King Kong Returns with All of His Regal Destruction

Tom Hiddleston and Brie Larson in "Kong: Skull Island"
Photo Credit: Imdb.com

The following review is from a guest contributor by the name of Matthew Williams, a friend of mine and fellow movie buff whom I met in Rider University’s Alternative Film Club.

The most famous ape in cinema is back, and boy, does he make an impression in director Jordan Vogt-Roberts’ “Kong: Skull Island.”  All of those commercials that show Kong beating his chest and snarling don’t express the true sensation of sitting in the theater and having those roars blaring at you through the speakers.

This movie is a violent romp in a beautiful locale that follows a group of scientists and Vietnam War-era soldiers as they survey an uncharted land with the aid of a tracker and photographer.  Almost immediately, they realize not only does the island belong to nature itself, but that it has a very angry protector, and they are intruding on his territory,

Let’s be honest, most moviegoers don’t go to films like this for character arcs or pathos, clutching bags of popcorn and fountain drinks with tears running down their faces.  If you want that, there are probably still some Best Picture nominees out there; or “Logan,” for that matter.  What you want is spectacle.  You want to feel that sweet, angry catharsis of a giant ape clobbering anything and everything in its wake.  

What this movie needed to do is not forget that it was a monster movie, regardless of the fact that this is a departure from what we have seen in previous “King Kong” movies.  I don’t need to get to know any human protagonist too deeply, as their motivations can’t be bigger than getting to know the island itself, and I don’t need to be drowned in faux scientific exposition since all of those things take away from the monster-thriller/adventure aspect.  I guess I like more ‘fi’ in my ‘sci-fi.’  

What brought me into the theater was the cast, but what kept me on the edge of my seat was how big and fantastic everything was.  I remember when I was a tyke and I saw my first kaiju movie, “Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla,” and I thought for the briefest of moment that the world was maybe a bit larger than I thought, that there were larger things than dinosaurs and my toy box could come alive on my television screen.  In recent memory, “Kong: Skull Island” is the closest thing to have approached that same idea on the scale “Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla” did.  “Pacific Rim” and 2014’s “Godzilla” were very much human stories, but this time around, the monsters, their power, and their presence are just as, if not more important than the human drama in the background.

The best thing about this movie isn’t that the CGI is immaculate or that the music will have you grooving to one of the best playlists to be assembled for a movie in a while, but that King Kong, the title character, is never lost in the plot *cough-“Godzilla”-cough*.  He roars, stomps, and smashes though the entire runtime, which is what’s needed because this is his movie, and he has to be present.  The film may not provide much in the human-character department, and it definitely feels like it’s trying to race to an even bigger sequel *cough-Marvel-cough*, but what it does, it does well.  It’s big and loud the whole way through and doesn’t feel ashamed to be so.

Let’s check off what you can expect: Kong and a plethora of grotesque, skyscraper-sized opponents?  Check and check.  Guns, ammo, explosions, and rubble? Checks all around.  One-liners?  Check.  A breakneck pace that won’t let you stay in one conversation for too long?  Check.  Human fodder?  A terrifying check.  John C. Reilly surprising us with the best performance to watch?  Check.  A talented cast?  Check.  Samuel L. Jackson raving in that way only he can?  Check.

For those who don’t already know, King Kong will soon share the same screen space as the Godzilla we saw in Gareth Edwards’ 2014 film in a planned cinematic universe called the MonsterVerse.  So far, we only have two other movies planned out, or at least announced, but “Kong: Skull Island” is a welcome installment.  With “Godzilla: King of the Monsters” coming out in 2019 and “Godzilla vs. Kong” in 2020, the next few years have some monster-movie epics to garner much anticipation. 

Until then, all hail King Kong as the champion of expectations exceeded.

Final Grade: B+