Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Review
Score: 87
from 9 reviewers
Review Date:
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire offers an entertaining, visually stunning 4K UHD experience with reference-level audio, despite its muddled plot and silly moments.
Disc Release Date
True 4K
HDR10
Dolby Vision
Dolby Atmos
Dolby TrueHD
Video: 97
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire shines with near-perfect 4K UHD, dazzling HDR10 and Dolby Vision benefits, and extraordinary clarity. From deep blacks and stunning colors to meticulous CGI details and rich textures, the visual spectacle is both intense and impeccably rendered.
Audio: 97
With a fiercely immersive Dolby Atmos track, 'Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire' delivers a balanced yet aggressive audio experience. The surround sound and overhead channels create 3D immersion, while the dialogue remains clear amidst powerful, low-end bass and dynamic action sequences, making home theaters come alive.
Extra: 67
Engaging extras complement 'Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire' with insightful commentary and just over an hour of featurettes covering character evolution, VFX design, director insights, and epic battle breakdowns, all on a single BD100 disc with a digital copy included.
Movie: 55
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire offers a spectacle-driven monster clash with excellent Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Atmos audio, though it suffers from excessive focus on human subplots, inconsistent CGI quality, and cartoonish battle sequences. Fans may find it enjoyable for its escapist fun, but it fails to reach the thematic depth of its predecessors.
Video: 97
"Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire" delivers a near-flawless 4K UHD presentation, showcasing the Monsterverse's signature blend of dazzling neon colors and nuanced dark scenes. The richly saturated visuals take full advantage of Dolby Vision and HDR10 capabilities, offering vibrant hues such as luminous greens and dark reds in the underworld lair, as well as deep blacks that truly stand out. This native 4K transfer, drawn from a 4.5K digital intermediate and consistently maintaining a mid-70s bitrate, ensures that even the most intricate details—from facial features to Kong's fur texture—are exceptionally sharp and clear. However, some instances of CGI blending with practical effects appear slightly soft, which can be attributed more to the original filmmaking process than the transfer quality.
The HDR enhancement bolsters color depth, bright whites, and deep blacks, creating an impressive visual dynamism throughout. Extraordinary effects like Godzilla's atomic breath and bioluminescent materials in Hollow Earth push the visual boundaries, delivering incredibly rich color tones and contrasts. The aspect ratio is maintained at 2.39:1 throughout, providing a consistent cinematic experience. This detailed presentation is supported by Warner's expertly crafted HEVC H.265 encode on a triple-layered (100GB) disc. Fine lines, textures, and facial complexions are remarkably distinct, enhancing the immersive quality of CG battle sequences and quieter human interactions alike. Especially noteworthy are the specular highlights and dynamic range offered by Dolby Vision, adding an extra layer of brilliance to sunlit scenes and vividly lit environments within the film.
In essence, this 4K UHD Blu-ray of "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire" sets a high standard for visual quality, making full use of modern technology to deliver a spectacular viewing experience. From the lush colors to the deep blacks, every element is crafted to perfection, ensuring that the film looks as grand and immersive as intended on screen.
Audio: 97
The audio presentation of the 4K UHD Blu Ray of "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire" is nothing short of spectacular, featuring a killer Dolby Atmos track that maximizes the potential of a home theater setup. Much like its predecessors, the movie delivers an aggressive and immersive surround sound experience, with low-frequency effects that are positively thunderous. Consistent envelopment from directionalized effects ensures that the viewer is surrounded at all times, while overhead channels are utilized masterfully with ambient sounds, rocks falling during gravity-free battles, and flying creatures darting across the screen. Vocals are crystal clear and precisely separated from the chaotic action, maintaining balance throughout the film.
