a visit to Planet X. Granted, the aliens from that planet would need to be radically redesigned for the Monsterverse aesthetic.

The New (And Returning) Cast

(Photo by Daniel McFadden/©Warner Bros.)

Traditionally, there is very little continuity between casts from Godzilla film to Godzilla film, but the Monsterverse works a little bit differently. As evidence: the cast of Godzilla x Kong features a few prominent returning characters surrounded by a new cast.

Rebecca Hall reprises her role as Dr. Ilene Andrews, whom she played in Godzilla vs. Kong . As a Kong expert who adopted a surviving Skull Island inhabitant, Jia ( Kaylee Hottle ), she has a vested interest in making sure Kong remains secure in the Hollow Earth. Hottle also returns as Jia, who has a special bond with Kong, as does Brian Tyree Henry as Titan conspiracy podcaster Bernie Hayes – although, we imagine his public image has changed since he turned out to be right about everything.

Joining them are new cast members Dan Stevens , Alex Ferns , Fala Chen , and Rachel House . Stevens plays a character named Trapper. Based on the trailers, he’s the latest visitor to Skull Island and possibly a Monarch pilot familiar with the journey to the Hollow Earth. It is unclear if he’s another Monarch agent or another unwitting civilian drawn into the Titans’ path. The character is also said to be the lead of the film, although the trailer centers Hall’s Dr. Andrews. Ferns, Chen, and Houses’s characters, meanwhile, are undisclosed.

Curiously absent are Kyle Chandler as Dr. Mark Russell, Monarch’s deputy director of special projects, and Millie Bobby Brown as his daughter Madison, who helped uncover the Mechagodzilla scheme last time, as well as other various other Monarch characters. It is always possible they may appear in cameos or, at least, end up handwaved in a line of dialogue to explain their departures from the series.

The Established Creators  

Godzilla x Kong represents a new status quo for the Monsterverse: a consistent director. While the previous films in the cycle were directed by, in order, Gareth Edwards (the 2014 Godzilla ), Michael Dougherty ( Godzilla: King of the Monsters ), and Jordan Vogt-Roberts ( Kong: Skull Island ), both Godzilla vs. Kong and the new film are helmed by Adam Wingard of You’re Next fame. Although he admitted the films were always leading up to the title bout between the two monsters, he told the press after the release of Godzilla vs. Kong that he had some ideas where to go next.

The ideas were then crafted into a screenplay by Terry Rossio (returns from Godzilla vs. Kong ), Jeremy Slater , and Simon Barrett , while Rossio, Wingard, and Barrett share a story credit. Additional crew include director of photography Ben Seresin, production designer Tom Hammock, editor Josh Schaeffer, and composer Tom Holkenborg (as Junkie XL), all of whom return from the previous entry in the series. Joining them is costume designer Emily Seresin of 2020’s The Invisible Man . Filming took place in 2022.

The New Premiere Date

Like many other Warner Bros. Pictures films, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire has slid up and down the release calendar, although it always occupied a spot in the spring 2024 window. The film is expected to launch in the US on March 29, 2024, and it debuts in Japan on April 26.

After that, though, it is unclear what happens next for the Monsterverse. Rumors of a Son of Kong film sparked in the immediate wake of Godzilla vs. Kong , but these never came to pass – although a child of Kong’s species is glimpsed in the new film’s trailer. Nevertheless, the original Son of Kong , the sequel to 1933’s King Kong , saw the destruction of Skull Island, a plot point that could pop up in the Monsterverse at any moment. Then again, there’s always the alien angle ignored since King of the Monsters . Aliens have featured prominently in various Godzilla cycles (see: Godzilla: Final Wars for a more recent example), but it has yet to truly happen in the Monsterverse. Of course, Godzilla x Kong may yet pick that thread up. Like so much surrounding Godzilla and Kong, it remains to be seen.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (2024) opens in theaters on March 29, 2024.

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Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back

1980, Sci-fi/Adventure, 2h 4m

What to know

Critics Consensus

Dark, sinister, but ultimately even more involving than A New Hope , The Empire Strikes Back defies viewer expectations and takes the series to heightened emotional levels. Read critic reviews

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Star wars: episode v - the empire strikes back videos, star wars: episode v - the empire strikes back   photos.

The adventure continues in this "Star Wars" sequel. Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), Han Solo (Harrison Ford), Princess Leia (Carrie Fisher) and Chewbacca (Peter Mayhew) face attack by the Imperial forces and its AT-AT walkers on the ice planet Hoth. While Han and Leia escape in the Millennium Falcon, Luke travels to Dagobah in search of Yoda. Only with the Jedi master's help will Luke survive when the dark side of the Force beckons him into the ultimate duel with Darth Vader (David Prowse).

Rating: PG (Sci-Fi Action Violence)

Genre: Sci-fi, Adventure, Action, Fantasy

Original Language: English

Director: Irvin Kershner

Producer: Gary Kurtz

Writer: George Lucas , Lawrence Kasdan , Leigh Brackett

Release Date (Theaters): May 21, 1980  wide

Rerelease Date (Theaters): Nov 19, 1982

Release Date (Streaming): Apr 10, 2015

Box Office (Gross USA): $291.9M

Runtime: 2h 4m

Distributor: 20th Century Fox

Production Co: Lucasfilm Ltd.

Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby Stereo, Dolby A, Magnetic Stereo 6 Track

Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

View the collection: Star Wars Saga

Cast & Crew

Mark Hamill

Luke Skywalker

Harrison Ford

Carrie Fisher

Princess Leia

Billy Dee Williams

Lando Calrissian

Anthony Daniels

David Prowse

Darth Vader

James Earl Jones

Darth Vader (voice) Voice

Peter Mayhew

Kenny Baker

Alec Guinness

Ben (Obi-Wan) Kenobi

Clive Revill

Emperor Voice

Julian Glover

General Veers

John Ratzenberger

Major Bren Derlin

Irvin Kershner

George Lucas

Lawrence Kasdan

Leigh Brackett

Associate Producer

Executive Producer

Robert Watts

John Williams

Original Music

Peter Suschitzky

Cinematographer

Paul Hirsch

Film Editing

Terry Liebling

Bob Edmiston

Norman Reynolds

Production Design

Leslie Dilley

Art Director

Harry Lange

Alan Tomkins

Michael Ford

Set Decoration

Costume Design

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Critic Reviews for Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back

Audience reviews for star wars: episode v - the empire strikes back.

Proof that if George Lucas wants his intellectual property to grow and flourish, he should lay the ground work and then take a step back and let it develop on its own. This is evident in the leap in story depth and character development from A New Hope to Empire Strikes Back. Maybe he should have let someone else take over screenplay writing and directing after Phantom Menace. This film really does get deeper into the characters and is definitely the best film in the first trilogy. Sets are extraordinary and Billy Dee Williams as Lando Calrissian (aka the only black guy in George Lucas's universe) was excellent. They ended the film in a perfect place making the audience crave to know what happens next. The film gives us a chance to grow even more with the characters from A New Hope and has a massive reveal toward the end (at least to those that saw it in the 80s).

A masterful film on almost every level, The Empire Strikes Back is not only ambitious in it's undertakings and more emotionally in it's storyline, but it's also an amazingly crafted and stunningly perfect movie that encapsulates everything that is good about the franchise.

By far the best of the Star Wars saga. The Empire Strikes Back is a deeper take than A New Hope and has one of the most iconic moments in cinema history. Two Thumbs up!

What a marvelous piece of work is "The Empire Strikes Back" (1980). The Rebel forces who are fighting the evil Galactic Empire have destroyed the Death Star, the planet-shaped mechanism that had the capability to blow up planets. And now the Rebels are stationed on a snowy planet, planning their next attack. Young Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) has become both a strong presence in the Rebel alliance, and he is also learning to harness the powers of the Force, the energy which binds all things together and which, if used positively, can unleash unseen powers for its wielder. In order to do this, he makes his way to Yoda (voiced by Frank Oz), the last remaining Jedi Knight, for special training. The film eventually climaxes in a major confrontation between Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader (voiced by James Earl Jones). This film has been out for 36 years so most people know the big reveal, but still I won't say, supposing you haven't seen it. Suffice it to say, the revelation creates a new sort of conflict in our hero Skywalker that we won't see resolved until the next film. "The Empire Strikes Back" is truly the best film of the original trilogy, and the best film of all the Star Wars films by far. The only film that rivals it is the new film "The Force Awakens" (2015).

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Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire review – breezy, forgettable monster sequel

There’s a likable, light-hearted zip to the monster mash follow-up but energy dissipates when we’re stuck with the humans

I t was a strange old time when the creature feature mash-up Godzilla vs Kong was released, the first major blockbuster in cinemas since Covid shuttered them all a year prior. Expectations were low, thanks to how rotten the last two Godzilla films had been, but thirst for something, anything , truly escapist was high and the big screen equivalent of a kid smashing his toys together became an unlikely saviour, both commercially and critically.

Three years later with normality resuming, there’s arguably less audience demand for another instalment, although the industry could definitely do with another monster hit, the strikes leaving the first few months of 2024 a little weakened. There’s enough easily marketable simplicity to Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire that it should become a swift global hit (the film is tracking to make $135m worldwide in its opening weekend) but, especially in the shadow of the Oscar-winning Godzilla Minus One , there will be predictably diminishing returns for those who venture out. It’s a still fun yet far sloppier outing, a second round that’s less of a win for us and more of a draw.

We start out with a truce of sorts. Godzilla remains king, and protector, of the regular world, fighting off creatures of the week when they surface while Kong stays down in the Hollow Earth, the magical other space discovered in the previous film. But their time out is coming to an end, spurred by some dental issues for poor Kong whose infected tooth, and maybe sad sack loneliness too, thrusts him back to humanity. Something greater is also at play, plaguing the dreams of Jia (Kaylee Hottle) who shares a bond with Kong and now lives with her adopted mother (a returning Rebecca Hall), that requires the arch enemies to go from v to x.

What made the last film such a success was the director Adam Wingard’s neat modulation of tone, removing the dank portent of Gareth Edwards’s maddeningly self-serious 2014 offering and bringing the fun that Michael Dougherty’s piss-poor sequel failed to deliver. He’s been wisely brought back for more and it’s refreshing to see him keep things light, his film a brash pop of colour at a time when too many tentpoles of this scale get lost in murk (it’s surely the pinkest Godzilla movie to date). But the script, from a team of three, also trying to keep things breezy, is far less effective. Human time is of course never going to be a priority in these films (Wingard even admitted that they would be of even less importance this time around) but dialogue frequently dips from merely perfunctory to actively dreadful. In trying to align itself with Wingard’s zippiness, the script punishes us with quippy banter so astonishingly, embarrassingly unfunny, we find ourselves pleading with Godzilla to silence them all with one of his feet.

