Not satisfied to be simply an ephemeral memory, this latest
redo of the 1933 classic is longer than the lens the paparazzi
use to get snaps of a topless Cameron Diaz sunbathing.
It seems that Jackson (The Lord of the Rings trilogy)
has enrolled in the Kevin Costner School of Filmmaking - the
longer your film runs, the better it is. In the case of King
Kong that’s definitely not the case.
This is one movie that doesn’t need to be a three hour
film - it’s not a bio about someone who led an extraordinary
life, it’s not a bulky piece of literature that’s
hard to compress, it’s not an epic. That’s right
- it’s not an epic.
The original King Kong was an entertaining B-movie
squeezed into a workable 100 minutes. Why, oh why, did Jackson
think that the remake needed to be twice as long then? It
most certainly doesn’t. For all intents and purposes,
it tells exactly the same story, just more indolently, and
the first 75 minutes or so? As uninteresting as watching paint
dry.
Thankfully, Jackson’s movie kicks in just after the
halfway mark, when the big monkey finally makes an appearance.
It then proceeds to rework the best moments from Jurassic
Park: The Lost World - nothing amazing, but still commendable
- before culminating in a slightly-touching (Watts and the
Ape do have chemistry) but fairly drawn-out finale.
If you’ve seen the original, you know the story. A film
crew happens across a 25-foot ape on a remote island. The
lead actress (Naomi Watts) develops a bond with the big softie.
The film's producer (Jack Black) decides this huge ape will
be the saving grace of his career and knocks it out. They
bring it back to New York. It snaps back into action, goes
on a rampage, and heads for the Empire State Building.
King Kong may be a bit of a disappointment, but that
doesn’t mean it’s not entertaining. The effects
are great, and the actors are all good - but its length really
hurt it. Jackson has found it easy enough to shred more than
a few pounds from his own shell, why couldn't he apply the
same technique to his film?
King Kong isn’t the blow-em-away blockbuster we hoped for, but it will entertain. EXTRASBear in mind, there are about 25 variations of King Kong
DVD releases, from Single disc, to double disc to PSP to Production
Diaries. For all intensive purposes, we will take a look at the initial
release (but no doubt there will be several other Limited Editions on
their way!). Here we find Introductions by Peter Jackson, Post
Production diaries (there's nothing more entertaining than watching
someone edit...and featurettes "City of New York" and "Skull Island".
This is just the beginning. Conclusion:
Movie 70% Extras: 65% 
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