Earth Shaking King Kong Movie, Part 2

Watching the film remake of King Kong (almost as long as viewing the move Titanic and each part of the entire Lord Of The Rings movie series) was already a struggle, but the rewards are great and I find myself unabashedly teary eyed in some scenes between Kong and Ann.

Below are my thoughts (and some spoilers, so I am warning you):

• The first parts of the movie painstakingly narrates the Depression Era in the US, and how a jobless theatre actress and fledgling movie director meet each other to start an adventure to an undiscovered island. Along the way, they would meet other colorful characters - the ship's captain, the helpers, the sailors, the playwright etc.


• Much of the movie's meat and sauce happened in that mysterious Skull Island where huge predatorial creatures - the natives (looking much like the dirty orcs from the LOTR movie series), dinosaurs (borrowed dinosaurs from Jurassic Park?), insects (think of house pests the size of a St. Bernard dog or a rhinoceros), slimy leech-like worms (pinkish with crooked teeth) - abound every corner of the place. Expect plenty of fleeing scenes of the helpless human protagonists from these merciless creatures.


• Overkill in effects and execution. Example: the stampeding brontosauruses scene is a little bit comical for me. I think in real life, it's more likely that none of the characters would survive the onslaught even if everyone is a dexterous Olympic runner. And how about those moments when Ann is helplessly held in one hand of Kong while this beast trashed through the jungle? One way or another, Kong would have carelessly bashed poor Ann's head or scar her face on a protruding rock or tree branch. But hey, this is Hollywood, and the good guys always magically able to survive any impossible situation. Let's just forgive the script.


• As noted in Jessica Zafra's Blog, the now famous LOTR's Gollum actor Andy Serkis has played two characters in this film: Kong and the boat's cook. Taking a hint from that post, I kept an eye for Andy; indeed he chameleoned himself into Lumpy the cook. But his character died in the most slimy, horrendous way (not for the squeamish). And yes, his Kong beast character died too at the end. The Nazi guy of The Pianist, Thomas Kretschmann plays the boat's captain (no wonder he looked familiar, besides of course the pianist himself, Adrien Brody).


• Naomi Watts is a real beauty to behold. There are some angles that I could have mistaken her for Nicole Kidman (those curly 50's blonde hairs). I have this liking for blondes. :-)


• Be prepared to get teary eyed in this movie.


• Best scene: the frozen lake scene where Kong playfully slides and whirls on the ice while Ann sits on Kong's hand.


• Kong died as expected. Well, this is a (second) remake of the original film (1933).

Overall, I rate this 4 out of 5 stars.

Want more information on King Kong? Try this site.