A total mess, but it delivers in the ways that it needs to. I've long made peace with the fact that 2014's Godzilla was an anomaly, a film than had more in common with a horror movie that it's given credit for. Godzilla is fucking terrifying in that movie, and everything about how it's filmed and staged is meant to make the viewer feel that tension.

Godzilla vs. Kong is the opposite, but it's credibly more than just two action figures bashing into one another. The staging of the fights is breathtaking, and because Toho has a strict "no emotions" rule with Godzilla, the movie smartly places the audiences in the hands of Kong. He's the hero of the movie, even if Godzilla isn't really a villain, either.

It's just really fun. I wanted more from this "universe," but once Gareth Edwards dropped out of making King of the Monsters, all I was hoping for was to have a good time. King of the Monsters was not that, but Godzilla vs. Kong definitely is.

Skull Island remains the best balance between the two worlds, however. That movie rules.