Hall is ever luminous to watch and deserves every bit of her paycheque for playing Mrs Exposition in the last act but one does miss watching her play a real person, a joy that we haven’t had in a while. Dan Stevens and a returning Brian Tyree Henry are both lumped with the comedy and both struggle to make any of it work, which for a portion of the middle stretch, devoid of crashing and smashing, starts to become a problem. But when we return to the action, it’s hard not to feel an itch being scratched, the basic child-like satisfaction of watching giant monsters square off proving to be just as entertaining as we want it to be. Wingard is again able to choreograph and structure large-scale fights with coherence and logic, especially in the eye-popping final act, taking on a four-way battle and never causing us to zone out (many a Marvel director could do with watching and learning).

It’s, obviously, these moments of shock and awe that we come to a Godzilla and Kong movie for but with a two-hour runtime to fill, we start to feel the limitations here more than we should. We’re still supposed to egg the adversaries on for the sake of humanity not secretly hope they might destroy them in the process. If the next chapter ended up being Godzilla Minus People, that wouldn’t be a loss.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is out in cinemas on 29 March

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The Empire Review: A Visually Scintillating Tale With Moving Performances That Breathes Under Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Shadow

The empire is a huge step in creating extravagant shows for the india ott..

Star Cast: Kunal Kapoor, Dino Morea, Shabana Azmi, Drashti Dhami, Aditya Seal, Rahul Dev, Imaad Shah, Sahher Bambba & ensemble.

Creator: Nikkhil Advani

Director: Mitakshara Kumar

Streaming On: Disney Plus Hotstar

Language: Hindi

The Empire Review: What’s It About:

Adapted from the book Empire Of The Moghul: Raiders From The North by Alex Rutherford, The Empire scales the journey of Mughal emperor, Babur, from the age of 14 to 47 when he died (dare you to call it a spoiler, this is literally 7th-grade history chapter). The show talks about the highs and lows of Babur’s life in this part fiction, partly inspired by a real-life tale. We meet him in the war where swords are blood bathed and one inside the palace where the mind is the weapon. The ‘Game Of Thrones’ in between all of this takes the center stage and relationships are put to test.

The Empire Review: What Works:

If you are a History enthusiast, you must know that Babur’s life is an open book. The Mughal Emperor was known for a lot of things, literally reflected his life in Baburnama (his autobiography). Even the fact that he was bis*xual and was attracted to a boy he saw in the market at the age of 17. The Empire, which takes creative liberties for cinematic enhancing stands on the basis of this very tale and decides to take you inside the palace more than the wars he fought.

In the supremely able hands of writer Bhavani Iyer, who adapts Alex Rutherford’s fictionalized account of Babur’s life, The Empire becomes more than a costume drama. This is not the first time someone is trying to replicate Mughal history on screen and investing hoards of cash. But the majority of them except the Sanjay Leela Bhansali universe, end up becoming just costume dramas. Also, add to that the new age obsession of demonizing Mughals to show how peace was never a word taught to them.

This is where Bhavani Iyer’s talent contributes the most. These are people who have led normal lives and have had humane sides to them. Neither one of them is barbaric & nor all of them continuously talk in high-pitched voices. Enmity is never the fodder Iyer gives priority to. The writing that introduces multiple characters makes sure it gives everyone layers to justify their presence on screen.

Not to reveal much, a lot of The Empire is the inner catharsis that Babur went through. Of course, he was great at war, but a war lurked in his family and that was the toughest he ever fought. The writing looks at his life through the perspective of his sister Khanzada (Drashti Dhami). Of course, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s shadow can be seen throughout (in a good way). The fact that Mitakshara Kumar seems to be inspired by his work is evident in her frames. I am living for the wide-angle shots envisioned by her and captured by Nigam Bomzan and Yiannis Manolopoulos.

Also, this is a sort of the Avengers assembling from the Bhansali universe. Mitakshara has been an AD on Padmaavat and Bajirao Mastani. Bhavani Iyer has penned Black and Guzaarish with the filmmaker, AM Turaz credited for dialogues and lyrics in The Empire, has closely worked with SLB. And composer-singer Shail Hada is a long-time confidant of the maverick filmmaker. So you see why the vibe feels too familiar.

I can’t stop without crediting the art department that does a pristinely beautiful job at creating this universe to create a separate piece of art. The set pieces don’t look like they were made for a day. Some are even built in and out completely. Clothes don’t make the actors look like they are having an out-of-body experience. Everything is era-appropriate and made sure to fit the cinematic language that every frame is busy speaking.

The Empire Review: Star Performance

Of course, there is Shabana Azmi, Kunal Kapoor, Dino Morea, who have all done fabulous jobs, but I would want to talk about the one that surprised me the most. Drashti Dhami, an actor who can speak with her wide eyes, is a rare trait only found in some. She becomes Khanzada, the clever girl, who has to face the hardship life puts her through. She isn’t a damsel but a saviour and also gives Babur his purpose and motivation.

