Film review: King Kong.
Wow. Just wow.
The world's greatest director (allegedly) tackling the world's greatest ape (most certainly); can't go right, can it? It can. It is right in oh so many ways.
First and foremost, let me make this clear. While I've always loved the concept of Kong, and the story of Kong, both existing films about the subject never did much for me, for the simple reason that 'classics' bore me to tears. Anything made before, say, 1980 (with the exception of the superb Alien), simply fails to hold my attention for its full duration. However captivating the main premise may be, the 1933 original, nor the 1976 remake have managed to entertain me; they've just dated too much for me to enjoy them. In that respect I am most definitely a child of the nineties.
So what did it need for me, personally, to enjoy Kong in its full glory? A full-blown, Peter Jackson directed, big budget, CGI remake. And I got just that.
This film is exhilirating, from its RKO-esque Art Deco opening to the vertigo inducing finale atop the Empire State Building; from the delicate opening sounds of the 1930's song 'Sitting On Top Of The World', to the closing images of Kong, defending Ann, and his position, on that same top of the world.
What was essential about this film, what Jackson just had to get right, was the connection between Watts' Ann Darrow and Kong. The handling of this precarious bond between Kong and Ann is, to say the least, impressive. It's a key element, and what could have been laughable in the hands of many other directors is actually something that even cynics could buy into. That's because as much care has gone into Kong's character as his presence (more on that later). His expressions match wonderfully with Naomi Watts' committed performance - and she's so much more than just a damsel-in-distress.
Kong himself manages to captivate us, thanks to a combination of WETA's superb special effects and the range of emotion provided by the Gollum-esque motion-capture technology, using yet again the facial expressions of Andy Serkis. Of course, Kong has never been just another big scary ape in any of the previous films, but Jackson and Serkis make him particularly engaging, not just because he looks so convincingly ragged an unrefined, but he moves like an ape (a first) and has the aforementioned facial expressions of a human. As a result, we can see how Kong's terrifying side is influenced by his tender side. Yes, his tender side.
The rest of the cast does an excellent job. Naomi Watts leads this phenomenal (human) cast in what I think is one of the best performances of the year, considering that she acts convincingly and sensitively to an essentially nonexistent gorilla. Jack Black surprised me, with his Orson Welles type character, a guy that just loves making movies (and money) so much he'll go to insane lengths to make his project a reality. Last but not least, Adrian Brody is excellent as the scriptwriter who is essentially hi-jacked for the purpose of completing his fifteen page script so that Denham will have something to shoot when he gets to Scull Island.
This film is packed with set pieces of every kind; full of action, full of emotion, and full of fun. There's the amazing recreation of depression era Manhattan, which will take your breath away; there's Kong's endearing protectiveness towards Ann on Skull Island after she wins him over by performing her lively Vaudeville act; there's the overwhelming chase- and fight scenes between Kong and the various other inhabitants of Skull Island; there's Kong tearing apart first a Manhattan theatre and then Manhattan itself; and last but definitely not least, there's the Empire State Building.
The aerial shots of the six heavily armed Helldiver bi-planes attacking Kong, standing mightily atop of the Empire State Building and fighting a lost battle, is the single most dazzling combination of virtuoso cinematography and seamless special effects I have ever seen, in any film. I breathed, nor blinked, during the entire sequence. The sheer beauty of this sequence alone warrants the entry fee.
Are there flaws? Of course. Deus Ex Machina in the shape and form of Cap'n Englehorn, not once, but twice. The middle bit, the Skull Island sequence, however exhilirating it may be (holy lord!), is overlong, and the last third of the film, the Manhattan bit, is too short. There's perhaps too much spectacle (Hey, I'm grasping at straws here!). Besides that, this is blockbuster perfection.
Peter Jackson has exceeded even the highest expectations with his vision of King Kong, and while it is likely to only win a few technical Oscars, it is one of the best films of 2005. I'm still rather dumbstruck. Kong's awesome. Kong rules. Bravo, Peter Jackson. Bravo.
This is it. This is the definitive King Kong.
A 92 out of 100.
The world's greatest director (allegedly) tackling the world's greatest ape (most certainly); can't go right, can it? It can. It is right in oh so many ways.
First and foremost, let me make this clear. While I've always loved the concept of Kong, and the story of Kong, both existing films about the subject never did much for me, for the simple reason that 'classics' bore me to tears. Anything made before, say, 1980 (with the exception of the superb Alien), simply fails to hold my attention for its full duration. However captivating the main premise may be, the 1933 original, nor the 1976 remake have managed to entertain me; they've just dated too much for me to enjoy them. In that respect I am most definitely a child of the nineties.
