People complain about the length but I find it so entertaining and well paced that the 3 hours and 20 minutes does not bother me at all.
Gorgeous views of "Skull Island" and it's inhabitants as well as a lot of action make this Jackson flick worth watching. But I think the cast of Jack Black as Denham was not a very good choice!
It's no Lord of the Rings, but enjoyable.
The action is fantastic; as is the CGI. While Naomi Watts is strong in the role of Ann Darrow. I just don't like the same ending as the original.
Or the beauty killed the beast line. Carl Denham (Jack Black) should have died just for saying that. He took Kong off the island to begin with. It’s too long just to be pretty much the same movie but with a Kong you fall in love with. Just for him to have the usual fate.
Adventure, mystery, action, and Jack Black. What's not too like
"Monsters belong in B movies."
You can tell Peter Jackson wanted to make a movie that was epic but had heart as well. Some say they don't feel the length but on my rewatch I definitely thought it was too long. The island part of the movie is still so good.
It became increasingly clear after the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy that Peter Jackson is really into CGI and prefers his films to be overlong. And while the CGI in this "King Kong" remake is not yet the biggest problem (at least the ape looks solid, unlike most of the dinosaurs), the three-hour running time did bother me. Because it's not really used in any meaningful way. I thought the whole beginning in New York and on the ship was pretty good, but everything drags on tremendously on Skull Island at the latest, because every action sequence is unnecessarily longer than necessary. Only in the finale does the movie pick up speed again.
In terms of the characters, I would say that at least the interplay between Ann (Naomi Watts) and Kong is successful. Meanwhile, Jack Black as film director Carl Denham takes some getting used to, while Adrien Brody remains bland throughout. The rest of the cast isn't particularly memorable, and Jackson simply drops many characters at various points.
Ultimately, the director has gone too far in the task of creating the perfect homage to the 1933 classic. He doesn't have much new to say, and the story doesn't get a thematic update either. All in all, it's nothing more than a nice-looking update to the original, but it can't even begin to outdo it. And, while I may be in the minority, I prefer the 1976 "King Kong" to Jackson's film.
Top Hollywood blockbusters, three and a half hours of monster movies, hearty. King Kong's real boyfriend is bursting with strength, while protecting the hostess, he hardened three dinosaurs and finally took the hostess to watch the sunset.
I never really considered King Kong an epic romantic movie, but it kind of is. It really embraces the "Beauty and the Beast" mantra, which beautiful set pieces, and makes the audience connect to the the characters. It won't be for everyone. It isn't the monster movie that many people love of King Kong and it is a bit long, but it is one to recommend for various reasons.
Rating: 3.5/5 - 8/10 - Would Recommend
Love between species can hurt sometimes. ;)
The extended edition (3:20 h) is even worth its time. Oh, and after 16 years it's not that bad, it hasn't gotten old bad.
There I thought a three hour movie from 2005 would be boring and lack action. How very wrong I was... I've seen some reviews that this was overkill but that is a serious understatement! :D There was so many action that even the action started to get boring...
Anyway, this was much different than expected but I'm glad that I finally watched it. The only thing I knew about this movie was that there's King Kong and that he would climb the Empire State building [0]. I didn't knew that this was a LotR-style (/ Jules Verne) action adventure but that did certainly explain the length. The CGI seemed damn good for 2005 (I was expecting much worse CGI but then again Avatar is from 2009).
The main problem is that I don't really care about the story (felt way too unrealistic) and the characters. The main character I cared about was Hayes (RIP - he was so badass but also so kind) and the two other decent characters where Ann and Jack.
Watching it was worth it for the CGI, action adventure, and finally knowing what this movie is about.
[0] - I'm afraid of heights but I think I've never been that uncomfortable(/scared) while watching a movie (needed to imagine the green screen :D).
This is an excellent creature feature adventure. The problem is that they make you like Kong. With the movie an epic 3 hr length. Just for the usual “beauty killed the beast” ending.
Intolerably long and special effects driven, King Kong is a giant clusterf*ck. When a shady filmmaker takes a crew to the mysterious Skull Island for his latest picture they end up in a fight for their lives against savage natives and giant monsters. While writer/director Peter Jackson pays homage to the original film in a lot of ways, he also subverts it with some dramatic changes; such as rewriting Carl Denham to be a shyster. But what hurts the film most is the excessiveness, scenes go on three times as long as they should and end up killing all of the wonder and excitement that they initially create. The green screen work is also a problem, as the actors are poorly integrated into the CGI backgrounds and never quite blend in. An untamed mess, King Kong is overblown and unfocused.
I remember loving this as a 14 year old when it came out and played the game a ton. I haven't seen it since then and it didn't live up to what I remembered but it still was pretty good. It is unnecessarily long but moves at a decent pace even though the island section is repetitive. The special effects are hit or miss. Some still look great while others haven't aged well. The action scenes are fantastic.
Way too long and didn't age very well.
There's a lot to say about the racist depiction of the natives and the poor weak white woman but... this movie drained my energy
Fantastic remake. A little bloated, but it's epic in scale, which is a fitting homage to such a classic. Is played equally tragic, which is also suitable.
The skull island scenes are fantastic... Skin crawling insect scenes. It's a tedious journey to get there though!
You have to see it in a movie theater to really appreciate it but it is an amazing movie even on a small screen
I would like people to check out the song by:
Daniel Johnston and watch the film again...
Shout by comic book cover guyBlockedParent2017-04-11T06:38:32Z
Visually stunning and Epic in scale
great retelling of the classic