Go watch King Kong

[BillyBud]

Originally posted by Sn00py
And from that day, it was as one dead.


What does that line mean?

That proverb is from the 1933 movie of King Kong, and is partially paraphrased by Jack Black at the end of Jackson's King Kong movie when he says, "The army didn't kill Kong; beauty did."

It's part of the old tale: "Beauty and the Beast".

In other words, from the day that King Kong met Fay Wray, he was under her spell. His actions would be dictated, not by survival or acting in his best interests, but would be dictated by his attraction, protection, and caring for the beauty.

This type of "relationship" is doomed from the moment it begins, since the primative giant Kong "Beast" cannot co-exist with the modern diminuative Fay Wray "Beauty". Society, modern thinking, and just common sense tells us this type of relationship will never be allowed to exist.

That Kong is killed on top of the Empire State Building battling planes trying to kill him, evokes the death of a primative world by the encroaching modern one...

The thing that one loves the most, can also be the thing that can bring about one's downfall...

[polarnomad]

Went to see King Kong since so many people were saying it was good. Frankly, I just got bored. The beginning was interesting, but about half-way through the Skull Island segment I lost interest in the movie. Characters kept dying and I wasn't moved. The effects were great, but were over-used to the detriment of anything that would have immersed me into the story. By the time King Kong is on top of the Empire State Building, I was thinking, "Oh, just die already will you!?"

[Frozzy]

Originally posted by BillyBud


That proverb is from the 1933 movie of King Kong, and is partially paraphrased by Jack Black at the end of Jackson's King Kong movie when he says, "The army didn't kill Kong; beauty did."

It's part of the old tale: "Beauty and the Beast".

In other words, from the day that King Kong met Fay Wray, he was under her spell. His actions would be dictated, not by survival or acting in his best interests, but would be dictated by his attraction, protection, and caring for the beauty.

This type of "relationship" is doomed from the moment it begins, since the primative giant Kong "Beast" cannot co-exist with the modern diminuative Fay Wray "Beauty". Society, modern thinking, and just common sense tells us this type of relationship will never be allowed to exist.

That Kong is killed on top of the Empire State Building battling planes trying to kill him, evokes the death of a primative world by the encroaching modern one...

The thing that one loves the most, can also be the thing that can bring about one's downfall...

Police Lieutenant: Well, Denham, the airplanes got him.
Denham: Oh no, it wasn't the airplanes. It was beauty killed the beast.

It's also in the opening scenes of the 2005 movie.

[BillyBud]

Originally posted by Kalius


Police Lieutenant: Well, Denham, the airplanes got him.
Denham: Oh no, it wasn't the airplanes. It was beauty killed the beast.

It's also in the opening scenes of the 2005 movie.

heheh

So much for my memory...

By the time I got home I was a bit tired.

[BillyBud]

Originally posted by polarnomad
Went to see King Kong since so many people were saying it was good. Frankly, I just got bored. The beginning was interesting, but about half-way through the Skull Island segment I lost interest in the movie. Characters kept dying and I wasn't moved. The effects were great, but were over-used to the detriment of anything that would have immersed me into the story. By the time King Kong is on top of the Empire State Building, I was thinking, "Oh, just die already will you!?"

This is what I was thinking as well.

The start of the movie takes its time.

However, as you mention, the hour on Skull Island is over done. Too much of a good thing. The focal point should be Kong. We should be given time to develop a sense of wonder about this beast.

Instead, we are nailed on the head by over the top special effects that take us on a roller coaster ride that never stops...

Two things though I did like very much: the relationship between Kong and Fay Wray and the Empire State Building scene.

I was expecting a bit more subtlety from the Jackson/Walsh team.

CGI - someone needs to tame this beast.

[polarnomad]

Originally posted by BillyBud
Too much of a good thing. The focal point should be Kong. We should be given time to develop a sense of wonder about this beast.

Instead, we are nailed on the head by over the top special effects that take us on a roller coaster ride that never stops...

Two things though I did like very much: the relationship between Kong and Fay Wray and the Empire State Building scene.

I was expecting a bit more subtlety from the Jackson/Walsh team.

CGI - someone needs to tame this beast.

Indeed!

I really liked the evolution of Fay's perception of Kong on Skull Island. The progression from fear to trust and even the enjoyment of one another's company was very nice. More could have been done around that to really develop a sense of who the characters are. Who is Kong? Why was he there? Why is he all alone? What's with the community of people sacrificing women to him? etc...