So what did it need for me, personally, to enjoy Kong in its full glory? A full-blown, Peter Jackson directed, big budget, CGI remake. And I got just that.
This film is exhilirating, from its RKO-esque Art Deco opening to the vertigo inducing finale atop the Empire State Building; from the delicate opening sounds of the 1930's song 'Sitting On Top Of The World', to the closing images of Kong, defending Ann, and his position, on that same top of the world.
What was essential about this film, what Jackson just had to get right, was the connection between Watts' Ann Darrow and Kong. The handling of this precarious bond between Kong and Ann is, to say the least, impressive. It's a key element, and what could have been laughable in the hands of many other directors is actually something that even cynics could buy into. That's because as much care has gone into Kong's character as his presence (more on that later). His expressions match wonderfully with Naomi Watts' committed performance - and she's so much more than just a damsel-in-distress.
Kong himself manages to captivate us, thanks to a combination of WETA's superb special effects and the range of emotion provided by the Gollum-esque motion-capture technology, using yet again the facial expressions of Andy Serkis. Of course, Kong has never been just another big scary ape in any of the previous films, but Jackson and Serkis make him particularly engaging, not just because he looks so convincingly ragged an unrefined, but he moves like an ape (a first) and has the aforementioned facial expressions of a human. As a result, we can see how Kong's terrifying side is influenced by his tender side. Yes, his tender side.
The rest of the cast does an excellent job. Naomi Watts leads this phenomenal (human) cast in what I think is one of the best performances of the year, considering that she acts convincingly and sensitively to an essentially nonexistent gorilla. Jack Black surprised me, with his Orson Welles type character, a guy that just loves making movies (and money) so much he'll go to insane lengths to make his project a reality. Last but not least, Adrian Brody is excellent as the scriptwriter who is essentially hi-jacked for the purpose of completing his fifteen page script so that Denham will have something to shoot when he gets to Scull Island.
This film is packed with set pieces of every kind; full of action, full of emotion, and full of fun. There's the amazing recreation of depression era Manhattan, which will take your breath away; there's Kong's endearing protectiveness towards Ann on Skull Island after she wins him over by performing her lively Vaudeville act; there's the overwhelming chase- and fight scenes between Kong and the various other inhabitants of Skull Island; there's Kong tearing apart first a Manhattan theatre and then Manhattan itself; and last but definitely not least, there's the Empire State Building.
The aerial shots of the six heavily armed Helldiver bi-planes attacking Kong, standing mightily atop of the Empire State Building and fighting a lost battle, is the single most dazzling combination of virtuoso cinematography and seamless special effects I have ever seen, in any film. I breathed, nor blinked, during the entire sequence. The sheer beauty of this sequence alone warrants the entry fee.
Are there flaws? Of course. Deus Ex Machina in the shape and form of Cap'n Englehorn, not once, but twice. The middle bit, the Skull Island sequence, however exhilirating it may be (holy lord!), is overlong, and the last third of the film, the Manhattan bit, is too short. There's perhaps too much spectacle (Hey, I'm grasping at straws here!). Besides that, this is blockbuster perfection.
Peter Jackson has exceeded even the highest expectations with his vision of King Kong, and while it is likely to only win a few technical Oscars, it is one of the best films of 2005. I'm still rather dumbstruck. Kong's awesome. Kong rules. Bravo, Peter Jackson. Bravo.
This is it. This is the definitive King Kong.
A 92 out of 100.
6 Comments:
The only complain I have with this movie is that the T-Rexs look more like monsters than dinosaurs.
And 1 kong vs. 3 Rexs?
Hanging from the vine?
C'mon.
And you, of course, know what T-rexes look like.
I think there were even four T-rexes at some point, but I'm not sure.
Awesome setpiece.
Cheers
I thought it was too long. I felt that there were too many scenes on the island that only existed for the special effects and after a while it got tiring. Some of the scenes were so crazy that they seemed a little cheezy.
The ape was awesome, and Naomi Watts was great. I actually believed the relationship between the ape and the girl. It was just too long.
I disagree.
As I said in the review, I do believe the island bit was overlong, and the Manhattan bit was too short, but the overall runtime was perfect.
Cheers
I just got back from the theatre.
Oh. My. God.
There's nothing I can say. This movie, while long, is totally worth it. I mean, you don't even see Kong until it's 70 mins into the movie, but he still is the King.
And the best part is you actually believes that the girl and the ape care for each other.
And the scene where Kong tells Ann the sunset is beautiful, is just beautiful. Just beautiful.
By the way, the lady sitting next to me was crying so hard at the end, you'd think she has a similar experience as Ann does.
Hang on.
Is this the same Snakehead who made a few cynical remarks regarding T-rexes, monsters and vines?
Glad you liked it.
Cheers
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