Shabana Azmi becomes Esan Da Walat, who technically is the reason why all of it happens. My experience is not enough to judge an actor of Azmi’s stature and she only leaves me asking for more in every frame. Her attitude, and the command over every frame remains the same as I saw in Mandi (a film that made me fall in love with her craft)

Kunal Kapoor as Babur is a safe choice. His demeanour does half the job and the actor manages to fill the rest half with his performance. He manages to bring the pain on his face gradually, but in the opening, it seems like he is still warming up. Dino Morea gets one of his best characters so far. Of course, there are imprints of Ranveer Singh ’s Allaudin Khilji throughout. The way he conducts himself, his walk, to him clapping like a maniac. But Morea manages to somehow not make it look caricatured to an extent cringe kicks in.

Imaad Shah is Imaad Shah and he somehow plays his characters with the same ease but makes them look different. Aditya Seal in his brief role gets a part where he finally gets to show he knows something about the business he is in. The finale seems to be hinting at a season 2 and Seal becoming the lead. Well, a huge responsibility is on its way.

The Empire Review: What Doesn’t Work:

The pacing definitely. What begins like a slowly boiling broth, suddenly sees a concentration in flames and the broth begins to spill. Years pass by so fast that at a point I had to rewind to check that we are now 18 years ahead. Also, while we are on that, why is Dino Morea not aging? He was the same when Babur was 14, and even edgier and hotter when Babur was around 30.

In a brief period, Babur is taken away from his purpose and he finds solace in alcohol. The period is his real downfall, but the show acknowledges it abruptly. Not enough to absorb how much he was affected thus resulting in diluting the effect of his rise.

While the Bhansali vibe has come alive outside his universe for the first time, the poetry stays intact with him. There is everything in the frame in The Empire but not enough poetry all the time. The only scene that turned out to be the most poetic was when Khanzada makes a shocking revelation to Shaibani Khan in his last moments, chills! You will see.

There is even a scene similar to Padmaavat ’s Raghav Chaitanya and Padmaavati’s first meeting. That becomes a bit too much.

The Empire Review: The Last Word

The Empire is a huge step in creating extravagant shows for the Indian OTT. There is everything a period drama lover (it’s me) craves for. Go in and get to witness the saga that talks about love, war and betrayal. But as I always say about shows/films with creative liberties taken, watch it with the word ‘fiction’ in your mind. It doesn’t intend to educate you.

Must Read: Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return To Hogwarts Review: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson & Rupert Grint Are Casting The Spell Again, Hold Back Your Tears If You Can

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Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire Review

A spectacular (if hollow) clash of kings.

You’ve gotta respect when a movie knows its audience. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is effectively what would happen if you took a thread from r/Godzilla and put it up on screen: a visually stunning, sensory extravaganza that’s all crescendo and no build-up. The stakes are high – though not quite firmly established – and the entire film presents action payoff after action payoff. It’s utterly breathless – unless that breath is bellowing out a massive stream of ice or fire. Especially in IMAX, it’s a 1-hour-and-55-minute amusement park ride; I was oohing and ahhing through the entire thing, wondering what was lurking around the next corner – or, as this outlandish universe would have it, behind the electrified plasma wall. I just couldn’t take it too personally when it all didn’t quite add up.

This story is pretty clearly made with MonsterVerse novices in mind – which would be great if that were the case for anyone who’s going to see the fifth film in the series, but that person is difficult to envision. (Maybe Godzilla Minus One served as their introduction to kaiju movies, and now they want to check out The Big G’s noisier, flashier American output.) We know that not one, but both of these titular alpha titans come with decades of built-in lore, and those who will be first in line are superfans who have memorized every. single. detail. To have the human characters once again experience shock and confusion from yet another “electrical anomaly” – in a universe where seismic waves and electric currents have factored into Godzilla’s appearances since time immemorial – infantilizes the most passionate audience members and presents a missed opportunity for some more imaginative writing. Sure, going back to these basics keeps The New Empire aligned with the classic mythology, but at this point, our characters should be recognizing these signals from the get-go. There’s a chance to build here – we don’t have to play stupid and lose respect for the characters out of the gate.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire Gallery

The New Empire sets up its “Godzilla above, Kong below” dynamic early, so we know that after 2021’s Godzilla vs. Kong the two frenemies have come to an understanding of mutually assured destruction should they stray from their respective lanes. But, as a shock to no one, that fragile peace doesn’t last for long. Kong serves as the main monster throughout The New Empire, which immediately casts him in a more human, sensitive light that’s easy to empathize with. Showing clear signs of aging through graying fur, the leviathan is weaker and more vulnerable than ever before – at one point, he’s taken out by a toothache.

His sense of mortality is what sells a desire for familial connection, and that drives most of the plot for both monkey and man. It’s also what sees Rebecca Hall’s Dr. Ilene Andrews disappointingly go from the strong, intelligent protagonist of Godzilla vs. Kong to a mother-like figure softened by love for adopted daughter Jia (Kaylee Hottle) and… an old college buddy? It doesn’t help that, though she is arguably the main human character, Ilene’s opportunities to shine suffer under the heavy weight of the Titans. Kong's emotions, and those of the other apes he seeks out, come across stronger than hers do.

What's your favorite MonsterVerse movie or show?

