A Pre-Code production, “King Kong” was produced and directed by filmmakers Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack. It stars classic Hollywood damsel, Fay Wray. Its widely regarded as one of the best films, horror or otherwise, ever to be made.
“King Kong” is quite meta. Daredevil filmmaker Carl Denham (Robert Armstrong) is leading a secret voyage to an ominous and unchartered island. He brings the beautiful Ann Darrow (Wray) to star in the picture. En route, the ships first mate (Bruce Cabot) falls in love with Ann. We watch as Carl demonstrates the “high tech” camera he uses to make his exciting movies. Explaining anything else is moot in 2021. On the island, they encounter the titular character and all hell breaks loose.
I love the history of cinema, and “King Kong” deserves a place in the horror breakout section. It was released March 2, 1933 – a few months before my father was born. While it won’t scare anyone over the age of five, it does have some incredibly effective parts. Specifically, the black and white film, which works well at masking the limitations of the special effects. The lack of color makes the appearances of Kong quite chilling. I wish they had opted for the “Jaws” route and not included so many close-ups but it’s still an impressive creation considering the massive limitations at hand. Fog on the waters and a shockingly high death count make it quite ahead of its time.
The story itself is well crafted. One can envision this type of scenario today. Carl Denham will do anything to get rich. He boasts about killing animals in Africa, and has no qualms about capturing Kong and returning him to New York. “We’ll give him more than chains.” He boasts. “He’s always been king of his world, but we’ll teach him fear. We’re millionaires…in a few months, it’ll be up in lights on Broadway: Kong, the Eighth Wonder of the World.” Fay Wray makes her mark in an iconic performance. While much of the dialogue is poorly written and slowly delivered, Fay Wray shows Jamie Lee Curtis who the original scream queen is.
“King Kong” moves slowly at first. The run time is a digestible 104 minutes, (which includes a 4 minute overture at the beginning) but could have been better served with less exposition and fewer plodding scenes. It sets up for an exciting and historic final act in New York City and a then two-year-old Empire State Building.
It’s October 1, and that means scary movie season. “King Kong” is a classic that has withstood the rigors of time. It’s a nice picture to watch and admire, and a great start to our 10th annual 31 Days of Halloween.
