I stayed up late and watched an old movie that I had taped a long time ago off of Turner Classic Movies. There must be a reason that this 1933 movie has stayed in our consciousness for over 70 years, spurring on a modern remake with intense graphics. It is expected to do well, bolstering the entire motion picture industry. King Kong, from 1933, starring Fay Wray.
First of all, I watched this with all the eyes I could. I watched it as if I was a 10 year old kid that loved monster movies. I watched it as a film historian, figuring out why this movie has endeared itself to our memory. I watched it as a technical film buff, seeing that this movie was well ahead of its time for 1933.
Did it last because it was a novel idea? Did it last because it was scary, especially bringing the behemoth back to NYC for a final rampage? Why? I still don't see it. Yeah, it was neat. If you were scared, you cringed when Kong ate people. If you rooted for Kong, it felt even better when you watched him fight and step on people. Was it Fay Wray? I just didn't see anything so "inimitable," as I have heard of her performance.
This movie had to have inspired the hundreds of monster movies that came after it. It must have inspired Harryhausen, which in turn brought us to our current love of CGI in the theaters, watching Gollum and Yoda prance around the screen. Technically for its time, this was a superb movie and must have scared the crap out of people that didn't understand the medium yet.
Still, I can't wait for the new one. Nome won't get it for a little while, I'm sure. We are a good month behind (which makes me wonder what I'm going to do for Superman Returns on June 30, 2006). The storyline though seems just way too simplistic for a modern movie. I don't see how Peter Jackson will keep an audience enthralled that is bored with monster movies.
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