On top of all of that, Andrews takes a back seat to new addition Trapper – a monster veterinarian played by Dan Stevens – only serving the purpose of pushing certain plot points forward by reading them aloud from ancient ruins. There are a few feigned moments of emotion that fall flat – the question is, why even bother presenting the idea of a mother/daughter connection in a monster movie?

There’s no time for emotions! A new, more intellectually-advanced villain spurs the team of world savers to – what else? – come together to save the world. While small details are brushed under the rug, Wingard’s imagination for non-stop action and awe-inspiring visuals is at an all-time high. There are textures in Godzilla x Kong rarely seen on the big screen, with brightly oozing guts, frozen meat blasts, and glowing plasma veils.

While that’s all certainly impressive, and the worldbuilding is literally out of this world, there are far too many elements at play in The New Empire. It’s sensory overload. Wingard, an avowed fan of both title characters, has perhaps gone overboard, quickly plunking us down in a world that blends ancient wisdom, advanced technology, and primeval lands. It all looks great, but because we’re rushing through many of these environments it’s hard for any of them to make a lasting impression. Before we can even ask ourselves, “How does Brian Tyree Henry’s Bernie figure everything out so fast?” we’re on to the next location. The only depth we’re getting is that of Hollow Earth – though The New Empire goes deeper on the Titans’ subterranean home turf than either Godzilla vs. Kong or the Apple TV+ Monarch series .

What's Your Movie of The Year for 2024 So Far?

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The New Empire borrows heavily, creating a mash-up of fan-favorite bits and pieces from past sci-fi hits. There’s a sprinkle of Jurassic Park in every acre of Hollow Earth, a near doppelganger for the orcs from Lord of the Rings , Game of Thrones ’ Night King in Titan form, and a straight-up Stargate . And did someone order a new volume of Guardians of the Galaxy ? I’m not just talking about the classic rock hits on the soundtrack: Trapper makes for an unlikeable leader in the snarky Chris Pratt mold. Think Star Lord with an Australian accent and more irritating.

The new villain, on the other hand, is a fierce adversary beyond compare. The Skar King is ruthless, terrifying, and grotesque, and he’s enslaved Kong’s species into doing… what, exactly, is unclear, but it’s rendered Hollow Earth into a Mordor-esque hellscape, and that alone establishes him as a threat. In addition to his sweeping reach and a gnarly whip made out of bones, Skar King’s most fearsome weapon is the control he wields not only over the ape race, but also over Shimo, an ancient creature said to be the most powerful Titan of them all.

Backup comes in the form of an evolved Godzilla, who takes on a shocking pink hue after a battle that I wish we got to see more of. Kong, fitted with a fresh beast glove, teams up with his new ride-or-die to face off in an outrageous battle with Skar King. It’s absolutely incredible to watch, taking monster-on-monster action to new heights. Is it worth slogging through the human-drama undercard leading up to this royal rumble? Sure. I could’ve done without Hall and company, but boy is it fun as hell if you don’t think about it too much.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is a textbook visual thrill ride punctuated by brief moments of forced emotion and little else. Director Adam Wingard has a lot of fun with textures, colors, and camera work, and he’s adept at giving fans the over-the-top monster action that they demand via an imposing new villain. Unfortunately, there’s no time to spend on making things make sense or even matter all that much, and what few emotional punches are thrown lack the necessary wind up to connect, save for some very well done moments between Kong and his Hollow Earth kin.

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Entertainment, entertainment | movie review: ‘godzilla x kong: the new empire’ an earnest, wacky, hectic ride.

Before the titan-sized title of “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” even flashes across the screen, director Adam Wingard has already delivered two impressively goopy moments courtesy of our lead characters: Kong rips a hyena-thing in half, green entrails spilling everywhere, while Godzilla squishes a bug in Rome, releasing great vats of yellow goo over the ancient city. It’s an indication of the colorfully excessive ethos that Wingard brings to this loaded monster jam, which is overflowing with titans, creatures and kaiju. Considering that much of the action takes place in the underworld known as Hollow Earth, you might even call this picture “stuffed crust.”

Wingard, who directed the neon-synth fever dream that was “Godzilla vs. Kong” in 2021, comes from the world of horror films, and he brings that same approach to his blockbusters, with a penchant for gleeful experimentation and over-the-top style. He drives this vehicle like he stole it, and with co-writers Simon Barrett and Terry Rossio, seems to throw every idea he’s ever had for a monster movie at the script. It’s a lot. It’s fun, but it’s a lot.

On the plus side, Wingard has arguably three of the best working actors in the game in this picture. Rebecca Hall and Brian Tyree Henry reprise their roles from “Godzilla vs. Kong,” and Wingard brings along the star of his 2014 thriller “The Guest,” Dan Stevens, who possesses a kind of radioactive charisma that’s almost too much to take in. With these three, you truly cannot go wrong, and Henry and Stevens, playing a blogger/podcaster and a wacky wild animal veterinarian, respectively, prove to be the most valuable players of the movie, after the title characters, of course.