The Dolby Atmos mix is complemented by a broad and spacious soundstage. Giant boulders zooming through the room, debris falling from above, and quieter sequences filled with subtle atmospherics contribute to a splendidly broad and hemispheric soundfield. Dialogue-driven moments and the score maintain clarity and definition even during the loudest, most chaotic scenes. The dynamic range is impressive, highlighting distinct details such as screeching roars and reverberating rubble with extraordinary precision. The LFE extension keeps subwoofers busy with deep, room-energizing bass that plummets into the lower depths at high decibels.
However, there is a minor caveat regarding the upper frequency range. While the bass and mid-range frequencies are robust, detailed, and commanding, the high-end frequencies exhibit some limitation. Elements like cymbals and high-pitched effects occasionally sound somewhat muffled, which becomes noticeable during particular sequences, like the final kaiju battle. Despite this shortfall, the overall audio mix remains engaging and dynamic, making it a reference-quality Dolby Atmos presentation that enhances the sensory impact of Godzilla and Kong's epic showdown.
Extra: 67
The 4K UHD Blu-ray edition of "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire" offers a robust collection of extras that significantly enhance the viewing experience for fans and cinephiles alike. The star of the extras section is the audio commentary by Director Adam Wingard, Visual Effects Supervisor Alessandro Ongaro, Production Designer Tom Hammock, and Editor Josh Schaeffer, which provides insightful technical details about the filmmaking process and creative inspirations behind many scenes. Complementing this are various featurettes that delve into character evolutions, creature design, and the visual effects that bring the epic battles to life. These additional materials, identical to those on the Blu-ray edition, collectively offer over an hour of engaging behind-the-scenes content.
Extras included in this disc:
- GxK: Day of Reckoning: A brief overview of the "Monsterverse."
- Evolution of the Titans: Godzilla Evolved: Changes in Godzilla's appearance.
- Evolution of the Titans: From Lonely God to King: Kong’s character development.
- Into the Hollow Earth: Visualizing Hollow Earth: Visual concepts of Hollow Earth.
- Into the Hollow Earth: Monsters of Hollow Earth: Creature designs in Hollow Earth.
- The Battles Royale: A Titanic Fight Among the Pyramids: Behind-the-scenes look at the Pyramid fight.
- The Battles Royale: The Zero Gravity Battle: Making of the zero-gravity battle.
- The Battles Royale: The Titans Trash Rio: Creation of the Rio de Janeiro battle.
- The Intrepid Director: Adam Wingard: Big Kid: Insights into Wingard’s enthusiasm.
- The Intrepid Director: Adam Wingard: Set Tour: A tour of the sets with Wingard.
- The Imagination Department: Inspirations and concept designs.
- The Monarch Island Base: Portal to Another World: Design and creation of Monarch base.
- The Evolution of Jia: From Orphan to Warrior: Focus on Jia's character role.
- Bernie’s World: Behind the Triple Locked Door: Tour of Bernie’s apartment set.
- Commentary by Director Adam Wingard, Visual Effects Supervisor Alessandro Ongaro, Production Designer Tom Hammock and Editor Josh Schaeffer
This collection provides a substantial dive into the film’s production and the creative minds behind it, making it an essential watch for fans of the genre.
Movie: 55
"Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire" offers an intriguing, albeit flawed, entry into the ongoing Monsterverse saga. While it carries a substantial amount of monster action, the film often gets bogged down by an overly complex plot and excessive human subplots that detract from the main attraction. The story pivots around Kong in Hollow Earth discovering a tyrannical Skar King and his ice-breathing titan, Shimo. Meanwhile, on the surface, Godzilla absorbs radiation in a buildup to the climactic showdown. Although the film attempts to blend human drama with titanic brawls, the emphasis on the former sometimes leads to a lack of sustained tension and fewer action sequences until the final act.
Visually, "The New Empire" is a mixed bag. The CGI alternates between impressive and noticeably lacking, particularly in scenes involving less detailed animations like those of the mini ape or Skar King. Despite these shortcomings, the film delivers on spectacle, showcasing large-scale destruction and vibrant aesthetics in its depiction of Hollow Earth and the ensuing battles. Unfortunately, some viewers might find the portrayal of giant monsters less awe-inspiring due to a perceived lack of scale and realism in their movements.
