[Samurai]

I saw the film last night. I'll try not to get too specific so I won't ruin the movie for anyone. The movie kind of drags at the beginning. Although noble of Peter Jackson to try and develop the shipmates' characters, it was just excess that could have been trimmed and saved for an extended edition. I don't know how long it was before they reached Skull Island, but it felt like an hour.

Once there though, the film kicks into overdrive and doesn't stop until the end. Their encounter with the natives of the island is very intense. I wouldn't recommend taking small children to this movie. When Anne Darrow is captured by Kong is when all the action starts to take place. I won't get into details, but I think most people on the net know about the brontosaurus stampede, T-Rex fight, and spider-pit scenes. So I'll briefly touch upon them.

The brontosaurus stampede is very action packed, but I didn't really enjoy it because it looked too fake. The use of green screen is really obvious and with a film like this maybe it's unavoidable. But I never had this problem when watching the Jurassic Park movies. Probably because they used more animatronics and less green screen. They had a more organic look. Even the Mumakil battle sequence in The Return of the King looked more realistic.

The T-Rex fight was awesome! Very brutal. I especially liked the way Kong disposes of the last T-Rex.

The spider-pit scene was pretty cool and totally grossed out the audience. There was a part that bothered me though. There's a character in the movie who is portrayed as a coward throughout. He does something completely out of character and unbelievable during the spider-pit scene. I like character arcs, but this was just too spectacular. It could have been accomplished more subtly. I don't want to ruin anything for anyone, so I won't elaborate.

Kong looks fantastic! Very realistic. His facial expresssions and eyes are very life-like. The T-Rexes, vampire bats, bugs, and other creatures on the island looked good. But I was kind of disappointed with the look of the brontosaurus and raptors. They just looked too fake to me. That's just my humble opinion, you might not have any problem with it.

When Kong gets captured is when the movie really starts to get emotional. In fact, my wife started crying during that scene and didn't stop until we got to our car. The final act in New York is pure movie magic. The faceoff between Kong and the biplanes on top of the Empire State Building is very cool and heartbreaking.

The acting in this movie was pretty good, especially from Naomi Watts and Adrien Brody. Jack Black starts off a little over the top, but gets better as the film progresses. I think Jim Carrey would have been perfect for the role of Carl Denham, but he probably would have been too expensive to hire.

Overall, I'd rate this movie an 8 out of 10. I would have given it a 9 had the beginning been a little better paced. There was also too much slow motion. It really started to get on my nerves.

If anyone has any specific questions, feel free to ask and I'll wrap the answers in spoiler tags.


This was my pass. Usually the studio logo is printed on the front of the pass, but this one had cool cover art. It had T-Rex on one side, Kong on the other, and Anne Darrow in the middle. I'm sure you all have seen that image. It was the best looking pass I've ever received. So I asked the ticket vendor if I could keep it after she marked an "x" on my hand. Instead of giving me the whole pass back, she tore it in half and said with a smile on her face "You can keep the half with the T-Rex on it." I wanted to slap her, but I guess she was just doing her job. At least I got a few cool dual-sided mini-posters at the end of the movie.

Here's the links if you want to check out bigger versions:
http://img10.imageshack.us/img10/1339/scan4sl.jpg
http://img396.imageshack.us/img396/3401/scan00011ua.jpg

[KillSwitch2]

Originally Posted by Samurai

I saw the film last night. I'll try not to get too specific so I won't ruin the movie for anyone. The movie kind of drags at the beginning. I don't know how long it was before they reached Skull Island, but it felt like an hour.

It's 55 minutes. btw how do you feel about the inital 35 minutes of the original Cooper and OB classic?

[Samurai]

Unfortunately, I've never seen the original. I'll have to check it out sometime. How was the beginning?

[KillSwitch2]

Originally Posted by Samurai

Unfortunately, I've never seen the original. I'll have to check it out sometime. How was the beginning?

Well, in the original it takes about 35 minutes to get to the island and 45 to finally see Kong. For a movie that's only an hour and 40 minutes that's a pretty big chunk of the film.

[McSalmon]

Try using paragraphs, this is hard to read.

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by wmeredith

Try using paragraphs, this is hard to read.

Sorry, I'll go back and edit it.

[Samurai]

If anyone else has seen an advanced screening, I'd love to hear what you thought of the film.

[RETURN_of_FETT]

Originally Posted by KillSwitch2

Well, in the original it takes about 35 minutes to get to the island and 45 to finally see Kong. For a movie that's only an hour and 40 minutes that's a pretty big chunk of the film.

They are on teh boat within the first 5 minutes and I think they are on the island about 20 minutes in.