Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (4K UHD Review)

Estimated reading time: 6 minutes

This latest entry in the MonsterVerse movies, Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, follows on from the success of the pandemic era Godzilla vs. Kong. With Adam Wingard at the helm, the film dives further into the mythology of the so-called Titans (AKA kaiju) as it follows the lonely Kong who has been leaving his home in Hollow Earth and traveling through the portals that link to the different dimensions of earth in search of other Titans. Battle weary and bruised, Kong returns to Earth’s surface where he riles up Godzilla, and a showdown between the two is in the making. But wait, Kong has a battle of his own in the works with another giant ape – the scar king, who wants to take over the surface and destroy humans, controlling another Titan through pain to help do so. The two Titans Godzilla and Kong end up having to team up to take down the scar king.

If this all sounds convoluted and silly, it is. This entry has reached the level of Transformers sequel silliness, but the battle sequences between the monsters still are entertaining, like watching Godzilla body slam King Kong, or the two Titans duke it out at the pyramids. Brian Tyree Henry and Dan Stevens provide a lot of comic relief and their banter is one of the high points of the movie outside of the graphics and action.

Speaking of the graphics, Wingard and co. pump up the colors and CGI effects to a staggering level for this entry to the point where some of it does not always work so well. For instance, there is a point where there are some colorful pterodactyl looking creatures flying alongside a helicopter type ship in a flock, and it does not look too realistic.

What started with the more serious Godzilla ten years ago now comes to this very unserious entry that does not take itself seriously at all. Compared to the Japanese film Godzilla Minus One, this is pure candy and not in the same league, but just right for some air conditioned summertime popcorn viewing.

Purchase Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (4K Ultra HD + Digital) 

The Video

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire was shot on various Arri, Red, and Panavision cameras in 4.5K resolution, with some scenes shot in IMAX on 65mm. This 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray comes with an HEVC 2160p (4K UHD) Dolby Vision encodement and utilizes a 4K digital intermediate. The detail is astounding, and they have maintained a very filmic look throughout the transfer, likely with the addition of artificial “grain” in postproduction, because the image looks like there is a layer of grain. The Dolby Vision grading adds a lot of ‘pop’ in the highlights. There is the scene where the team enter the realm of Mothra, the brightness level of the light that begins to come through the cloak/web is nearly blinding, even on my G3 OLED. This is reference level from start to finish.

The Audio

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire comes with one of the best lossless Dolby Atmos mixes from Warner in recent memory. There are no issues with limited dynamic range nor lack of low end here. This is a staggeringly aggressive mix that bass-heads will love and makes good use of the overheads, with some discrete movement of sounds, plus lush atmospherics and good leveling of the score. The surround channels also come into play balancing out the sound.

The Supplements

Bonus Features:

• Movies Anywhere Digital Code
• Commentary by Director Adam Wingard, Visual Effects Supervisor Alessandro Ongaro, Production Designer Tom Hammock, and Editor Josh Schaeffer
• GxK: Day of Reckoning (1080p; 00:05:58)
• Evolution of the Titans:
  • Godzilla Evolved (1080p; 00:05:33)
  • Kong’s Journey: From Lonely God to King (1080p; 00:05:44)
• Into the Hollow Earth:
  • Visualizing Hollow Earth (1080p; 00:05:46)
  • Monsters of Hollow Earth (1080p; 00:05:39)
• The Battles Royale:
  • A Titanic Fight Among the Pyramids (1080p; 00:05:30)
  • The Zero Gravity Battle (1080p; 00:05:03)
  • The Titans Trash Rio (1080p; 00:05:22)
• The Intrepid Director: Adam Wingard:
  • Big Kid (1080p; 00:03:43)
  • Set Tour (1080p; 00:03:44)
• The Imagination Department (1080p; 00:03:47)
• The Monarch Island Base: Portal to Another World (1080p; 00:05:32)
• The Evolution of Jia: From Orphan to Warrior (1080p; 00:05:58)
• Bernie’s World: Behind the Triple Locked Door (1080p; 00:03:28)

The Final Assessment

An insane, action-fueled, turn off your brain entry in the MonsterVerse that is pure reference on 4K from Warner Bros.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire is out on 4K Ultra HD + Digital June 11, 2024, from Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment

Purchase Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (4K Ultra HD + Digital) 

• Rating Certificate: PG-13 (for creature violence and action.)
• Studios & Distributors: Legendary Entertainment | Screen Queensland | Warner Bros. | Warner Bros. Home Entertainment
• Director: Adam Wingard
• Written By: Terry Rossio | Adam Wingard | Simon Barrett
• Run Time: 115 Mins.
• Street Date: 11 June 2024
• Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1
• Video Format: HEVC 2160p (4K UHD)
• HDR Format: Dolby Vision (HDR10 Compatible)
• HDR10 Metadata:
  • MaxLL: 968 nits
  • MaxFALL: 457 nits
  • Max. Luminance: 1000 nits
  • Min. Luminance: 0.0001 nits
• Primary Audio: English Dolby Atmos (Dolby TrueHD 7.1 Compatible)
• Secondary Audio: English DD 5.1 | English Descriptive Audio | French DD 5.1 | Spanish DD 5.1
• Subtitles: English SDH | French | Spanish