Overall, Adam Wingard's direction navigates an entertaining yet hollow narrative that leans heavily on bombastic action scenes peppered with moments of levity and absurdity. With elements inspired by classic Showa Era Godzilla films, it aims for nostalgic appeal but occasionally tumbles into cartoonish territory. For fans seeking mindless popcorn fun and colossal creature clashes, "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire" satisfies to some degree, even if it leaves deeper storytelling and character development to other films in the franchise.
Total: 87
"Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire" on 4K UHD Blu-ray is an extravagant spectacle that prioritizes monstrous action over narrative coherence. Adam Wingard's film excels as a blockbuster designed for fans of oversized creatures clashing in visually dazzling settings. Despite its lackluster and often shallow human characters, the film compensates with a series of adrenaline-pumping sequences that offer replay value. The UHD release by Warner Bros. boasts impressive A/V merits, with a remarkable Dolby Vision HDR presentation and a reference-quality Dolby Atmos soundtrack, ensuring an absorbing home theater experience.
Critics have noted the film's outlandish plot and an absence of logical consistency, which might test the suspension of disbelief even among the most ardent fans. However, the pure entertainment value derived from the explosive and vividly realized battles between Godzilla and Kong cannot be denied. Supplementary features on the disc, though lightweight, add value by providing additional context and behind-the-scenes insights. This package caters to those who relish high-octane, visually spectacular cinema, offering a satisfying balance between mindless fun and technological prowess.
In conclusion, while "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire" may not be a masterpiece of storytelling or human drama, it achieves its primary goal: delivering a thoroughly enjoyable, visually stunning popcorn movie experience. This latest entry in the Monsterverse may prompt viewers to adjust their expectations, especially those anticipating a deeper narrative. Nevertheless, for enthusiasts of giant monster films, the impeccable audio and video quality render this UHD Blu-ray an essential addition to their collection. Ultimately, it stands as a testament to the film’s ability to entertain despite its inherent silliness, making it firmly recommended for fanatics of the genre.
Technical Specifications:
Starring: Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Dan Stevens, Kaylee Hottle, Godzilla, King Kong
Directed by: Adam Wingard
Written by: Terry Rossio, Adam Wingard, Simon Barrett
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 HEVC
Audio: English: Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 Core), English, French, Spanish DD 5.1
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French
Studio: Warner Brothers
Rated: PG-13
Runtime: 114 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: June 11th, 2024
Recommendation: Popcorn Watch
AV Nirvana review by Michael ScottRead review here
Video: 90
However, that little tidbit is less to do with the actual transfer, and more to do with the how the film itself looked due to the CGI application on a fundamental level....
Audio: 100
Godzilla and Kong alike both roar with window rattling power, but it doesn’t really clip at the source, and seems to have a fairly low extension as well....
Extras: 70
• GxK: Day of Reckoning • Evolution of the Titans: Godzilla Evolved • Evolution of the Titans: From Lonely God to King • Into the Hollow Earth: Visualizing Hollow Earth • Into the Hollow Earth: Monsters...
Movie: 60
That is, it deals WAY too much with the human interactions, including splicing in our telepathic mute girl from the previous films FINALLY getting to do something worthwhile in the form of an ancient race...
Total: 80
BUUUUUUUUUUUT, at the end of the day I still enjoyed this as a mindless popcorn film, and find it fascinating to see how the United States’ Monsterverse differs from the Toho Direct method that was Godzilla...
Blu-ray.com review by Randy Miller IIIRead review here
Video: 100
Extraordinary elements like Godzilla's atomic breath and natural wonders, such as bioluminescent material and glowing crystals deep within Hollow Earth, push all three of these extremes as far as I've...
Audio: 100
Optional subtitles are limited to English (SDH), French, and Spanish, available during the film and all extras....
