191. King Kong

King Kong (1933)

Director: Merian C. Cooper & Ernest B. Schoedsack

Starring: Fay Wray

Robert Armstrong

Bruce Cabot

IMDb Rating: 8

My Rating: 8.5

"Oh no, it wasn't the airplanes. It was beauty killed the beast."

Filmmaker Carl Denham (Robert Armstrong) needs a few things to finish his latest project. One of those things being a leading lady, whom he discovers quite by accident in Ann Darrow (Fay Wray). Denham convinces Darrow to be his next star and they soon find themselves on a boat headed to the film's shooting location, Skull Island. Once on the boat, Anne meets First Mate Jack Driscoll (Bruce Cabot) and soon the two become quite smitten with one another. When the film crew finally arrives to the island, they attempt to make peace with the natives, but are chased off. Later that night the island natives sneak onto the crew's ship and kidnap Ann. They intend to deliver her as a sacrifice to Kong (Marlon Brando... kidding), a giant gorilla who inhabits the island. When Kong arrives, he discovers Ann tied to an alter and takes her back into the jungle.

The crew set out to rescue Ann from the island and along the way encounter a lost world filled with dinosaurs. They eventually find Ann and attempt to make their escape, but with Kong close on their tail. They eventually make it back to the boat and capture Kong while he is wrecking the natives' village in search of Ann. They knock Kong out with some gas bombs and bring him back to New York City, where Denham plans on displaying Kong on the Broadway stage. The opening night of the show, things do not go as planned and Kong escapes into New York City and searches for Ann. This all leads up to the classic showdown where Kong must fight off an aeriel assault atop the Empire State Building.

King Kong is the iconic "giant monster movie" that has been referenced in countless films, and has inspired just as many. It's been remade a total of four times, but nothing really compares to the 1933 version. I actually loved the 2005 effort from Peter Jackson, but the characters are so far removed from this original, it's difficult to even compare them. Even though the film is seventy-seven years old this year, it still entertains as much as it did the day it came out. The special effects might be a very dated, but the story remains just as strong. When watching the film, it does feel like you are not only watching a science fiction classic, but a piece of history.

The performances are all solid in this film. There is not really a stand out performance from the actors, as the focus really is set dead on Kong. Although, Fay Wray is endearing as Ann Darrow. For the most part Kong is as ferocious as you would expect. The only criticism I might have is when Kong first sees Ann, his expression mirrors that of a drunk man drooling over a pretty woman. It's really our first view of Kong and it's met with a bit of a chuckle. Otherwise, everything plays exactly out how you feel it should.

Skip to the next paragraph if you are unaware of how the film ends. I have always been a believer that Kong was just very misunderstood. While some movie monsters were hell bent on killing and destruction, Kong did it all for love. From the moment he set eyes on Ann, there was something there for him. So when he escapes from his chains in New York, what is the first thing he does? He goes looking for Ann. Atop the Empire State Building, he fights off the planes not only in protection of himself, but of Ann too. He falls to his death, and the film is summed up in one of it's final lines, "it wasn't the airplanes. It was beauty killed the beast." We've all done stupid things for love, Kong just happened to destroy a city for his love.

This is another one of those films that my grandfather showed me when I was younger. I remember his rants about how Godzilla was a joke compared to Kong. About a week after my viewing, he took my cousin and I to Universal Studios to go on the Kongfrontation ride. We were absolutely terrified, or at least I was. So based on another scaring moment from my childhood, I whole heartily agree. Kong could beat up Godzilla any day of the week. Overall, King Kong is your classic monster movie with a little bit of heart mixed in. You owe it to yourself to take the time to see this cinema classic.

just for fun: the universal studios KONGFRONTATION ride that is now out of operation.