The “Godzilla” franchise has been alive and breeding out new pieces of work throughout the last 65 years. The Japanese monster is one of the more recognizable faces in not only the foreign market; but in Hollywood as well. In 2014, the creature was given a remake, simply titled “Godzilla,” that began a shared universe now known as the MonsterVerse. Now, five years later, and after 2017’s “Kong: Skull Island,” the universe continues and expands in the latest entry in the franchise: “Godzilla: King of the Monsters.”

It is directed and written by Michael Dougherty, whose most notable work is 2007’s “Trick ‘r Treat” and 2015’s “Krampus.” So, how was the film? Is it better than its predecessor? Let’s talk about it.

“Godzilla: King of the Monsters” takes place five years after the events of the original and follows the organization known as Monarch, who discover the existence of other god-like creatures besides our title character. When three of them-anciently known as Mothra, Rodan and King Ghidorah-are unleashed, it becomes a monster battle royale for the power of one to rule to them all.

The monster brawls are the reason you buy the ticket and it delivers exceptionally. The visual spectacle of each one of the monsters is stunning and jaw-dropping. The last 20 minutes of the film is the main and only reason I recommend seeing it on the biggest screen possible.

The title character is provided more time than before. The biggest flaw of the original was that the character of Godzilla was hardly shown throughout. In this, the filmmaker clearly understood the criticism of the original and provided more screen-time for the famous monster.

The score is as impressive as the monsters themselves. It utilized its immersive and nostalgic soundtrack in building the epic and large scope of the film; particularly within the monster fights themselves.

Unfortunately, the film struggles tremendously from two main issues.

The first of which is that the human side of the story is very unappealing and underdeveloped. There are many moments where the film wants the audience to emotionally connect with its characters but unfortunately comes off more forced and scattered than what it wanted to do. Besides the effort put by Millie Bobby Brown and Ken Watanabe, I never found myself connected or caring for any of the human characters. Brown and Watanabe stand out because of their engaging performances but don’t have any depth or good material to play off of, which leads to my main problem with the film.

The dialogue and script are extremely weak and confusing at some points. There are important scenes and details that are glossed over and don’t have any effects on any of our human characters. Also, the majority of the dialogue provided is very straightforward and uninteresting. The script’s clear purpose is to find a way to release the creatures. However, in how they go about presenting its narrative, unfortunately, led to plotholes, moments of boredom and stupidity.

“Godzilla: King of the Monsters” fixes the wrongs of the original with spectacular monster-action that will keep you engaged and wanting to see more. It, unfortunately, suffers badly from a dull script that only added more wrongs than rights narratively. However, as a fan of the lore, I look forward to seeing the next chapter, which is 2020’s “Godzilla vs Kong.” Here’s to hoping the next is the best.

“Godzilla: King of the Monsters” Rating: 6/10