Which King Kong films are worth watching? / KONG: Skull Island SPEED-ART
Hello there! Since I released The Evolution of King Kong on Tell it Animated, I was excited to talk about the Kong movies and go through all of the theatrical releases, letting you know which ones are worth watching and which ones you can skip. So without further pause, let's get into it!
So let's start with the films that are so awful you should probably skip:
Son of Kong
The worst of the worst is the 1933 film, Son Of Kong. It’s really boring and only sixty minutes long but somehow feels three times the length. It’s the quickest cash grab I’ve ever heard of, released within six months of the original film, and is just god awful. Only one or two actors return from the first movie, and it’s got so much filler, even though it’s as short as an episode of a TV series. The King Kong model is only half as good as the first movie due to some budgetary restrictions. So, in short, skip this one.
King Kong 1976
Another stinker that I think you should skip is the 1976 King Kong remake. It’s not nearly as bad as Son of Kong, but pretty much the worst version of all the remakes. There’s some good acting in it from Jeff Bridges, but the rest of the film is a mess, and the pacing is very slow. It’s a lot longer than it needs to be, and they make changes that don’t really enhance the story. So I would probably skip this one as well. It’s not completely awful but just not worth your time.
King Kong Lives
And another clunker you should definitely skip, way worse than the 1976 remake, is its sequel, King Kong Lives. Now it has some things going for it. Linda Hamilton is in it, and she does a pretty good job in the role. But unfortunately, a lot of the suitmation looks like a cheap made-for-tv-movie version, looking way worst than the 1976 Kong movie. At least that movie had really good animatronics and really good suitmation. In this film, some far-away shots look okay, but all the close-ups and shots where Kong interacts with the people look really poorly green-screened. So I would say this one as well is not worth your time.
Okay, now on to films that are cheesy but fun:
King Kong Vs. Godzilla
The first movie in the cheesy but fun category is King Kong Vs. Godzilla, the first Touhou film where King Kong appears. It’s the third King Kong and, coincidentally, the third Godzilla film as well. There are a lot of good things in it, but it’s basically a wacky comedy. It’s not really a serious film like the other Godzilla or Kong films up to this point. There are just goofy people running around in suits, and it looks a little funny. The Kong suit is pretty awful, but I actually like the Godzilla one, even though you can easily tell it’s a guy in a suit. This film is almost more geared towards wrestling fans since the epic fight is actually inspired by wrestling moves. So if you like that type of goofy movie, check it out for sure.
King Kong Escapes
Second on the list is King Kong Escapes, which is not really a sequel to King Kong Vs. Godzilla. It’s more of a remake of the episode of the cartoon series. It’s the first time he goes up against Mechani-Kong, and the first time that Kong appears in live-action. I think the suit hear looks a lot better than the King Kong Vs. Godzilla suit. The arms are longer. The legs are shorter. His face looks more monkey-like as opposed to the more sasquatch look he had in King Kong Vs. Godzilla. There’s some hammy acting, and it seems like everyone knows what kind of movie they’re in. I think I like this one better than King Kong Vs. Godzilla. It’s got great humor, so I’d recommend you check it out.
Kong: Skull Island
So next up on this list is a newer film and not nearly as cheesy as the others, Kong: Skull Island. This is just a fun movie. If you want to see an ape face off against weird skull crawler creatures, along with John C. Reilly and Samuel L. Jackson ham it up, this is your film. It seems like the cast is just having fun. And even though the movie is lit in daylight, there are still some creepy scenes that come across as almost horror-like. Plus, the pacing is pretty good. The intro is very unique and sets the stage pretty well. Plus, John Goodman does a great job. So all in all, it’s a good fun film to watch.
Godzilla Vs. Kong
The final film in the cheesy but fun category is Godzilla vs. Kong. My problem with this film is that it’s in this category. The 2014 Godzilla film, for instance, took itself seriously. It was a hard-core monster movie. And this one feels more like a throwback to the Showa era of Godzilla films, where it’s just monsters fighting each other. The universe doesn’t make as much sense, there’s more wacky sci-fi and not much character development for any of the humans. But the action scenes and the lighting is goddamn breathtaking. There are three great action scenes. The final one is amazing. So if you just want to see monsters fight, this movie delivers it and delivers it hard.
And now let's talk about the masterpieces:
King Kong 1933
So for the masterpiece category, I’ll start with the original 1933 King Kong. It’s hard to fathom, but it blew people’s minds when it came out. The special effects that it pioneered, the stop motion, the story, the music, everything just flowed together very well. Some scenes could be faster. This film could be cut down to sixty minutes, but it still works pretty well as is. Plus, you have to consider that it was released in 1933, before modern-day filmmaking. And the action scenes are actually pretty good. So if you haven’t seen the original King Kong movie, definitely watch it. It is truly a masterpiece.
King Kong 2005
So the other movie I consider a masterpiece and gets a lot of undue hate is 2005 King Kong. To me, this is the perfect version of the story. It’s a little over three hours, but somehow, it just works so well. Peter Jackson, who’s a visionary director, had so much respect for the original film and brought in a cast that worked great for the movie. A lot of people think that Jack Black was miscast, but, for me, he did a great job. Naomi Watts is the best Ann Darrow ever, and Adrien Brody, who’s an academy award-winning actor, did an awesome job too. Plus, the action scenes are shot so well, and the special effect still holds up to this day. King Kong looks amazing. Andy Serkis did the mocap work, and the CGI was done by Wētā. When I was younger, I thought this film was too long and boring, but watching it again as an adult, I really appreciate it. It’s a near-perfect film. So if you haven’t seen this movie or seen it recently, check it out again. It is a goddamn masterpiece.
Thanks for tuning in! What's your favourite King Kong film? Feel free to leave a comment on this video and check out The Evolution of King Kong on Tell it Animated!