Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

**SPOILERS WITHIN**

Please continue pre-release discussion here.

Movie:
"Kong: Skull Island" (Starring: Tom Hiddleston, Brie Larson, Samuel L. Jackson, Jon Goodman, John C. Reilly, Shea Whigham)

Release Date:
3/10/17

Rating:
PG-13 (for intense sequences of sci-fi violence and action, and for brief strong language throughout.)

Running Time:
118m. (1h. 58m.)

Budget:
$190 million (estimated)

IMDb Synopsis:


IMDb Info and Rating:
7.9 (943 votes as of 3/7/17)

Rotten Tomatoes:
Fresh:46 Rotten:13 (78% as of 3/7/17)

Metacritic:
62 metascore ('Generally favorable reviews' as of 3/7/17)

Trailer:


Poster Art:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6...d-poster-2.jpg

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

The only question I have is if the 3D post-conversion job was good or bad? Thanks.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

If you follow Stuckmann, he called the 3D "distracting."

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

My review, as posted on my page Orbi-Wan Goes To The Movies:

Kong: Skull Island (PG-13) - Apocalypse Now with great music and giant monsters - what’s not to love!

Along with Godzilla, Kong is the other monster that first fueled my interest in movies as a child. And if my film history memory serves, outside of the original “The Lost World” and its animated dinosaurs from the 20’s, King Kong is the first giant monster to really be given a personality on film. Actually, calling him a monster is a bit harsh - he reigned on his island, was worshipped by the locals, until a bunch of guys showed up, captured him, put him on display in New York, and he eventually fell off the Empire State Building. Oh, and a girl was involved, as well.

Kong: Skull Island is, thankfully, not a rehash of that story (which was retold in 1976 and 2005). It’s not really a remake, prequel or sequel. Set towards the end of the Vietnam war, when our government was deciding it was time to cut our losses in that region and leave, Skull Island sets up an interesting scenario. Monarch lobbyist Bill Randa (John Goodman) convinces some to the powers that be to fund an expedition to a remote Pacific island in search of … something. Of course, Randa has an idea of what’s coming, as we’ve met the mysterious Monarch organization in 2014’s Godzilla.

Joining the expedition are Conrad (Tom Hiddleston), the tracker; Weaver (Brie Larson), the anti-war photographer/documentarian; dozens of support personnel; and Packard (Samuel L. Jackson), the military guy who’s still ticked that the US didn’t see the job in Vietnam through to the end. Arriving in military assault helicopters and dropping bomb for geological mapping, the expedition almost immediately runs afoul of the giant ape (who is much bigger than depicted in previous films). The opening confrontation is exciting, jarring, devastating and decimating for the expedition members, and sets the tone for the wall-to-wall action to come.

To talk much more about Kong: Skull Island would give away too much of the fun (yes, fun!) of this no-holds-barred, almost old-fashion adventure film, filled with oversize and dangerous creatures, a lot of humor (John C. Reilly as a downed WWII pilot steals every scene he’s in), great classic rock music, Kong’s transition from enemy to ally, that 70’s vibe, and gorgeous scenery. Suffice it to say, if you’re looking for an exciting tropical adventure with Kong fighting giant weird reptilian creatures, you literally cannot do better than Kong: Skull Island.

Oh, yes - DO stick around for the scene at the end of the credits. Not only does it promise to expand on this new Cinematic Monsterverse started with Godzilla 2014, it hints at additional monster casting that caused my inner child to squeal with delight.

Because Kong: Skull Island is EXACTLY the kind of movie I love seeing in the theater, I am going to give it a high rating, 4.5 out of 5 lightsabers. Giant monster movies may not be your thing, but they are certainly one of mine. BTW, I did not see it in 3-D...

NOTES FOR PARENTS: Kong: Skull Island is rated PG-13 for intense fights between Kong, the expedition members and a variety of oversized creatures that inhabit the island. People are killed and helicopters destroyed by Kong when he attempts to stop the bombing of the island. Expedition members are killed and eaten by some of the island’s creatures. There is some profanity, including one F-bomb and an unfinished “mother-F.” There is an especially intense scene as members of the expedition are hunted by the main reptilian monsters. A man is carried off and torn asunder in silhouette by bird-like creatures. The film is more appropriate for a teen audience and older.

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Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

Lot of fun, good ol fashioned kaiju monster bashing action. Way less ponderous than the 2014 Godzilla and much better than JAckson's bloated remake. It ain't Shakespeare but it's a great popcorn flick.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

I don't know when I'll get a chance to see this. Maybe Saturday, I hope.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

6/10. meh. pretty lousy script that led to some pretty bad acting. Kong looked cool though.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

This was pretty fucking cool. Adventure at its highest and way fucking better than Godzilla. This is what Godzilla should have been. I thought I was going to hate due to the comedy relief by John C. Riley, but he had some of the more poignant material.

Yes, stay until after the credits. I'll definitely be getting the BD.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

Much better than I was expecting. Certainly more fun than either of the recent American or Japanese Godzilla movies and at least as much fun as any of the Jurassic films. Yes, humans characters are cardboard stereotypes but that's how they are in all kaiju-style movies and cardboard is meant to be kicked around and smashed under the title monster.

Btw, there is an after-credits sequence so those who like to stick around, it's not bad. Nothing great, but what it promises makes me excited as a kaiju fan.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

My initial reaction is 3.5/5, but that could change.

