King Kong starts in 'Surbabaya Indonesia' in a port where the 'Petrox Explorer' is about to set sail for a previously uncharted island recently photographed by a satellite orbiting the Earth, the photo's revealed that there is a possibility that the island is a rich source of oil & Petrox executive Fred S. Wilson (Charles Grodin) wants to get his hands on it before his competitors. Just before the ship sets sail paleontologist Jack Prescot (Jeff Bridges) sneaks aboard in hope of studying the islands untouched wildlife. As they head for the island they discover a raft floating in the open sea & pick up has been actress Dawn (Jessica Lange). Once on the island the initial landing party discover a primitive tribe who fear & worship a god they call Kong & they want to offer the pretty Dawn as a sacrifice, an idea which no-one is that keen about. That night back aboard the ship some natives kidnap Dawn, take her back to the island, chain her up & leave her for Kong who turns out to be a 40 foot Gorilla. Kong takes a shine to Dawn & carries her off, a rescue party is already on the island & they must set out to try & save Dawn from Kong & whatever other horrors the island holds...
Directed by John Guillermin I actually had a fair amount of fun with this usually hated remake of the original 1933 classic. The script by Lorenzo Semple Jr. moves like an absolute rocket & at least is never dull or boring but at the same time it's rather camp & silly. Would a 40 foot Gorilla really be able to avoid detection in Manhattan by simply hiding behind a skyscraper? Would a 40 foot Gorilla be able to 'sneak' up on someone? What are the chances of a small raft being found in the middle of the ocean? The odds must be astronomical! A fog bank that remains totally unchanged for 100's of years? Wouldn't the wind not affect it at all? It sticks to the originals basic story except that all the monsters & dinosaurs are gone & have been replaced by a rubber snake that looks like one of those draft excluder's that you place at the bottom of doors. This is one aspect of the original that is sorely missed in this remake. The character's are over-the-top but quite likable, Wilson as the annoying Petrox executive irritates though. I liked it as a piece of harmless entertaining fun although it can't really compare to the original.
Director Guillermin does an OK job, apparently Roman Polanski, Michael Winner & Sam Peckinpah were offered the chance to direct but turned it down, all I can say is I'd have loved to see what Michael Winner would have come up with! Now the special effects, well apparently Carlo Rambaldi built a 40 foot full sized mechanical Kong at a cost of $1.7 million but has about a minute of screen time & it looks awful so Guillermin went with Rick Baker in a monkey suit & the results variable to say the least. Each Kink Kong film had to work within limitations & are a product of they're time, the original has stop motion animation that won't impress many these days, this one has a man in a rubber suit & the recent remake has the nicest CGI effects you can get.
With a healthy budget of about $25,000,000 King Kong is well made & has that Hollywood polish to it although I'm not sure it deserved two Oscar nominations, the Hawaiian locations are nice & the climax atop the World Trade Center has a strange feeling to it. The acting is OK but nothing spectacular.
I know a lot of people dislike this remake, personally I'm judging it on it's own as I feel it's a completely separate film from the original or Peter Jacksons big budget remake. If you prefer the original to this than fine watch that, & I have to say now I'm a huge fan of it, as no-one is forcing you to watch or like this. Good fun & provides a couple of hours of entertainment & thats all I want in a film.
Directed by John Guillermin I actually had a fair amount of fun with this usually hated remake of the original 1933 classic. The script by Lorenzo Semple Jr. moves like an absolute rocket & at least is never dull or boring but at the same time it's rather camp & silly. Would a 40 foot Gorilla really be able to avoid detection in Manhattan by simply hiding behind a skyscraper? Would a 40 foot Gorilla be able to 'sneak' up on someone? What are the chances of a small raft being found in the middle of the ocean? The odds must be astronomical! A fog bank that remains totally unchanged for 100's of years? Wouldn't the wind not affect it at all? It sticks to the originals basic story except that all the monsters & dinosaurs are gone & have been replaced by a rubber snake that looks like one of those draft excluder's that you place at the bottom of doors. This is one aspect of the original that is sorely missed in this remake. The character's are over-the-top but quite likable, Wilson as the annoying Petrox executive irritates though. I liked it as a piece of harmless entertaining fun although it can't really compare to the original.
Director Guillermin does an OK job, apparently Roman Polanski, Michael Winner & Sam Peckinpah were offered the chance to direct but turned it down, all I can say is I'd have loved to see what Michael Winner would have come up with! Now the special effects, well apparently Carlo Rambaldi built a 40 foot full sized mechanical Kong at a cost of $1.7 million but has about a minute of screen time & it looks awful so Guillermin went with Rick Baker in a monkey suit & the results variable to say the least. Each Kink Kong film had to work within limitations & are a product of they're time, the original has stop motion animation that won't impress many these days, this one has a man in a rubber suit & the recent remake has the nicest CGI effects you can get.
With a healthy budget of about $25,000,000 King Kong is well made & has that Hollywood polish to it although I'm not sure it deserved two Oscar nominations, the Hawaiian locations are nice & the climax atop the World Trade Center has a strange feeling to it. The acting is OK but nothing spectacular.
I know a lot of people dislike this remake, personally I'm judging it on it's own as I feel it's a completely separate film from the original or Peter Jacksons big budget remake. If you prefer the original to this than fine watch that, & I have to say now I'm a huge fan of it, as no-one is forcing you to watch or like this. Good fun & provides a couple of hours of entertainment & thats all I want in a film.