FDI Cast 107: They Took Kong to Kong
We turn our critical eye to the most important cinematic achievement of this century, Godzilla vs Kong.
Tag: Godzilla
NOC Interview: ‘Godzilla Vs. Kong’ Director Adam Wingard
Godzilla Vs. Kong is stomping into theaters and HBO Max today! And despite a lot of POC issues, the movie is admittedly a good time, and I’d be remiss if I said you shouldn’t see it. The spectacle and action is well worth the price of admission.
We were fortunate enough to be given the chance to interview director Adam Wingard recently, and though a lot of Adam’s work in the past has been problematic (this film included), he was still gracious enough to lend us four minutes of his time to discuss his film. I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t more I would have loved to ask, particularly when it comes to the subject of Asian representation in his films — something I plan to do so should I ever be afforded the same opportunity to sit down with him for future installments or movies. But alas, four minutes is all we were given for now.
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NOC Review: ‘Godzilla Vs. Kong’ is Giant Fun but Has Giant POC Problems
As you, our loyal readers know, The NOC was created to provide input on the pop culture stories and trends we all love, but with a perspective that assess them from the greater lens of representation for people of color; fans like you. Sometimes in my reviews, I’ll assess a movie purely from an entertainment standpoint. But sometimes, a movie will come along that honestly needs to be looked at closer with both lenses. And Godzilla Vs. Kong, of all things, is actually one of those movies. To be frank, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t like this movie. From an entertainment standpoint it’s actually a huge blast! But for a film in a franchise so heavily tied to Japanese roots, and prior to this installment, honored those roots proudly, it honestly gets me a bit angry whenever I think about it. So, with your permission, and because it’s cheaper than therapy, I’d like to use this review to talk about the things I loved about the film from an entertainment standpoint, the things I disliked from an entertainment standpoint, and the things I hated from a cultural standpoint as a fellow Nerd of Color.
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NOC Greetings from the Cast of ‘Godzilla Vs. Kong’
What’s up nerds! In t-minus one week, we’re about to have our faces melted by the absolute blast that is Godzilla Vs. Kong. While you’ll have to wait a bit longer to see the movie, we’re excited to share with you a fun shout out from fellow NOCs — the stars of the film — Brian Tyree Henry and Shun Oguri!
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FDI Cast 100: King of the Furious
This is now a Godzilla stan cast. At us all you like. The King of the Monsters don’t give a F!
A Clash of Kings: The ‘Godzilla Vs. Kong’ Trailer has Arrived!
Here we go! After months of fans begging Warner Bros. in the comments section of every social media post they publish online to release it, we finally have a trailer for literally the biggest movie event of the spring: Godzilla Vs. Kong! And it. Kicks. Ass!
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NOC Review: ‘Godzilla: King of the Monsters’ Review: King Me!
I’d like to start the review by posing an analogy: Why do we go to and love John Wick movies? Is it because of the story or character? Hell no! We go because we want to see Keanu capping people left and right with well-choreographed action sequences of hardcore violence and badassery. And when we get that, we appreciate and shower praise on a film like that because our expectations are met (89% on RT). The filmmakers know consciously what kind of movie we want, and that’s what they give us.
Therefore, if we are going to shower praise over John Wick for delivering what we expect and what it promises, we must do the same for Godzilla: King of the Monsters. For me, this is a perfect summer blockbuster through and through, and the first time an American-made, big-budget Godzilla movie genuinely felt like a real Godzilla movie! In other words, this movie delivers what it promises — on what it’s supposed to be — and more!
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Preserving Culture with ‘Godzilla’ Star Ken Watanabe
Godzilla: King of the Monsters is stomping back to theaters this week! And to celebrate, The Nerds of Color will be publishing our series of interviews with the cast and crew to countdown to the opening of the biggest monster … Continue reading Preserving Culture with ‘Godzilla’ Star Ken Watanabe
Talking ‘Godzilla’ Fandom with Star O’Shea Jackson Jr.
Godzilla: King of the Monsters is stomping back to theaters this week! And to celebrate, The Nerds of Color will be continuing our series of interviews with the cast and crew to countdown to the opening of the biggest monster hit … Continue reading Talking ‘Godzilla’ Fandom with Star O’Shea Jackson Jr.
Making a Modern Day Monsterpiece with ‘Godzilla’ Director Michael Dougherty
Godzilla: King of the Monsters is stomping back to theaters this week! And to celebrate, The Nerds of Color will be publishing our series of interviews with the cast and crew to countdown to the opening of the biggest monster hit of the summer! As part of the series we had a chance to chat with the man with the vision — director/co-writer Michael Dougherty!
