by Matthew Wilson
The novelization of Godzilla vs. Kong, was written by Greg Keyes, and published by Titan Books. It’s based on the screenplay by Eric Pearson and Max Borenstein. The story was by Terry Rossio, Michael Dougherty, and Zach Shields.
SUMMARY: A few years have passed since the events of Godzilla: King of the Monsters, when the Titans battled over the earth for dominance. For three years, the Titans have gone silent once again. That is until something lures Godzilla up from the depths of the sea to storm the beaches of Pensacola Florida. Something has awakened the Titan and causes him to feel threatened! Godzilla attacks an area of the city, which happens to have an Apex Cybernetics facility. This sudden attack on the city causes people to panic and believe that Godzilla is no longer a friend of man.
Sometimes, the book based on the film is just so much better!
This Apex Cybernetics, aims to complete two tasks; retrieve a power source from the hollow earth, and create a titan of their own (for “safety and security” but really… a weapon to get whatever they want). Apex funds Monarch to transport Kong from the destroyed Skull Island to Antarctica, where there is a gateway to hollow earth. They put their faith in Kong to guide them to the center of the earth, where Apex will then attempt to extract the power source they seek.
A few individuals, don’t buy into the idea/reports that Godzilla has become an enemy of mankind. They believe Apex is up to no good and will do anything and everything they can, to pull the curtain back on Apex Cybernetics to reveal the sinister truth behind the company walls.
Monarch attempts to keep Kong and Godzilla from meeting, but the beasts sense each other… and the fight for dominance begins.
CHARACTERS: There are many characters in this story, so much more time was spent with characters that were hardly seen in the film, which is awesome. I’m going to mention my two favorites.
Bernie: He’s host of the the Titan Truth (conspiracy) podcast. He also works for Apex, which he believes holds dark secrets that tie them into weapons manufacturing that could potentially kill or control the massive Titans, especially Godzilla. His goal is to discover the truth about the company he works for and expose Apex Cybernetics of corporate conspiracy. His initial discovery of the darker side of Apex came about after the death of his wife. The relationship built up between Bernie and another main character, Madison, is both comical and trusting. They have an unspoken understanding of what drives the Titans and fully believe that there is an organization(s) out there, willing to cause chaos by destroying, or controlling the Titans. Bernie and Madison’s journey together was fun to follow, and their curiosity puts them in great risk.
Ren: He’s an engineer/tech genius that works for Apex. His father was mostly absent from his life while he was growing up. Ren’s father was obsessed with Godzilla, which caused Ren to despise the Titan greatly. Ren knew that his father favored the beast over his own family. Because of this, Ren vowed that he would destroy Godzilla, the beast that robbed him of a father and happy childhood.
OVERALL THOUGHTS: I really, really enjoyed this book. Of course, with a novelization for a film like Godzilla vs. Kong, you’re not going to get all the cool special effects, vibrant visuals and intense audio. However, the story was more emotional with the addition of character histories and inner thoughts, making this form of media far superior to the film.
What I loved most about this novelization, is the amount of backstory added to the characters. I was surprised just how well Keyes managed to balance out all the characters while adding so much more to them. Such great additions pushed the plot forward in a way that made way more since than how the film progressed. The leading characters were great, but the secondary characters are expanded upon in such wonderful detail that it adds so much more emotion to the overall story.
The novelization added quite a bit of new material beyond that of just characters. There are plenty of new action scenes with Titans that weren’t even mentioned or seen in the movie. These additions were unexpected, but welcome! They explained a lot of little missing details that the film left out. A lot of the science fiction elements in the story didn’t make much since in the film. The book elaborates a bit more on the technology, making the HEAVs and other forms of tech more believable and less silly.
Greg Keyes does a wonderful job with descriptions and gives even gives us a point of view by the Titans. The action was written out very well, making it easy to visualize the intense Titan fights. The book is a lot of fun and has me craving more Titan action with Kong and Godzilla.
Do I recommend Godzilla vs. Kong? Yes! I believe reading the book before watching the film is ideal.
Rating: I will give this novelization an A!
by Matthew Wilson
The novelization of Gemini Man, was published by Titan Books. It’s based on the film by Ang Lee, with the story by Darren Lemke and David Benioff. The screenplay was by Darren Lemke, Billy Ray, and David Benioff.
SUMMARY: The DIA or Defense Intelligence Agency serves to protect the nation from terrorists and to keep its secrets within its borders. Henry Brogan is on a mission to assassinate a Russian spy, who has vital intelligence on national security. After the mission is complete, Henry knows in his bones that it’s time to retire. The DIA really wants to keep him on board, most in his line of work would die on duty, it’s the preferred form of retirement for the agency, as the secrets held by the agents, would also die.
The DIA isn’t in favor of loose ends. So, a watchful eye shall be kept on Henry. The lies and deception of the agency come to fruition when Henry meets up with an old pal. This friend reveals that the “Russian spy,” wasn’t a spy at all. He was employed by the US government, and his assassination was just a precaution, to assure that whatever secrets he had, couldn’t fall into enemy hands. (the watchful eyes of the DIA, know Henry has learned of this.)
Agents have been sent to silence/assassinate Henry, but he’s ready, and unstoppable. On his attempt to break free, he faces a new enemy, an agent of Project Gemini – a clone of his younger self. Henry has a personal mission to bring justice to those in charge of the DIA and to put an end to Project Gemini (the future military of superior soldiers).
CHARACTERS: For this review I picked two characters to briefly mention, the main protagonist and antagonist.
Henry Brogan is a sharpshooter. He promised himself the exact date of retirement, and stuck to his word no mater what the DIA would do to keep him on board. He want’s to kick back, relax, and make birdhouses. He’s got a sense of humor but also rather serious. He’s a fighter, but also very kind.
Clay Verris is the man behind Project Gemini. He raised the first clone of Henry as a son, giving this clone the name Junior. He’s a horrible father figure, who raised junior as a soldier since his youth. Junior is in his mid-twenties, but Verris treats him like he’s still a child. Verris is selfish, brutal, and greedy. He doesn’t feel what he’s doing is wrong, proving he has no morals whatsoever.
OVERALL THOUGHTS: The novelization for Gemini Man was fun. Was it incredible? No. Was it absolute trash? No. It was a cheesy – decent read, and I’m glad I read the novel. It’s a fast paced story packed with action and has some pretty cool science fiction elements.
A lot of the descriptions are written out very well, including the characters thoughts and emotions. There is also quite a bit of humor sprinkled throughout, mostly coming from our main character, Henry. (Note: I didn’t see this film, but I could hear Will Smith’s voice clearly through the writing.) So, I’d have to say the dialogue was written well.
The problem I had with the story, is that it was a bit too choppy. Time passes rapidly, the characters move around the globe with no timeframe really explained at all. The villain’s motivations were clear, but rather silly. Though, I don’t blame the author for this one bit.
Sometimes it really comes across as goofy that there is this secret defense agency that has these secret assassins that are far superior to any other human warrior in any military service… well maybe that is legit, but the idea to clone one of these assassin warriors to breed an army of this one man’s DNA… that’s the silly part of it.
Do I recommend this book? As someone who has not seen the film but has heard that it has pretty bad CGI, I would say yes – read the book over watching the film.
Rating: This book receives a C+
