King Kong

Year: 1976

Grade: C+

Country: USA

Director: Guillermin

Review

sort of a blockbuster before the official age of the blockbuster. i’ll admit that i’ve never seen the original version so i can’t compare it to that…

overall it’s a pretty fun flick, though it runs a bit long for my taste. grodin provides some good comic relief, but isn’t given enough screentime. jessica lange is quite foxy in the picture (her first) and there’s nothing wrong with that. jeff bridges is pretty decent in the most boring of the three major roles.

the sfx and set design were pretty opaque and actually detracted from the enjoyment of the film.
the film’s music, done by john barry (bond films), was quite enjoyable and, at times, reminiscent of some of glass’ minimalist stuff.

i suppose the king kong story could be a cautionary tale or a parable of sorts. grodin, who works for an oil company, chances upon king kong while in search of oil. he only shows an interest in kong after the oil turns out to be unusable. bridges, a stowaway scientist, cautions against such a misuse of nature and lives through the end of the picture. kong lusts for lange so perhaps there is a freudian element to the film. i think there may be something to the environmental angle, but the other stuff didn’t seem to be supported in the film. really, though, it’s just meant to entertain and it apparently did at the time. i’m looking forward to peter jackson’s version.