King Kong
I'm 26 years old, and have been going to the movies most of my life. Every so often I see a film that just blows me away. I remember being 10 years old watching Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade in the theatre and just being aww struck by the action, and excitement. A few years later as a teenager I saw Jurassic Park, and was amazed by the stunning visuals. In the past few years I have had a chance to see some great films, that I love and are among my all time favorites. Having seen the trailers for King Kong, this film looked to have all the potential to be a modern masterpiece.
Peter Jackson was a director I was not very familiar with before the Lord of the Rings, in fact the only film of his I had ever seen was Heavenly Creatures, but I loved the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and when I heard he was remaking King Kong, I had my doubts about how this film could be pulled off. Not so much the special effects aspect, as much as the story.
The original King Kong was released in 1933, western men had never seen a gorilla until 1901, and for years before that gorillas were beasts of legend, like bigfoot. So with gorillas only being 30 years old to the western mind, they were still shrouded in mystery, and King Kong was a very realistic story at the time, or at least the possibility seemed real enough. 72 years later the idea of a giant gorilla doesn't quite seem as possible. With this in mind, a remake of King Kong would be a difficult film to pull off.
So did Peter Jackson do it? Is the remake of his favorite film a glory for all movie audiences to behold? Well there answer to me is simple. You bet your ass it is. Peter Jackson has done it. King Kong is a very impressive film. At 3 hours long, it maybe too much for some audiences to stand, but damn it, I love long movies. I like when directors actually take time to introduce their characters, establish sub-plots and are deliberate in their storytelling.
The first act of the film is a little slow, getting the backstory of the characters and moving them into place, but believe me, the second act, on Skull Island, is so full of action that you will be on sensory overload. From the moment Carl Denham and his crew get off the ship and go onto the island, the next hour of the film is non-stop action.
The CGI Kong is a site to behold, an absolutley brilliant creation, and for those of you are real movie nuts, you may have heard that Kong was in fact an actor. Andy Serkis, who did the motion capture for the CGI Gollum in the Lord of the Rings, is back doing the motion capture for Kong. Serkis is a brilliant physical performer, and his work shines through again here, and as a reward for his great work, it was great to see Peter Jackson give Serkis a regular role in the film as Lumpy the Cook.
One of the most talked about scenes from the trailers is the one in which Kong mixes it up with a dinosaur who is trying to eat his woman. In the trailer, this looks pretty interesting, but in the movie, it is the most aww inspring, action packed scene. And kudos to the people who put out the trailer for not giving away more of that scene, because there are some surprises that just blow you away. Tremendous action.
The 3rd act of the film is the classic Kong rampage through New York, which just looks fantastic on screen. The visual effects are masterfully done, and unlike anything that you will have ever scene before. The climactic scene of Kong on the Empire State building, is surprisingly heartbreaking.
Watching this film I could not help but think that it was just one big "Fuck You" to Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. This was a statement picture for Peter Jackson, and the statement he makes with this film is, " I can do this better than you can." Jackson's vision, his style, and ability to tell a story has made him the big movie man. No one can do it better. He has raised the bar over men that have dominated the industry for the last 30 years.
This movie made me feel like I was a kid again. Sitting in the theatre wide-eyed, with a huge grin on my face because I was seeing something that was simply amazing. All in all, King Kong is a wonderful written, perfectly visualized, and masterfully directed film. Peter Jackson's love for this film is evident in the lengths he goes to to wow his audience. Peter Jackson has taken the film he loved as a kid and reinvented it for a whole new generation to appreciate.
Peter Jackson was a director I was not very familiar with before the Lord of the Rings, in fact the only film of his I had ever seen was Heavenly Creatures, but I loved the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and when I heard he was remaking King Kong, I had my doubts about how this film could be pulled off. Not so much the special effects aspect, as much as the story.
The original King Kong was released in 1933, western men had never seen a gorilla until 1901, and for years before that gorillas were beasts of legend, like bigfoot. So with gorillas only being 30 years old to the western mind, they were still shrouded in mystery, and King Kong was a very realistic story at the time, or at least the possibility seemed real enough. 72 years later the idea of a giant gorilla doesn't quite seem as possible. With this in mind, a remake of King Kong would be a difficult film to pull off.
So did Peter Jackson do it? Is the remake of his favorite film a glory for all movie audiences to behold? Well there answer to me is simple. You bet your ass it is. Peter Jackson has done it. King Kong is a very impressive film. At 3 hours long, it maybe too much for some audiences to stand, but damn it, I love long movies. I like when directors actually take time to introduce their characters, establish sub-plots and are deliberate in their storytelling.
The first act of the film is a little slow, getting the backstory of the characters and moving them into place, but believe me, the second act, on Skull Island, is so full of action that you will be on sensory overload. From the moment Carl Denham and his crew get off the ship and go onto the island, the next hour of the film is non-stop action.
The CGI Kong is a site to behold, an absolutley brilliant creation, and for those of you are real movie nuts, you may have heard that Kong was in fact an actor. Andy Serkis, who did the motion capture for the CGI Gollum in the Lord of the Rings, is back doing the motion capture for Kong. Serkis is a brilliant physical performer, and his work shines through again here, and as a reward for his great work, it was great to see Peter Jackson give Serkis a regular role in the film as Lumpy the Cook.
One of the most talked about scenes from the trailers is the one in which Kong mixes it up with a dinosaur who is trying to eat his woman. In the trailer, this looks pretty interesting, but in the movie, it is the most aww inspring, action packed scene. And kudos to the people who put out the trailer for not giving away more of that scene, because there are some surprises that just blow you away. Tremendous action.
The 3rd act of the film is the classic Kong rampage through New York, which just looks fantastic on screen. The visual effects are masterfully done, and unlike anything that you will have ever scene before. The climactic scene of Kong on the Empire State building, is surprisingly heartbreaking.
Watching this film I could not help but think that it was just one big "Fuck You" to Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. This was a statement picture for Peter Jackson, and the statement he makes with this film is, " I can do this better than you can." Jackson's vision, his style, and ability to tell a story has made him the big movie man. No one can do it better. He has raised the bar over men that have dominated the industry for the last 30 years.
This movie made me feel like I was a kid again. Sitting in the theatre wide-eyed, with a huge grin on my face because I was seeing something that was simply amazing. All in all, King Kong is a wonderful written, perfectly visualized, and masterfully directed film. Peter Jackson's love for this film is evident in the lengths he goes to to wow his audience. Peter Jackson has taken the film he loved as a kid and reinvented it for a whole new generation to appreciate.
posted by Nick at 10:55 AM
2 Comments:
Can't wait to see this one. Based on your recommendation, I may just have to fight the crowds tomorrow to see it.
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