To quickly get us caught up to speed, after the events of the last film, Kong now lives in the verdant paradise of Hollow Earth, which is nice but lonely, while Godzilla remains on the surface, very cutely napping in the Colosseum in between bouts of titan fighting. These two need to be kept apart, lest they rip each other to shreds, reducing major cities to rubble. However, when a distress signal emerges from Hollow Earth, Dr. Andrews (Hall), her Iwi daughter Jia (Kaylee Hottle), her on-call vet Trapper (Stevens), and the fanboy blogger Bernie (Henry), along with a stern Scottish pilot Mikael (Alex Ferns), set out to find the origin of the call, and realize that maybe Godzilla and Kong need to find a way to come together to fight off other nefarious creatures.

When you multiply Godzilla by Kong, what do you get? When Wingard’s doing the math, it’s an earnest, wacky, hectic ride that often feels like being thrashed about in an IMAX seat. There’s a decidedly 1980s-inspired vibe to the tone and style, from the hot pinks and greens and synth-y score by Antonio Di Iorio and Tom Holkenborg, to the narrative that follows a journey into a fantastical underworld. There’s also a heavy emphasis on crystals as both plot device and aesthetic that offers this film a retro feel.

But about halfway through, one does get the nagging sensation that this has jumped the kaiju shark, as Wingard slams the gas and doesn’t let up. There are too many monsters, and as more and more are introduced, character falls away. It makes you long for the restrained elegance of “Godzilla Minus One,” but this is a different beast entirely.

There’s a bit of a harried energy to “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire,” which is fun until it becomes instantly tiresome and deafening. Perhaps multiplication was too much — here’s hoping subtraction is next in the kaiju mathematical equation.

‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire’

2.5 stars (out of 4)

MPA rating: PG-13 (for creature violence and action)

Running time: 1:55

How to watch: In theaters Friday

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‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire’ Review: A Godzilla Spectacle Minus One Thing: A Reason to Exist

The clash-of-the-titans climax lifts off into the awesome zone, but until then the fifth entry in the MonsterVerse is overly busy boilerplate.

By Owen Gleiberman

Owen Gleiberman

Chief Film Critic

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Watching “ Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire ,” I realized that the movie, a standard overly busy and mediocre blockbuster with a pretty awesome wow of a clash-of-the-titans climax, was demonstrating one of the essential principles of Hollywood movie culture today. Namely: All blockbuster movies are now connected!

In other words, Kong is facing a force who’s exactly like the villain in “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire”!

Then there’s Godzilla. He spends the film preparing for an apocalyptic showdown by traveling from one place to the next and absorbing radiation, first from a nuclear facility, then from an undersea battle with a flower-headed monster so radioactive it’s iridescent. By the time Godzilla is done with all this, his very being has been suffused with radioactive power, to the point that he literally turns pink .

In other words, he looks like he’s having his “Barbie” moment.

The film’s central character, Dr. Ilene Andrews ( Rebecca Hall ), while she’s busy charting all this, is most invested in the fate of Jia (Kaylee Hottle), the adoptive daughter she rescued after the Iwi people of Skull Island were destroyed. As it happens, the Hollow Earth is home to another tribe of Iwi (there’s a lot going on in that basement), who Jia can communicate with telepathically. And she turns out to be a kind of chosen one, since Jia will prove the key figure in activating Mothra (now reimagined in shimmery designer gold), Godzilla’s old nemesis-turned-ally, who will be instrumental in the outcome of the final clash…

The thing that connects “Godzilla x Kong” to last year’s run of superhero films — the ones that everybody complained about — is that, just like them, the movie can make your head hurt. But not because it’s too convoluted to follow. It’s because the real convolution is: Why are we supposed to care? About any of this?

The fact that we might not makes “Godzilla x Kong” feel like one of those “Jurassic Park” sequels where everyone is huffing and puffing about the fate of the world and “relevant” issues of genetic engineering — but we’re just there for the ride, which now feels like it has a study sheet attached. I guess this is the part of the review where I’m supposed to say that Brian Tyree Henry , as the wide-eyed tech-whistleblower-turned-conspiracy-blogger Bernie Hayes, and Dan Stevens , as the snarky British veterinarian Trapper, are a riot, but it felt to me like the two actors were mostly filling space. Rebecca Hall, in a no-nonsense haircut, uses her avid severity well, and Kaylee Hottle, as Jia, has a luminous presence, but I’m sorry, every time the film summons a human dimension it feels like boilerplate.  

You could say that the qualifier, the one that’s always there in a Godzilla movie, is that in the kaiju films of Japan the stories don’t matter either; they are often nonsense. But not always. The original “Godzilla,” in 1954, was schlock with a fairy-tale sci-fi gravity; that was true, as well, of the other two standouts of the early kaiju films, “Mothra” (1961) and “Destroy All Monsters” (1968). And it may turn out to be a stroke of karmic bad luck that “Godzilla x Kong” is coming out right on the heels of “Godzilla Minus One,” the movie that rocked the world of monster cinema. It had the lyrical majesty of those earlier films, as well as a story, rooted in Japan’s World War II trauma, that was actually linear and moving. It reminded you that these creatures could carry an emotional grandeur.

Kong unfreezes himself, and proves once again to be the fiercest primate around. And Godzilla outradiates his foes, even as he’s now so defined by that pink glow that it’s almost as if he’s being set up as a new kind of allegorical monster: not a metaphor for the bomb, but a metaphor for…the return of responsible nuclear energy? Stay tuned for the next eye-popping and meaningless sequel.                

Reviewed at Warner Bros. Screening Room, March 27, 2024. MPAA Rating: PG-13. Running time: 115 MIN.

