King Kong (2005)

Not as long as I remembered it.

Many people question the fact is the new King Kong better than the original, and to that I say this, without a doubt. It fixes many problems with the last movie in every respect. Now some might say that's not fair, film has grown so much since the 30s and the technology available of course could do so much more. Now I don't hate the original and I'm not just saying the effects are better, oh no, everything is better. The acting, the editing, the cinematography in general, just every little issue I had with the 1933 version has been rectified. Ann goes from just a screaming woman to a more developed and enjoyable character, Carl Denham played by Jack Black is an interesting casting choice but by God he goes all in with it and really rocks in this movie, the music is terrific with individual themes for the main characters and Kong himself, the film is beautiful to look at in some places, and yes the special effects are phenomenal. Andy Serkis doing motion capture for Kong is mindblowing, the dinosaurs look terrific, the island itself seems vast and dangerous, and New York in the Great Depression really cement the visual appeal for me. I could not find much wrong with this movie mainly because it fixes many of the problems from the original. Like I said, Ann is now something more than just a screaming Fay Wray, she is an entertainer who travels to the island and when she meets Kong at first the screaming is in full force, but it's after the genius T-Rex fight that she warms up to him and you can tell she genuinely gives a damn about the big ape. Hell, my favorite scene in the entire movie is not the fight with the T-Rex but afterwards when Kong takes Ann to his home, hardly a word is said and yet you can feel so much. Film is a visual medium and that scene alone tells a story perfectly without saying or even really doing anything. I might even be so bold as to say, this is one of my favorite movie scenes of all time. Now while some people question Jack Black as the director in the movie, I roll with it, he is very eccentric, harboring on obsessed to make his movie even when his crew starts dying, he just has this sort of....like, back stabbing, manipulative, sort of megalomaniac thing going on and I like that much better than Robert Armstrong as the director in the original. In terms of the natives on Skull Island, this takes it to a whole new level. Gone are the lavish costumes and almost sort of regal feel to them, now they are bloodthirsty, terrifying, and dangerous people, it doesn't feel like a racial stereotype it feels like a cannibalistic tribe! It's unbelievable! If I had to describe this film in one word I would call it, supplemental. It is not an update to King Kong like the 70s one, it takes place in the 1930s, and feels like a more elaborate and detailed version of the original. Everything has more depth and meat to it, and yes the movie clocks in at over three hours long, but I never really noticed. Man whenever I first saw this it felt like an eternity for the movie to end, and I watched Lord Of The Rings on an almost regular basis at that age but it felt just so long. But now, I get by it much easier. Just whenever I compare the original to the remake, the remake is the much better film! How many times can you say that in your lifetime? Every aspect, every detail, every action is done so well! I wish this movie had sequels like every other frickin' King Kong movie! The original had Son Of Kong, the greatest movie brawl in history King Kong Vs. Godzilla (Suck on that Civil War you hacks!) had King Kong Escapes where he fought a robotic King Kong, the 70s King Kong had the outrageous King Kong Lives, but this one couldn't?? Betrayal!!!

Well people it's speculation time, Kong Skull Island hits theaters tomorrow but here are my predictions and thoughts on it. I think it will be great. The movie looks like it's set in the late 60s, early 70s. Don't believe me? Well let's see, the girl uses a camera (a very old camera) that uses real film, not even a self respecting hipster would use that, the slightly disturbing Vietnam vibe when they drop bombs on the island out of helicopters (Oh hi Apocalypse Now! Funny seeing you here!), they use a legit projector, you know with physical slides in it, and the ever so slight image of a Nixon bobblehead!! Fraking what?! And they use the song Bad Moon Rising which was released in.....1969. I rest my case. Now people might be saying, "Dude this Kong is going to fight Godzilla from the 2014 movie, how could it be the 70s or the 60s? He'd die before the present day!" well apes, specifically gorillas can live long lives, upward to 60 years, and since Kong isn't exactly a normal ape, I'd dare say he can live to be over 100 in human years. So I'd say he can live long enough for the rematch. Which is also safe to say, he won't die at the end, hell he probably won't even leave the island. So I'm expecting lots of monster fights, good acting, an entertaining story, and the good news is the king is back.