http://markwitton-com.blogspot.com/2014/05/godzilla-and-mutos-vs-birds-and-newts.htmlA palaeontologist & palaeoartist's take on legendarygoji and the MUTOs. I think shaving off a bit of his width is fine but the general heft and proportions are what I like.
Regarding the brightness issue, they say it's something to do with a (faulty?) process during the transfer to home release versions. I myself have no recollection of 2014 being too dark to see in the 3 viewings I went to, for what it's worth. Thankfully some dedicated people have made efforts to remedy this.
"original theatrical MPC brightness":
https://youtu.be/IEieNNr_la4Edits by fans:
https://youtu.be/PIjCt8M9XJIhttps://youtu.be/dapz5q_vu84https://youtu.be/dDlYl6EF2B0There's a lot to appreciate with the absence of pitch-darkness. The way it's shot, animated, the scale, weight, even sound design. Things that I found not up to par in the sequel. With this, I find it harder to make out the details in KOTM due to the weather effects which obscures too much (compare with Pacific Rim) despite being not as dark and other times the camera/editing. 2014's day scenes are still fine and don't hide as much. The brightened night battle meanwhile not only reveals
a lot more detail because of the lack of rain, but also showcases the solid cinematography and composition. Note how clear we can see the action in the closeups or the rooftop POV bits where soldiers are snuck into the foreground for scale.
The best/most interesting parts of KOTM for me are the visual flourishes which delve more into the mythical and fantastical, like Mark's painting above, provided the framing is good. It provides a contrast to how 2014 used "realism" to absolutely revel in the juxtaposition; the mere presence of these impossible beings disrupting the familiar human environment. When it's time to get up close and follow the action though, I think 2014 did it much better.
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