• Production: A Warner Bros. Pictures release of a Legendary Pictures production. Producers: Mary Parent, Alex Garcia, Eric McLeod, Thomas Tull, Brian Rogers. Executive producers: Yoshimitsu Banno, Kenji Okuhira, Dan Lin, Roy Lee, Adam Wingard, Jen Conroy, Jay Ashenfelter.
• Crew: Director: Adam Wingard. Screenplay: Terry Rossio, Simon Barrett, Jeremy Slater. Camera: Ben Seresin. Editor: Josh Schaeffer. Music: Tom Holkenborg, Antonio Di Iorio.
• With: Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Dan Stevens, Kaylee Hottle, Alex Ferns, Fala Chen, Rachel House, Ron Smyck, Chantelle Jamieson, Greg Hatton.

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‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire’ Review: Running Out of Steam

The latest in the Warner Bros. Monsterverse franchise shows signs of an anemic imagination.

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By Alissa Wilkinson

Nothing about “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” makes sense, which is not, on the face of it, a problem. We have not settled into cushy cinema seats with our comfortingly stale popcorn to engage in discourse about metaphors and science; we are here for the stars in the title. About that title: “Godzilla x Kong” (meant to echo various other titles in other, non-Hollywood Godzilla movies) could mean Godzilla times Kong, or Godzilla crossed with Kong, or Godzilla against Kong — some permutation of titans. Whatever it is, there will be punching. We are here for the punching.

What we’re not here for is the humans, which is lucky, because they’ve been dropping like flies. Most of the characters from the last few films — including the 2021 “Godzilla vs. Kong” (also directed by Adam Wingard) — have disappeared, largely without explanation. Our main character now is Dr. Ilene Andrews (Rebecca Hall), adoptive mother to a tween, Jia (Kaylee Hottle), a member of the Iwi tribe, who communicates with Kong directly via sign language. I particularly missed Alexander Skarsgard’s Dr. Nathan Lind, whose absence is sort of explained but not mourned, and who has been replaced, for narrative reasons, by a kooky veterinarian to the titans played by Dan Stevens. (For some reason, I assume to signal the kookiness, Stevens sports an exaggerated Australian accent.)

They’re joined once again by Bernie Hayes (Brian Tyree Henry), the conspiracy podcaster-blogger-documentarian-weirdo from the last film. For some reason, he’s convinced that nobody believes his stories about the titans, even though actual Godzilla is roaming the Earth and shown on the nightly news. (I’m more stuck on the strangely fantastical idea that he’s a popular blogger. Wouldn’t he have a Substack by now?)

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These humans are pretty boring, more anemic than they were in the last movie. They’re there purely for narrative propulsion through this story, which begins with Kong living in the Hollow Earth (exactly what it sounds like) and Godzilla up on the surface. As long as the twain never meet, we’re good — and by we, I mean humankind.

Which means, of course, they’ll meet. The scientists spot Godzilla napping in the Colosseum, then stomping his way through Europe and northern Africa, seemingly absorbing as much nuclear power as he can because he senses some confrontation coming. At the same time, something is very wrong in Kong’s world down below. And Jia is having strange dreams, too — dreams that lead to an expedition into the Hollow Earth.

What follows is an attempt to establish a whole lot of mythology for the Monsterverse franchise. (Their term, not mine.) This is a big mistake. You can tell it’s a mistake, because all of that mythology has to be revealed in tedious expositional dialogue. More important, once you know what happened in the past, you know precisely what will happen in the present, which rips any remaining suspense out of the film, leaving only the punching. (So much punching.)

Besides: Does this series need a mythology? Both Godzilla and Kong have a rich screen history to draw on — this is the 38th movie for Godzilla and the 13th for Kong, and though they haven’t shared the screen until recently, they bring all of their baggage and back story with them. It feels like a desperate attempt for the crossover franchise to justify both its existence and its continuation.

Which is not surprising. This series’ track record induces whiplash. The 2014 film “Godzilla,” a kind of reboot of the original Toho series featuring the character, was a legitimately excellent film, balancing spectacle and human pathos. But then came “Kong: Skull Island” and “Godzilla: King of the Monsters,” both meant to build toward a shared universe, both of which were not just bad but real bummers. Next was “Godzilla vs. Kong” which wasn’t, technically speaking, good — but it promised confrontation and delivered it, with a late-breaking coda of unwilling and visually spectacular cooperation between massive ape and nuclear lizard. It was a blast to watch, not least because the climax happened: The two monsters finally had their long-teased meeting.

But with that zenith in the rearview mirror, “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” has very little road left to cruise, and it shows. The best stretches involve Kong lumbering through the landscape, Godzilla stomping around crushing things, and of course the inevitable final confrontation, which has a few surprises up its proverbial sleeves. Kong in particular seems to have no problem communicating without human language, and those extended scenes are so fun to watch that it’s disappointing to swing back to the humans.

Certainly, humans can be a fruitful part of these monster movies. The recent Japanese film “Godzilla Minus One,” produced for a fraction of the “Godzilla x Kong” budget and recipient of the Oscar for best visual effects this year, manages to combine the creature with true pathos and a focus on the human cost of war, guilt and trauma. It’s more in line with the origin of Godzilla, too, as a metaphor for Japanese generational trauma related to the atomic bomb. In 2004, writing for The New York Times , Terrence Rafferty succinctly described the monster as embodying “a society’s desire to claim its deepest tragedies for itself, to assimilate them as elements of its historical identity.”