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The King of Bling Meets the ‘King of the Monsters’
8,500 stones, including black diamonds. Seven inches tall. Five inches wide. That’s what it takes to bring a monster to life. And the only one that can accomplish such a task? Why celebrity jeweler Johnny Dang, of course.
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Long Live the Cast of ‘Godzilla: King of the Monsters’
When the world needs the King of the Monsters, the King of the Monsters needs his entourage!
This week, the cast of Godzilla: King of the Monsters came out in full force to discuss the next epic installment of Warner Bros. and Legendary’s Monster-Verse franchise with members of the press, and The Nerds of Color were there to bear witness! Present at the event were stars Millie Bobby Brown, O’Shea Jackson, Thomas Middleditch, Kyle Chandler, Bradley Whitford, Ken Watanabe, and director and co-writer Michael Dougherty. The ensemble got together, to discuss monsters, fandom, and the fun and challenges of putting together the $200 million action-monster spectacle.
“So… About last night…” Brown jokingly began to laughs within the crowd.
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Win Tickets to the Red-Carpet World Premiere of ‘Godzilla: King of the Monsters’
Ladies and Gentlemen — The King has Returned!
Not talking about Simba. I’m talking about the KING OF THE MONSTERS!
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Final ‘Godzilla: King of the Monsters’ Trailer Boasts “One King To Rule Them All!”
Aw snap! It’s going down everyone! On May 31, Godzilla returns, and he’s taking on a whole lot of kaiju!
Warner Bros. just released the final trailer for the Michael Doherty (Trick r’ Treat) helmed sequel to 2014’s Godzilla, and man, by the looks of it, it’s going to be a hell of a monstrous summer!
New Poster for ‘Godzilla: King of the Monsters’ Stomps Online
I think we can all agree that blue beams in the sky are a bit played out nowadays for sci-fi and action genre films.
BUT — When that blue beam in the sky is FREAKING ATOMIC BREATH, I’m going to get hyped! And you should too!
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‘Godzilla: King of the Monsters’ Wishes You a Happy Lunar New Year!
Local Tokyo hero and frequent Asian-city destroyer, Godzilla and his various foes, who also destroy many Asian-cities, would like to wish all of their victims a Happy Lunar New Year!
In all seriousness, the legacy of Godzilla as an important cultural icon to Asians and Asian Americans everywhere is timeless. And in celebration of that legacy, Warner Bros. has released these four striking new Lunar New Year posters.
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The ‘King of the Monsters’ Has Returned!
Oh snap! Next May, it’s going down, as Godzilla returns to the big screen in Godzilla: King of the Monsters, the long-awaited follow up to the 2014 monster-sized hit!
Ballad of an AfroGeek
The above image is from the cover of my upcoming book: Diary of an AfroGeek.
Being an AfroGeek is all about being comfortable, and expecting, to hold immense contradictions. It is loving Firefly, Serenity, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but having a strong feeling that Joss Whedon doesn’t love you back. It is about getting into passionate discussions about why and how Storm’s original mohawk incarnation was one of the more powerful political statements in comics, but being appalled at how uninteresting she became when she married Black Panther.
Godzilla, the World’s Most Famous Japanese American
by Gil Asakawa | Originally posted at Nikkei View
Although Hollywood has been making monster movies since the original 1933 King Kong, the monster with the most staying power and screen incarnations didn’t come out of California, but from Tokyo. Godzilla is back with another cinematic reboot produced by Hollywood featuring the usual array of mega-special effects, including a digitized monster instead of a man in a monster suit. Whether costumed or computer-generated, Godzilla is the most famous Japanese American in the world. He’s starred in 28 movies, stomping his way through cities on both sides of the Pacific.
Godzilla, or the Japanese pronunciation, Gojira (a combination of the words for “gorilla,” gorira and “whale,” kujira) made its first Japanese appearance 60 years ago, in 1954. The film was edited and had scenes starring Raymond Burr as an American journalist inserted for its 1956 release in the U.S. as Godzilla, King of the Monsters. I always thought this was to make the movie more palatable to American audiences, but now I realize there was a more political reason for the reworking of the first film.
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Godzilla: King of Nitpicks
by Oliver Wang
A quick introduction: I enjoyed Godzilla. A lot. I wanted spectacle; it delivered. In the end, whatever MUTO-sized plot holes or character shortcomings weren’t that big of a deal in terms of my enjoyment. But I found so much of the film completely inexplicable on some very basic logic levels that I wanted to have fun with those. So I invited friends to join in with their “huh?” moments from a film that we all agreed was quite fun. If it helps, imagine hearing this being read by the Red Letter Media guys.
(These are in loose chronological order based on events in the film. Also, spoilers).