I would have considered it a good movie if I had actually felt bad for Kong as he slips to his death. I should have felt angry a Jack Black's character. I should have felt something... As it stands I just felt like it was long.

Seems like the CGI went from being a tool enabling the creation of the film, to actually being the attraction itself. I like wow factor, but too much wow is like too much chocolate.

[BillyBud]

Originally posted by polarnomad


Indeed!

I really liked the evolution of Fay's perception of Kong on Skull Island. The progression from fear to trust and even the enjoyment of one another's company was very nice. More could have been done around that to really develop a sense of who the characters are. Who is Kong? Why was he there? Why is he all alone? What's with the community of people sacrificing women to him? etc...

I would have considered it a good movie if I had actually felt bad for Kong as he slips to his death. I should have felt angry a Jack Black's character. I should have felt something... As it stands I just felt like it was long.

Seems like the CGI went from being a tool enabling the creation of the film, to actually being the attraction itself. I like wow factor, but too much wow is like too much chocolate.

CGI seems to be a new toy that many of today's animators and directors simply do not know how to handle well.

Such films as episodes 1 and 2 of the Star Wars movies and now King Kong, show the inability of some movie makers to use CGI well.

In fact, many of the scenes in some movies that use CGI just look amateurish. The movie makers seem to feel that the theatre audience has a low attention span and that MORE of anything is BETTER: why have one spaceship firing lasers when you can stick 200 on the screen; why have 3 dinosaurs running when you can have 50 stampeding...

Rather than developing a sense of wonder, all this CGI on the screen becomes just a bunch of clutter and noise; we do not have a focal point upon which to focus our attention, and our senses become overwhelmed...

Rather than enjoying a scene, we are repelled by it; our senses simply become numbed by all the action...

All the CGI clutter on the screen becomes even more annoying because we know that the characters are not real. Much of the action defies both real world physics and common sense; thus our enjoyment of a scene is instead turned into one of disappointment...

Perhaps, one of the best uses of CGI was done by Speilberg in the original Jurassic Park. He instilled within me (at least) a real sense of wonder. His scenes with the single T-Rex attacking that sight-seeing party (with Jeff Goldblum) was sooo well done...

Speilberg showed restraint and control, and he showed a maturity in the use of CGI: a little well done CGI goes a long, long way...

[Jon Miller]

its a problem in porn too

especially out of japan

JM

[BillyBud]

Here is a review over at Rotten Tomatoes that pretty well sums up my feelings about King Kong as well:

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/vine/showthread.php?t=453157

[Dis]

hmm, maybe I'll hold off on seeing it then. I really hate over done CGI.

This really turned me off on the movie: The Day After tomorrow. Well that and the supid plot. . The scene showing the people scrambling in the New York City streets (overhead shot) looked so fake.

And I agree about the clutter. More is not always better. The opening scene of Star Wars ep 3 was tough to follow. There were so many ships and so much action, I had no idea what was going on. Sure it looked pretty. But a movie should also tell a story, not just look good.

[Barnabas]

what a bad movie

king kong meets jurasic park, so many ridiculous corny scenes

and what the f happened to the blonde kid?, they said he was found as a little boy in the ship, with a broken arm, and that he was more savage than the animals, and he reads heart of darkness, and then, nothing,

what was the point, I though we would discover something about this past

what was all that for? are there missing scenes on that kid?

[asleepathewheel]

I really liked the movie, thought it was well worth the price of admission and felt that Kong was an emotional animal, I felt bad for him. I was disappointed that the male hearthrob guy didn't die at somepoint.

[Flip McWho]

And I agree about the clutter. More is not always better. The opening scene of Star Wars ep 3 was tough to follow. There were so many ships and so much action, I had no idea what was going on. Sure it looked pretty. But a movie should also tell a story, not just look good.

Clutter depends on the scene. In your example, the opening scene was a space battle. Now there'd be plenty of ships and general **** lying around in a space battle no?

[Dis]

space battles don't actually exist .

And in reality they'd never be that fast.

[Sprayber]

I thought it was good. It dragged in a few places but I didn't think it was as awful as some of you seem to think. For the most part I thought the CGI was pretty good. I wasn't impressed with Jack Black at all but I thought Naomi Watts was great in it for what she had to work with. I would have liked it more with Black not in the film and the scene with the natives was weird in a bad way. Not sure what to make of it actually. I'm liking Andy Serkis more and more and I hope he does other things.

Kong was good but not great which is pretty much what I expected.

More Naomi Watts