King Kong
Everytime i watched a good movie, I would replace the movie name on the top of my best movies list, excluding Harry Potter series. Every month, the list would be changing, especially the one at the very very top. From Finding Nemo to the Incredibles, to Goal!... It would be changing everytime. But yesterday, after i watched a movie by Peter Jackson, I would like to declare tht the top of the list of my best movies would be taken up and never would change.
King Kong might be a really old story, the movie first made in 1933. I watched the second version of it tht was made in the 1970s as i still had tht vcd at home. I would watch and laugh as the female lead looked like a rag doll and the T-Rexes look nothing like the action figures my little cousins have. Worse still, the giant ape looked like a woolly mammoth and you could have sworn that when you watch it, you would not be touched at any rate. You would think it is a comedy. That vcd i only watched once and my impression of the movie never changed. Thinking it was only a comedy was bad enough, 'cos it is NOT a comedy even though there are quite a few funny parts in it. My impression only changed last night when i watched the remake done by Peter Jackson.
Never mind what i thought when i first stepped into the cinema with my family and my cuz-cum-godbrother. We were late and i was surprised to see the cinema FULL. I thought no one would watch a film like King Kong. Quickly, i settled down in my seat, munched on the popcorn, watching in amazement as the screen shows the lead actress Naomi Watts (acting as Ann Darrow) doing stunts on stage in an old run-down theatre. She looked so much like the rag doll in the 1970s version. Her blonde hair and fair complexion... but i cant deny tht she is much much prettier than the old actress back then.
The adventure of Ann Darrow began when the theatre she was working in was closed down. She was recommended to be a prostitute by some proud diector of a theatre. She had no choice, accepted the offer, but was seen staring at the place with a worried expression etched across her face. As i knew she would, she threw the piece of paper which the director gave her and walked away.
Meanwhile, another director, Carl Denham(played by Jack Black), was in a financial crisis. He was a dramatic director with good public-speaking skills and story telling ability that would capture most people's hearts, but his movies were never great. His mind was filled with ridiculous ideas that never satisfy any clients. Therefore, he tried to make it big by filming in an unfound island, trying to convince his actors that they were filming in Singapore. In actual fact, he wanted to film in that unfound island which he did not know the dangers within.
Of course, tht island was where King Kong lived, together with man-eating people with bloodshot eyes, giant scorpions, dinosaurs (only T-Rexes, smaller carvivorous ones and those giant herbivores with long neck which i forgot their names but are my fav dinosaurs.), big poisonous wasps and slimy things which has no eyes but big suckers for heads. Carl Denham found Ann Darrow and by using his story-telling talent, he managed to convince her to fil as his leading actress on the 'island of Singapore'. And the story goes on... meeting her first love on the ship (Jack Driscoll, a playwright played by Adrien Brody)... shipwrecked... finally reaching 'the island in the fog'...
The ambitious nature of Carl to pursue his ridiculous dream caused the deaths of more than half of the people on board the ship. But he was selfish. This stupid man captured King Kong and brought him back to New York and named him the 8th wonder of the world. Jack Black pulled off Carl's selfish, ridiculous and coward nature spectacularly, bringing me the disgusted feeling towards the character as i had never felt towards the old actor before. Naomi Watts was fantastically beautiful and Adrien Brody was so handsome. My favourite characters were, however, neither of those three but the captain of the ship, (Captain Englehorn, played by Thomas Kretshmann), who went back to the mysterious island for the second time after his own narrow escape form the man-eating carnivores to save Ann Darrow. Despite how much he disliked Carl, he still went back again to save Carl and the others after his ship crew pulled out from the rescue mission after they were attacked by the man-eating dinosaurs. My next favourite character was Jim (Jamie Bell), a kid on the ship who steals things. But he was good in nature, brave and adventurous. He saved Jack Driscoll from the giant scorpions by firing shots at them, even when he had never used a gun before. And of course, King Kong, the ferocious giant ape with a good nature at heart. Well... perhaps he was only good to Ann Darrow 'cos he likes her... but well.. at least he is good. he laughs and gets angry like any human does.
I am so glad tht Peter Jackson kept the scene where King Kong played with a T-Rexes mouth after killing it and the effects made when Kong scaled up to the top of the empire state building was really really nice. The creatures on the mysterious island (Skull Island) was much more real and Kong did not look like a woolly mammoth anymore. I almost cried when i see the pained expression on his face when he was shot down to death on the building and fell from the top all the way to the ground. I wanted to hit Carl when he said Kong was killed not by planes, but by beauty. I mean... he wasnt even guilty. HE brought king kong back. darn him. It was heartwarming to see Kong trying to protect Ann Darrow at all costs. And i think Jack Driscoll was brave and really devoted to Ann Darrow to continue the rescue mission all alone when everyone else backed out. He tried to stop the others capturing King Kong and went up the Empire State building all alone to find Ann.
I rate this movie 4.5 stars... cos Peter Jackson deserves it. Naomi Watts, Jack Black, Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretshmann and even King Kong deserves it. I shall add... Mike Newell... you have loads to learn from peter jackson... i think he could do GoF better than what u have done. tht's saying something. =)
