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 1 of 4

King Kong Our rating: Your rating: 1 2 3 4 Your Comments: see all MPAA rating: PG-13 (for frightening adventure violence and some disturbing images) Genre: Adventure Theater release: December 14, 2005 by Universal Pictures Directed by: Peter Jackson Runtime: 3 hours 7 minutes Cast: Naomi Watts (Ann Darrow), Jack Black (Carl Denham), Adrien Brody (Jack Driscoll), Andy Serkis (King Kong/Lumpy), Thomas Kretschmann (Captain Englehorn), Colin Hanks (Preston), Jamie Bell (Jimmy), Evan Parke (Hayes), Kyle Chandler (Bruce Baxter) Related: Talk About It/Family Corner

If it wasn't obvious after his successful adaptation of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, director Peter Jackson has quickly established himself as the modern king of cinematic spectacle. Like George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, and James Cameron before him, merely attaching his name to a project is now enough to draw millions into the movie theaters. So it seems only fitting that he attempt to remake the movie that inspired him to become a filmmaker, as throngs of people flock to the cineplex to see his vision of King Kong.

Jack Black stars as Carl Denham, entrepreneur, raconteur, adventurer and filmmaker

It's not as if the classic wasn't due for a remake. The original 1933 version was a spectacle for its time and remains a cinematic landmark to this day. The contemporized 1976 version was also a spectacle for its time, though it's become far less memorable thirty years later. If Jackson's goal was simply to reinvent Kong with revolutionary special effects for a new generation, then mission accomplished.

You probably already know the basic details of the story. Movie director meets actress. Crew finds island and meets natives. Actress meets giant monkey. Crew captures monkey with ambitions for Broadway. Monkey meets theater critics and renovates New York. Squadron of aircraft meet monkey on top of the Empire State Building. Monkey meets demise.

What's new is the level of detail, which almost doubles the original's 100-minute running time to more than 3 hours. The audience is introduced to a beautifully rendered Depression-era New York—not exactly the best time for a struggling vaudeville entertainer like Ann Darrow (Naomi Watts of The Ring) to find her big break as an actress. But a chance encounter leads her to struggling film director Carl Denham (Jack Black of School of Rock), who's desperate to find a leading lady for his doomed cinematic masterpiece, which he wants to film at the mysterious and uncharted Skull Island. Also along for the trip is Jack Driscoll (Adrien Brody of The Pianist), the playwright writing Carl's screenplay who falls in love with Ann during their long oceanic journey.

Naomi Watts plays Ann Darrow, a vaudeville actress looking for work in Depression-era New York

Therein lies Kong's chief problem. After making a trio of 3-hour pictures that worked well, Jackson and his co-writers (wife Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens) have over-indulged themselves this time. It takes nearly 30 minutes for our heroes to even get on the boat, and an hour before they reach the island. Character development is lacking in too many films these days, but here, it's not compelling character development. We learn that Ann is a selfless, caring girl and that Carl is a delusional creep with a vision for a movie that no studio would support. Jack nevertheless remains underdeveloped as the film spends more time introducing us to select members of the ship's crew, most notably a clichéd paternal relationship between first officer Hayes (Evan Parke) and cabin boy Jimmy (Jamie Bell).

Even when we get to the island, Jackson is too keen on repetitive lingering shots. There's an effective sense of dread as the ship moves cautiously through the fog to Skull Island, but it soon grows tiresome watching them avoid rocks like the Titanic. When the film crew hits land, Jackson relentlessly bombards viewers with images of skulls in the rocks and in remnants from the natives, as if he felt the audience needed constant reminder of where they are. The natives themselves are extremely savage and frightening, but are hindered somewhat by Jackson's insistence for stop-motion camera work (overly used in The Fellowship of the Ring) that makes it all look like a music video.

Ah, but things finally pick up 75 minutes into the film, when our giant misunderstood monkey finally hits the screen. Jackson rightly captures Ann's terror as she's offered as a sacrifice to Kong and viciously carried away. And then he wisely makes their unusual bond the heart of the film. Unsure of how to placate the beast, and in effort to keep from being killed, she uses her stage routine to entertain, and the sight of Kong laughing at her antics is a joy to behold. Later, beauty and beast share a moment together that's sure to become a scene as signature as E.T. and Elliot flying past the moon.

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