Loved Kong, but I wanted to spend a bit more time with him and understand his history and relationships on the island more.

The humans, while relatively thin, were fine. Nobody was bad or intolerable, so that is a big positive. John C. Reilly stood out most, while I found Hiddleston to be a faux tough guy. Jackson is Jackson, as usual.

Loved all of the mega fauna and various insects, etc. living on the island.

The octopus fight and subsequent dinner was a nice nod to both Harryhausen and Godzilla vs. King Kong.

Jackman's score was very good, better than Desplat's for Godzilla, but in the Kong pantheon of scores it isn't nearly as great as Steiner, Barry or Howard.

For me, the thing is that - random sequels aside - Kong has virtually always had the same story told about him, so I'm going to need another viewing or two to settle into this new Kong world where he doesn't get smitten by a blonde and die in NYC.

Also, Larson is hot and her character has a purpose but I never felt any connection between her and Kong so him saving her at the end felt contrived. I'd have rather just seen Kong focus on the Skullcrawler.

That post-credit scene... Amazing. Godzilla 2 is going to slay.

I'll likely see this one again ni IMAX this week, before BatB comes out and takes over those screens.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

3.5/5 for me too. As has been mentioned, lack of characters definitely lowered it for me. Kong has one big fight. One. Some of the dialogue really had my eyes rolling. So bad.

Technically, it was great. Just wished there was more meat to the movie.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

This who have seen this -- 3D yes or 3D no? Which way should I go?

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

I saw it in IMAX because that's how this film should be seen, so I had no choice but to see it in 3D.

FWIW, looked nice. Nothing amazing but it did add some depth to the island. If you can find a 2D screening on a REAL IMAX screen, do it.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

if you pay close enough attention to the scrolling end credits you'll be able to find out what the post-credits scene is going to show (or mention)

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

Saw this flick this evening in IMAX 3D. It baffles my mind that people can give this thing a positive review. Years of lousy summer blockbusters must've lowered both the IQ and standards for movie goers these days. People are so quick to criticize filmmakers like Michael Bay for making unintelligible, overblown cgi monstrosities and yet Rogue One and now Kong Skull Island get passes. The characters in Kong are so underwritten and so poorly conceived that you truly have nobody to root for. When you don't give a shit about your main leads then the movie becomes boring! Is this so hard to understand?

People like to shit on Peter Jackson's King Kong, but I can without a doubt say that the TRex vs Kong fight was better than anything shown in Skull Island. Not only that, but Jackson's film had memorable quiet moments as well such as Kong and Ann watching the sunset or Kong enjoying ice for the first time. You don't get close to any sort of connection like that in Skull Island.

If I were forced to say something positive then I'd say the soundmix was superb, the 3D presentation looked good with no major issue of brightness dimming, and also John C Rielly saved this from being 0 stars because hes the only character who makes you laugh instead of yawn.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

Maybe in the sequel Kong will be more romantic and bring flowers to the lady. As well as play some Barry White and invite her to a dance while later on he fights Godzilla.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

You mad.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

Jackson's King Kong is like his Hobbit films. A handful of good scenes here and there, but the pacing is atrocious, and the action scenes run on too long.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

I like how John C said Kong was still growing.

@Lara Means - Kong was the lead and I was glad we got to see a lot of him. =) Who cares about the humans. lol

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

Saw this today. Liked overall, mostly because it took me back to the days when I was a kid and would spend a Saturday afternoon in front of the TV watching an old school giant monster flick from the local video store on a network that didn't have anything better to air at the time. :) Like those flicks, people are secondary to the monster action, though I will credit this movie with making me care more about them than typical fare from the genre. Reilly stands out, but then again he always does so.
My only real gripe is that it seemed to me at times that it was a typical savage island adventure with King Kong dropped into the mix as opposed to an actual Kong movie. Also, Hiddleston didn't really bring much as a leading man. I wish David Harbour had been available when they shot this, he would have been great in that role.
In terms of the end credits, it left me giddy! :D What we saw leaves me to think the next Godzilla movie will be a re-imagining of the original Ghidorah movie. I am curious as to when Big G and KK finally meet who will be face and heel. It seems to me from this movie Kong is the more obvious baby face, as he seems to intentionally defend humans whereas Godzilla is just filling a role.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

I went into this with low expectations, and actually loved it. WAY more fun than the dreary Godzilla.

Kind of a mix of King Kong, Apocalypse Now, Predator and Jurassic Park. The 70's setting added some cool flavor to the whole thing. I thought it was a very lean, fast-moving movie. Yes, there was some Lucas-like dialogue and some standard cliches, but I liked a lot of the characters. And, I appreciated the fact that there really weren't any hokey villains in the whole movie. I'm not a big Samuel L. Jackson fan in general, but I liked his performance and character motivation in this one. John C. Reilly and his backstory were a lot of fun, especially with him...



It did bug me that...



Some great monster action--Kong and the other monsters looked really good. And I especially thought the...



Overall, a very fun and satisfying B-movie, in my book. Looking forward to see what they do with Mothra, Rodan and King Ghidorah.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

Man, this was a fun movie. It's got me excited for the upcoming Monster-verse.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

I didn't think the 3D added much--although I may be biased, as that's how I generally feel about 3D.

Re: Kong: Skull Island (Vogt-Roberts, 2017) — The Spoiler Filled Reviews Thread
 

Fun movie with some great action scenes, Glad Kong got as much screen time as he did. Bring on the monster rumble!