Extras: 70
Bonus features include a full-length commentary and just over an hour of behind-the-scenes featurettes, which are identical to those found on the separate Blu-ray edition, reviewed here....
Movie: 70
I finally got to watch a really good monster movie just the other day, one that pairs relatable human characters with a solid story and copious amounts of beastly destruction....
Total: 80
For what it's worth, I've given earlier entries more or less the same star rating but this one feels like it has a bit more replay value... and while that doesn't necessarily make it the best film in the...
Blu-ray Authority review by Matt BrightonRead review here
Video: 100
Though it’s not quite as crystal clear and sharp as I’d have liked, I really have no complaints with how this appears....
Audio: 100
Nevertheless, that’s not the case here, and the included Atmos track is everything we’d expect it to be – and more....
Extras: 70
The Battles Royale: A Titanic Fight Among the Pyramids – If you’ve ever wanted to know all there was about the fight at the pyramids – look no further....
Movie: 0
The other way you can look at it is an excuse to turn up the volume on your receiver, have your jaw drop while looking at whatever it was that was happening on the screen and then scream “Yeah!” as loud...
Total: 60
As I alluded to at the beginning of the review, there are two ways you can look at this film: as an action, “I don’t care about plot” movie or one that you try to make sense of....
The Digital Bits review by Stephen BjorkRead review here
Video: 95
Post-production work was completed as a 4K Digital Intermediate, which was then scanned out to a 35mm internegative on Kodak Vision 3 2254 stock, processed with bleach bypass in order to enhance contrast,...
Audio: 80
It’s a wildly aggressive mix, with consistent envelopment and plenty of directionalized effects to surround the viewer at all times, including from the overhead channels (there are a few particularly memorable...
Extras: 85
They explain some details from the earlier drafts of the script that were left out of the final film, like how light operates in hollow Earth—they eventually decided that it really doesn’t matter, and...
Movie: 60
The universal acclaim for Godzilla Minus One has been interesting, because there’s nothing particularly original about it, and it borrows heavily from several previous films in the series....
Total: 80
(It’s worth noting that as of this writing, I couldn’t find any other reviews that mentioned it, so it certainly hasn’t bothered other reviewers)....
DoBlu review by Matt PaprockiRead review here
Video: 100
Splendid, deeply saturated color keeps the scenery lively, with an intensity and boldness that’s rare anymore in this era of digital grading....
Audio: 100
The depth and power is rare, although some discs do offer greater weight (the recent Dune 2, for one)....
Extras: 60
Nine featurettes follows, focusing on characters, Wingard, hollow earth, the monsters, and others....
Movie: 2
Rather than correcting that, Warner plays into the misconception because it’s easier than dealing with the reality of nuclear fallout....
Total: 66
Godzilla x Kong is worse than a disgrace, and sinks to previously unknown levels of awfulness....
High-Def DigestRead review here
Video: 100
All the while, black levels are incredibly rich and inky with outstanding gradational differences between the various shades, allowing for excellent visibility within the darkest, velvety shadows, providing...
Audio: 100
The mid-range exhibits distinct clarity and superb definition during the loudest, ear-deafening moments, making every screeching roar, radioactive breadth and tiny piece of rubble reverb through the room...
Extras: 40
The Titans Trash Rio Evolution of the Titans (HD, 12 min) houses two brief discussions on the two monstrous titans Godzilla Evolved Kong’s Journey: From Lonely God to King Into the Hollow Earth (HD, 12...
Movie: 60
But others will be momentarily pulled out of the illusion, chuckling at the bonkers absurdity because the possibility is crassly convenient only in service for the moment rather than arising organically...
Total: 80
The sequel demolishes home theaters on 4K Ultra HD with a stunning, reference-quality Dolby Vision HDR presentation and a stellar, demo-quality Dolby Atmos soundtrack, and they're joined by a healthy if...
Home Theater Forum review by Todd ErwinRead review here
Video: 100
Warner’s 2160p HEVC encode on this disc is in the 2.39:1 aspect ratio for its entire running time and includes both Dolby Vision and HDR10 high dynamic range on a BD100 disc (although only using about...
