7.4.10

King Kong

...which I really should have seen in a cinema rather than on a late Friday night on ITV. Regrets, I've had a few. Some of the CGI looks a little flat a couple of years on, but the sheer invention mitigates that: dinosaur avalanches, subterranean man-eating bugs, and the spectacular Kong vs. T-Rex x3 battle, which made me giggle like a little boy high on candy and monster trucks.

But anyway, themes. Exploitation in show-business being one. Jack Black is no better than the pornographer Naomi Watts is sent to in the beginning of the film. The limits of cinema being another? Black's relentless quest for outlandish spectacle is contrasted with the serene moments Watts and Kong share. Real mystery, real emotion, realness is found outside the screening room of your local cineplex.

My one gripe with the film is the existence of Adrien Brody. He puts on a fine performance (as does everyone else), but WHY does he exist. King Kong should be a tragic love story. Having a second love interest is distracting -- it takes some of the tragedy away from Kong's last stand. The film is not supposed to give Watts a happy ending. Its DNA is Kong being pulled apart by two forces: oppressive (male) and supportive (female). Brody doesn't have a part to play in this story. I think he should have been chucked out when Kong comes to Manhattan.

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