Oct 17, 2006 10:00 AM
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I saw King Kong as a kid in the 1980s. Video cassettes were the mode of watching English movies then .I have'nt seen the original 1960s King Kong which has inspired Peter Jackson, however after seeing this movie I could relate to the original movie and script .The best credit a remake could get is that it goes further by redefining the original yet at the same time stays within the feel and fabric of the original story.And King Kong by Peter Jackson is an example of such a remake.
King kong is as much about action as it is about 'The Beauty and th Beast'.It is about a large and frightening creature who has warmth and humanness in a time when such attributes were largely missing from urban life.It celebrates the love of a big , lonely gorilla as an antithesis to the bloodless , spineless human existence.At the same time it shows the wild as outwardly dangerous and spine-chilling.
Cinematography is a high point of the movie.The depiction of New York in the economic depression era , the costumes , the buildings , the cars - all look genuine and have that molten gold colour background so reminiscent of old cities .At the same time Skull Island lives is scarily dangerous and the rocky mountains and greenery is similar to Jurassic Park.
You think when you start watching the movie that the storyline is going to be predictable.But it is not ! There are some well executed twists and turns before the original plot unfolds.The tribals are there from the earlier movies.But they look scarier here as do the other animals living on Skull Island.The scenes where the ship negotiates with the stormy seas and the rocky edges of skull island is one of the best pieces of action.
The cast is well chosen.Adrien Brody suits the bill .Naomi Watts as Ann darrowis so so beautiful that you really fall in love with her.The sunset scenes where the reddish yellow tinge illuminates her blonde hair as she tries entertaining King Kong are stunning.Jack Black is kind of okay -thats because he does not convincingly look to be from the epoch where the movie is based , his face and antics being more contemporary , yet he does his best to fit into the movie.
When the original plot unfolds it becomes clear that the director is going to tell you a love story with a tragic end to it.Yet he puts in so much love and affection into the relationship between Ann (Naomi) and Kong .There is this scene where inbetween escaping from the army and the police ,Kong and Ann get a moment or two to go ice skating in a solitary road.The timing of this scene (just before the climax) is a great triumph for this movie.
The climax is great -the sounds , the effects fill the atmosphere .But at the end your heart gies out to Kong and you feel , despite this being a long movie that it has ended fast.Nevertheless you would have enjoyed every moment of it.
Depiction of King Kong from various angles is one of the new aspects of the movie. From one angle he looks huge .But when on top of a tall tower he appears to be smal and vulnerable. At the same time he is like a human fighting with a dinosaur when he topples into a valley.Having seen these various sizes of Kong Kong one is able to relate more to him emotionally.
This is a must watch movie because it is brave and original.Hardly the words one uses for a remake though !!!