Audio: 100
Surrounds and heights are extremely active throughout, from the loud action sequences with sounds coming from all around you to the more quieter indoor lab facility sequences with excellent reverb....
Extras: 60
The Monarch Island Base: Portal to Another World (1080p; 5:32): A look at the production design of the Monarch base....
Movie: 60
Meanwhile, back at the Iwi village, Ilene and her team encounter the tribe’s Queen (Fala Chen) who invites them into a temple where Ilene deciphers some hieroglyphics that tell the history of how Skar...
Total: 70
The New Empire is a terrific looking and sounding disc, but as a movie, the franchise seems to be running out of steam....
AVSForum review by Ralph PottsRead review here
Video: 96
Like its predecessor, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is a sci-fi/fantasy/action film that features two worlds that blend of mix cinematic visuals, and this Ultra HD rendering makes the most of its elements....
Audio: 100
This film is tailor made for Atmos as the blend of audio objects placed in the height channels contains atmospherics and discrete effects....
Extras: 80
• GxK: Day of Reckoning • Evolution of the Titans: Godzilla Evolved • Evolution of the Titans: From Lonely God to King • Into the Hollow Earth: Visualizing Hollow Earth • Into the Hollow Earth: Monsters...
Movie: 50
The epic new film delves further into the histories of these Titans, their origins, and the mysteries of Skull Island and beyond, while uncovering the mythic battle that helped forge these extraordinary...
Total: 82
Ralph Potts AVS Forum Blu-ray Reviews Reference Review System: JVC DLA-NZ7 4K Ultra High-Definition Laser Front Projector (Calibrated with Calman color calibration software and Portrait Displays C6 HDR2000...
Why So Blu? review by Aaron NeuwirthRead review here
Video: 100
Audio: 100
As the film builds its adventure into grander areas, there is plenty for the viewer to take in, with the monsters playing well on the center and side channels, and all the results of their battles playing...
Extras: 70
Into the Hollow Earth: Visualizing Hollow Earth (HD, 5:46) – A look at the continued development of the world that is Hollow Earth, including the places explored to find sounds and inspiration....
Movie: 80
Wingard and writers Terry Rossio, Jeremy Slater, and Simon Barrett seem to get that, as this is perhaps the slightest entry for the MonsterVerse, but no less engaging, let alone lacking in scope....
Total: 90
With an agreement reached to do even less with humans, more with monsters, and make it all lively and colorful, if you’re not letting go of the need to call everything into question for the sake of enjoying...
Director: Adam Wingard
Actors: Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Dan Stevens
PlotIn a world still reeling from their first epic battle, Godzilla and Kong face a new threat that forces them to join forces. An ancient titan, long thought to be a myth, emerges from the depths of the Hollow Earth, bringing with it untold destruction. This monstrous adversary, possessing both the brute strength of Kong and the raw, elemental fury of Godzilla, threatens not just their dominions but the very balance of nature itself. As the planet teeters on the brink of chaos, scientists scramble to uncover the secrets of the Hollow Earth and devise a plan to counter this unparalleled menace. Meanwhile, humanity watches in fear and awe as these two titans, once adversaries, become an unlikely alliance.
The epicenter of the conflict shifts between sprawling urban landscapes and the mysterious, uncharted territories of the Hollow Earth, leading to breathtaking battles and awe-inspiring set pieces. The human characters, led by a determined group of scientists and investigators, race against time to influence the outcome without becoming collateral damage. The movie melds humanity's resilience with the raw power of these colossal beings, setting the stage for a climactic showdown that will determine the future of the planet. Every revelation brings more questions as ancient secrets are unearthed and dormant powers spring to life.
Writers: Terry Rossio, Adam Wingard, Simon Barrett
Release Date: 29 Mar 2024
Runtime: 115 min
Rating: PG-13
Country: United States, Australia
Language: English