None of that is here. In fact, “Godzilla x Kong” is evidence the original thread has been lost entirely — a shame, in an era haunted by monsters the movies can only hint at, from climate catastrophe, destructive weaponry and geopolitical strife to power-hungry, brutal authoritarianism. There’s no reflection here at all, not even space to contemplate what might lie beyond the literal. Beyond the main cast, the humans in this movie exist only to get squashed like ants by falling debris and mangled buildings. They are expendable, but it doesn’t matter. The meaning of these films isn’t in metaphor at all. It’s in punching.

Be warned: There’s a lot of guts in “Godzilla x Kong,” guts from mammals and reptiles ripped in half, guts from sea monsters, Technicolor guts, way more than I expected. They feel appropriate, for a monster movie, and aren’t quite gross enough to merit an R rating. But as I pondered the guts, I found myself wondering one thing: When will someone have the bravery — the guts, you might say — to make a movie with Kong, and Godzilla, and various other titans and monsters, and no humans at all?

Or maybe there’s a greater question at stake: When will Hollywood have the guts to make a fun blockbuster like this that dares to acknowledge the real menacing monsters?

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire Rated PG-13 for destruction, some mild profanities and so, so many guts. Running time: 1 hour 55 minutes. In theaters.

Alissa Wilkinson is a Times movie critic. She’s been writing about movies since 2005. More about Alissa Wilkinson

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It’s recess at a small school in Nigeria and the boys are kicking around an empty water bottle in an improvised game of soccer. Except for one. Anthony Madu on the far side of the playground, is performing a private ballet. One of his classmates asks, “Why is he dancing like a girl?” 

Anthony is dancing because that is who he is. When he is not dancing, his body is shy, uncertain. When he dances, he is sure, elegant, graceful. “Madu” is a documentary about what happened when a brief 2020 video of Anthony dancing barefoot in the rain went viral, leading to an invitation to study in a seven-year program at an elite British ballet academy. As the film begins, he is packing and saying his farewells. He receives his passport, where he is described as a “child student.” His mother is proud, happy for him, but painfully aware of how much she will miss him. We see him silhouetted against the train window, an unfamiliar landscape outside. When he arrives, he calls home and like all mothers, her first question is “Have you eaten?” 

In their call a few weeks later, she says Anthony is adopting a British accent and his brother says, “You’re speaking like a white person.” We see the poignance of Anthony’s missing his family but feeling that the shared dedication to dance is a different kind of home, equally precious. “Home is a place where you feel like you belong,” he says, meaning the world of dance, but then he says home is also where your family is.

We might have expected that Anthony might feel isolated or even bullied for being from another country and culture, but his classmates are all friendly and inclusive. Some of the film’s sweetest moments are watching Anthony completely comfortable as he is laughing with his friends or hugging them goodbye as they leave for summer break. Some of the most touching are when we see his parents watching his performance as one of the stars of the end of school year production, via FaceTime, in Nigeria.

The entering class is told they are the select few of over 500 who applied. But this is not like the many other dance films about demanding teachers. The presence of the documentary cameras may be a factor, but the kindness, sensitivity, and compassion of everyone Anthony meets is so pervasive that it is clearly the culture of the community around him. A teacher tells the students that a warmth in the muscles during practice is good, but if it ever burns, they should stop. And when a serious health issue arises, the school and the doctors are sympathetic and supportive.

The style of the documentary is “fly on the wall.” Filmmakers Matthew Ogens and Joel Kachi Benson include occasional interviews with Anthony and his parents but no talking head experts. Cinematography by Charlie Goodger and Motheo Moeng is intimate and lyrical, with contemplative music that contrasts with the classical pieces accompanying the dance lessons and performance. An opening scene shows us Anthony dancing near a fire, his movements in the flickering light showing the fiery spirit that impels him. Near the end, he is on the beach, wading into endless water stretching all the way to the horizon, indicating the larger, more centered sense of himself and his passion for ballet made possible by access to teachers and other dancers, and a sense of possibility. But, as with the boys at the center of documentaries like “ Hoop Dreams ” and “ The Wolfpack ,” the focus on those who are too young to have a nuanced understanding of what is happening to and around them can make us feel both unsatisfyingly removed and uncomfortably intrusive. Maybe the only solution is to require any documentary about those who are underage to be locked away and then brought out again when the children are old enough to watch it and make up their minds about whether they are willing to have it seen.

Anthony’s eloquence is in his movement. A telling moment is his assignment to create a dance performance. Even to an untrained eye, his extraordinary gifts are unmistakable. His grace, balance, and control are exceptional, and his leaps are breathtaking. The teachers who are evaluating him are warmly encouraging, complimenting his love of movement. They gently ask whether he had a story in mind. When he says no, they suggest he try to imagine a narrative. Given the complexity and near-fairy tale improbability of his real-life story, it is not surprising that Anthony is comfortable taking a break from plot to revel in the pure abstraction of movement. With this documentary, we can appreciate his story, and his relevé and pirouette.

On Disney+ now.

Nell Minow is the Contributing Editor at RogerEbert.com.

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