The humans in Godzilla vs. Kong may not add much in terms of action,
but they do provide better dialogue than the titular monsters.
Here are the lines in Godzilla vs. Kong that you never realized were so important.
"Across the sea there's a girl, she's waiting for me"
The first impactful line from Godzilla vs. Kong isn't even dialogue;
it's from the lyrics to the song "Over The Mountain (Across the Sea)" by Bobby Vinton.
The slow, soothing doo-wop song plays over the sight of King Kong going about
his morning routine on Skull Island. The song itself mainly serves to set the relaxed
tone of the movie's opening scene. However, it's also a callback to King Kong's origins.
Until Legendary Entertainment started featuring Kong in its burgeoning MonsterVerse, the character
was most famous for King Kong's original 1933 movie and its remakes. In most versions of the
classic King Kong story, Kong has a protective fascination with the American women he encounters.
Additionally, this sets up two other elements of the movie. First, it references the connection
Kong has with Jia, the last remaining member of Skull Island's Iwi Natives.
Second, it foreshadows the idea that Kong may find others of his kind far away in the bowels of the
Hollow Earth. No matter the context, the song's lyrics are an important characterization tool,
painting Kong as a lonely figure and foreshadowing his desire for a family later on.
"A weapon that can compete with Godzilla"
Things begin picking up when Godzilla destroys the laboratories at Apex Cybernetics,
seemingly without provocation. Apex CEO Walt Simmons responds by recruiting Hollow Earth expert
Dr. Nathan Lind to help him access the planet's uncharted depths. He reveals that the Hollow Earth
contains an energy source capable of creating an anti-Godzilla weapon. This is one of the
first hints we get at the true final conflict in Godzilla vs. Kong, and it is also no coincidence
that this is the same scene in which we are introduced to Apex's Chief Technology Officer,
Ren Serizawa. Within the MonsterVerse, Ren is the son of Ishiro Serizawa, the Monarch Scientist
portrayed by Ken Watanabe in prior films. However, that isn't the last of the Serizawas,
and Ren isn't the only Serizawa in Godzilla history to develop anti-Godzilla technology.
In the original 1954 Godzilla, Dr. Daisuke Serizawa is the scientist responsible for
the creation of the Oxygen Destroyer which ultimately puts an end to Godzilla's rampage.
In the MonsterVerse, the Oxygen Destroyer has already been developed
by the U.S. Government and saw use in Godzilla: King of the Monsters.
The introduction of this new Serizawa, along with the revelation of more anti-Godzilla weaponry,
is just another hint pointing towards Apex developing a new way to fight Titans.
"We need Kong. The world needs him."
"Yeah, but it's in a gun holster"
Early on in the movie we are reintroduced to Madison Russell,
the daughter of Titan experts Emma and Mark Russell. She drags her friend Josh to team
up with anti-Apex conspiracy theorist Bernie Hayes, who keeps a flask of expensive Japanese
whiskey in a gun holster under his jacket. The three go on to infiltrate and investigate Apex's
inner sanctums based on the idea that the company must be provoking Godzilla.
The whiskey comes back into play when it is revealed that Apex
is developing Mechagodzilla, a robotic knockoff of the genuine article.
After Mechagodzilla goes haywire and begins posing a threat to the human population,
the crew intentionally spills Hayes' whiskey on Mechagodzilla's remote computer system,
stunning the cybernetic Titan and allowing Godzilla and Kong to gain the upper hand in
a two-on-one battle. The holster in particular is a foreshadow to the fact that the whiskey
is actually a Chekhov's gun, primed to fire in the third act and help destroy Mechagodzilla.
"It could be a psionic interface"
The movie comes to a huge turning point when Madison, Josh, and Bernie break into the
deepest depths of Apex's underbelly and discover the truth about Mechagodzilla.
Using the remains of Ghidorah, Apex has developed its own synthetic Titan capable of competing with
Godzilla one on one. The design utilizes two of Ghidorah's three heads to piggyback off of their
natural telepathic connection and allow for the presence of a remote human pilot — in this case,
Ren Serizawa. This is a direct reference to the version of Mechgodzilla present in the films
Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla and Godzilla: Tokyo S.O.S. This Mechagodzilla was constructed from the
remains of the original 1954 Godzilla in order to fight off humanity's other monster threats.
Much like the Ghidorah-based design featured in Godzilla vs. Kong, this Mechagodzilla also went
haywire as a result of possessing leftover intelligence from its organic structure.
"Creatures, like people, can change"
Shortly after Godzilla attacks Apex Cybernetics, Madison Russell visits her father, Mark,
in an attempt to convince him to use his pull with Monarch to investigate Apex.
Madison, influenced by Hayes' podcast, believes that Godzilla wouldn't attack humans without
provocation. Mark disagrees with her, however, believing that even a once-protective monster
like Godzilla can go bad. And while Mark's words regarding change eventually ring true,
they don't come to fruition in the exact way he describes. After a series of back-and-forth bouts,
Godzilla and Kong are forced to set aside their differences in order to defeat Mechagodzilla.
Up until this point, it seems like the animosity between the two was insurmountable.
Even the vastness of the gap between Hollow Earth and the surface wasn't wide enough for
the two to bury the hatchet. But things change once the two manage to take down Mechagodzilla.
After this battle, both Kong and Godzilla are willing to put aside their differences and
go their separate ways, with one ruling the surface while the other rules Hollow Earth.
In the end, Mark was right when he said creatures can change. The only difference is that this time
they changed for the better. Instead of finishing their ancient war, the two bury the hatchet,
effectively wrapping up the main conflict of the series.
Now that the kings have taken respite in their respective kingdoms, there's nothing
hinting at another challenger. For now, it seems, Legendary's MonsterVerse is at peace.
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