December 1, 2005. Copyright 2005, Graphic News. All rights reserved

King Kong promises to be a monster hit
By Joanna Griffin

LONDON, December 1, Graphic News:  When even filmgoers for whom horror movies are normally, well, a horror, are counting the days to its release, you know King Kong must be something special. Is this because the third version of the classic tale has been directed by Peter Jackson, who gave us Lord of the Rings, or because the myth it retells is as relevant and fascinating as ever?

Probably both. Jackson, whose Rings trilogy garnered 17 Oscars, has spent $207 million on a film he has longed to make since he was a child. Like Rings, it is a labour of love that promises an intelligent script and a sensitive, humorous approach to its core themes. Then, of course, there are the special effects surrounding the computer-generated Kong.

The story of King Kong is well known. A group of filmmakers led by Carl Denham (Jack Black) travels to the remote hellhole, Skull Island, on the trail of a legend about a giant ape. When natives drag actress Ann Darrow (Naomi Watts) to the beastÕs lair, the race is on to save her. King Kong protects her from giant lizards before being captured and taken to New York, where he escapes and creates havoc before meeting a tragic end.

The gigantic gorilla is brought to life by Andy Serkis, who played Gollum in the Rings trilogy. The actorÕs movements are captured in a Ōmotion captureĶ suit and then translated onto the computer-generated ape. Adrien Brody is the scriptwriter who falls in love with Darrow and determines to save her, but the Beauty also develops warm feelings towards the Beast who passes her from one giant palm to the other in a doomed effort to keep her.

Jackson, who spent his early career making low-budget horror movies, had wanted to make Kong long before Lord of the Rings transformed him into one of the most powerful men in the movie world. Jackson has shown respect for the original, setting his three-hour version in the 1930s -- complete with rifles and rudimentary airplanes. A 1976 remake that modernised the story was considered a critical flop.

Like all the best horror stories, King Kong works on several levels: today scenes of King Kong rampaging through the U.S. metropolis are bound to stir a kind of nostalgia for pre-9/11 horrors of our imagination. As for JacksonÕs special effects, the response to early screenings suggests that King Kong will make a tussle with SpielbergÕs dinosaurs look like a walk in the (Jurassic) park. In other words, this is going to be a monster hit.

King Kong premieres in JacksonÕs native New Zealand on December 13, and goes on general release from December 14.
/ENDS


RELEASE DATES WORLDWIDE

Dec 13: New Zealand
Dec 14: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Denmark, Egypt, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Russia, Singapore, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland (French and German speaking regions), United States
Dec 15: Czech Republic, Hong Kong, Hungary, Israel, Peru, Portugal, UK
Dec 16: Iceland, India, Italy, Spain, Switzerland (Italian speaking region)
Dec 24: China