WATTS STELLAR IN JACKSON’S LOVING REMAKE

KING KONG
Directed by Peter Jackson; written by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, and Peter Jackson; based on the story by Merian C. Cooper and Edgar Wallace; cinematography by Andrew Lesnie and Derek Whipple; edited by Jamie Selkirk; music by James Newton Howard; production design by Grant Major; art direction by Simon Bright and Dan Hennah; set decoration by Dan Hennah; costume design by Terry Ryan
With: Naomi Watts, Adrien Brody, Jack Black, Andy Serkis, Thomas Kretschmann, Colin Hanks, Jamie Bell, Evan Parke, and Kyle Chandler. Rated PG-13 for frightening adventure violence and some disturbing images. Running time: 187 minutes

1/2

Reviewed by Joel Johnson

Peter Jackson has described first watching the original 1933 King Kong as a life-changing experience. I simply can’t fully relate to that type of experience in watching that film. I would have to say up front that films with some kind of giant monster tend not to be my type of film. However after his Lord of the Rings trilogy, Peter Jackson now has had the opportunity to remake this classic and, especially for him, deeply cherished film with all the bells and whistles that he could possibly want or at least all that 200 million dollars of state-of-the-art film technology can provide. The result is mighty impressive.

An army of visual and special effects artists has been employed to create the uncharted Skull Island, its various life forms, the great ape Kong, New York circa 1932, and countless magnificent chases and spectacular fight sequences. The visuals are quite compelling. The only exception to that are the sequences placing the human protagonists in the midst of a dinosaur stampede down a narrow ravine. The visual matching seemed slightly off, or perhaps it was simply that Jackson’s desire to create the illusion of an extraordinarily perilous sequence exceeded my powers to willfully suspend disbelief. No doubt, those fully embracing Jackson’s illusion were treated to a most breathtaking sequence.

While action-adventure films like this tend not to be rewarded with acting accolades, Naomi Watts gives an absolutely terrific performance as the poor vaudeville performer Ann Darrow turned love interest for the great ape. Although she may have been relieved of some of the most physically demanding elements of the performance by stunt doubles and stand-ins, both real and digital, this had to be a physically taxing role for her. In addition, it is her expressions that show the arc of abject terror, nascent trust, and, ultimately, affection. It is her desperate concern for Kong that we, the audience, share that is the measure of the film’s effectiveness. She is probably unlikely to receive a nomination, but she certainly deserves consideration for an Oscar nomination. I daresay that less deserving performances have been so recognized.

Adrien Brody gives an efficient, if not an especially noteworthy, performance as the film’s human hero Jack Driscoll and Ann Darrow’s human love interest. One of the departures that screenwriters Walsh, Boyens, and Jackson make from the original is transforming Driscoll from ship’s first mate to a playwright and screenwriter.

Walsh, Boyens, and Jackson spend a fair amount of time developing the filmmaking world that serves as raison d’être for the film embarking for Skull Island. We are treated to the by turns comic and megalomaniacal machinations of Jack Black’s film director Carl Denham. This is a tailor-made role for Black, who has often similarly appeared on screen with both the outsized ego and boundless energy that Carl Denham displays. While the original film’s Carl Denham was played straight with a measure of restraint by Robert Armstrong, Black’s more raucous performance is clearly one with Jackson’s overall touch that makes full use of the tones throughout that range from comic to tragic. The only area of failing in Black’s performance is that as the film’s engine of Kong’s avaricious exploitation, he is the one most culpable in the film’s tragedy, yet he fails to deliver any credible sense of moral reflection. Jackson focuses on Black’s face several times following terrible events for which he is the ultimate author. Black can do no better than muster a momentarily puzzled “could-this-possibly-be-something-that-I-am-responsible-for?” look before dismissing it with a silent “nyah” just like Steve Martin’s Theodoric of York character from Saturday Night Live back in the 70s.

There’s some good supporting actor work turned in. Andy Serkis plays two roles. He plays a picaresque crewmember of the Venture named Lumpy, who is a staple on any cinematic shipboard adventure. He also plays Kong and provides the movement and emotional expression for the great ape. Kyle Chandler is superb as self-involved matinee idol Bruce Baxter. Chandler’s good looks and presence will have audience members scratching their heads trying to figure out what big movie star is sending himself up. Young actors Colin Hanks and Jamie Bell get the opportunity to show themselves on the bigger stage of a major Hollywood production. Hanks’s production assistant doesn’t quite have enough to do to make his “yes man” role memorable. Bell fares better in being memorable, but his waifish ship’s mascot role seems to be unnecessary in a film that has so much adventure, wit, and pathos that Jackson and company have already poured in. His character does, however, help feature Evan Parke’s paternal first mate. This role could prove to be a real springboard for Parke, who is likely to have filmgoers checking the credits to see who played Hayes.

It should not be surprising that this film—virtually a 187-minute homage to the original—much more closely approximates the original storyline than the 1976 version. The time frame, the set-up, and the character names are all retained from the original. The additional eighty-plus minutes mostly come from the far more elaborate chase and confrontation special-effect sequences. Where the original had a terse verbal explanation for a map showing an otherwise uncharted island with mysterious life forms, Jackson’s film gets to show us a full array of large insects, slithering larvae, crocodiles, and dinosaurs. Yet there’s still a gleeful child in Jackson, who despite his reverence for the original, doesn’t take it all too seriously and keeps turning to the audience with a grin as if to say, “you got that, right?” However, the closeness with which the filmmakers hew to the original film is also the source of its greatest failing. More than most films that just seem as though you have seen them before, you really have pretty much seen this film before. Older audiences, especially, will likely have difficulty in seeing this film as “fresh” and “original.” Despite that, there can be no failure to recognize that we, as the audience, are fully in the thrall of a master filmmaker at the top of his game who truly loves this material. Whatever it lacks in freshness, the film never descends to boring tedium, making Jackson’s King Kong still one of the best ways to spend 187 minutes at a movie theater today.  

 

The current Journal in print is
Winter

5 1/2" x 5" 2008 Wolf Moon Calendar just $10.00 each
More Info

More Info

© Wolf Moon Press 2002-2007 all rights reserved.

Submission Guidelines