Ironically, I was recently reading an article asking where all the 90 minute movies had gone as films just seem to be getting longer. Two hours now seems to be the standard and three hour films are becoming more popular, the article posed the question as to whether three hours was necessary for most movies. I found myself agreeing with many of the points. Well, having seen King Kong this week I can tell you that if they’re all like that, they can keep making long films all they want. The time flew by and I never so much as felt my bum go numb.
I’ve held off going to see Kong because I couldn’t figure what could be done with the story. I’ve seen the original 1933 version, but it was a long time ago and I could only remember vague bits, but not much else. My thinking was, once you see the monkey, its all down hill, its a one trick show that basically just showcases effects. Boy was I wrong.
As you’d expect, it’s packed with effects and action, mainly involving the humans fighting oversize animals or the oversized animals fighting amongst themselves, but the movie also has what must be one of the longest sequences without any dialogue in recent history. The sequence is amazing because, aside from being powerful, it’s not at all boring (admittedly it is interspersed with some action). Credit has to go to Naomi Watts, Andy Serkis (who plays Kong) and the creature animators for creating such fantastically subtle sequences (probably against green screen in Watts’ case) which still convey so much, especially as they fill a good portion of the film. Likewise, what the viewer may take for granted, the setting of 1930s New York, is recreated in stunning detail.
I’ll admit that I was a tough act to sway, aside from the thoughts I mentioned above, I’d heard reviews that ranged from the sublime to the disasterous, with equal amounts of people calling it a masterpiece and monstrous. In the end, the movie won me over with ease, finding a depth I didn’t even think was possible. To say that I loved it was understating it.
Fantastic acting, a complex, engaging and fast story, excellent effects, good pacing and a great vision. Easily one of my favourite movies of recent years. Having said that, not everything was perfect. The effects, while good, were far from perfect and, on occassion, way too obvious. I get the feeling that we’ll look back on it in a decade and be amazed how we managed to sit through it or be fooled by them. Kong, while well rendered, is more a passable animation than a believable creature, likewise the t-rex-like creatures. The inhabitants of the city, after causing plenty of hassle, seem to disappear entirely, for no reason, after the first encounter.
A lot seems to be done purely for spectacle, the herd of Brontosaurus running down the ravine with raptor-esque dinosaurs nipping at their heels while the men run, the fight between Kong and three t-rex type things which looks more like super scale WWF wrestling (I was half expecting Kong to don a cape and mask). The endless chases and last minute saves (the boat crew seem to have a sixth sense for turning up with a small arsenal just when things start to look dire). Not to mention the use of over-sized creatures to wow us. The movie has more than enough without resorting to The Lost World. The scene with Kong on the ice is almost overdone too. There’s also some cheesy dialogue and a few outstanding questions that bugged me (why do they decide to name him King Kong? Just how do they get him back on the boat, he’s way too big to fit in?) and a couple of sequences shot in slow-mo, handheld with crash zooms that look distinctly amateurish.
The acting (even the smaller roles are wonderfully rounded), story and action sequences all make the film worthwhile viewing and should please any sort of viewer. Check this out on the big screen before it’s too late.
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