Review by Sarai Lewis
Rating: 4 out of 5 apples
The producers of Godzilla reimagine the origins of one the most powerful monster myths of all in Kong: Skull Island. The adventure tale from director Jordan Vogt-Roberts tells the story of a team of scientists, soldiers and adventurers that come together to explore a uncharted island in the Pacific almost only heard of in myths. Away from everything they know, the team ventures into the domain of Kong, unknowingly starting a battle between man and nature. As their mission of discovery becomes one of survival, they must fight to escape the island…in which humanity does not belong.
“Kong: Skull Island” stars an ensemble cast including Tom Hiddleston (“The Avengers,” “Thor: The Dark World”), Oscar nominee Samuel L. Jackson (“Pulp Fiction,” “Avengers: Age of Ultron”), John Goodman (“Transformers: Age of Extinction,” “Argo”), Oscar winner Brie Larson (“Room,” “Trainwreck”), Jing Tian (“Police Story: Lockdown”), Toby Kebbell (“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”), John Ortiz (“Steve Jobs”), Corey Hawkins (“Straight Outta Compton”), Jason Mitchell (“Straight Outta Compton”), Shea Whigham (“The Wolf of Wall Street”), Thomas Mann (“Me and Earl and the Dying Girl”), with Terry Notary (“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”) and Oscar nominee John C. Reilly (“Chicago,” “Guardians of the Galaxy”).
The concept of the movie although semi-predictable was fun to watch and generally entertaining. I went into the movie with pretty average expectations but it came out to be a pretty good movie. The plot itself was cool enough to keep you interested in what would happen next.
It felt like the story was told in a way that made ‘King Kong’ not begrudgingly old or played out which was definitely a plus.
The acting performance was generally good and helped with the story. There were a few moments with Tom Hiddleston that were a bit cheesy/over-acted but overall I can’t complain.
Speaking of Tom Hiddleston, there were a few key things about the story/general execution of the story that specifically stood out in him.
First off, his wardrobe struck me as very unnatural to the era the movie was set in (early 70s). It looked really modern to the point where I could see someone wearing it in current society and it would totally blend in. The same went for the general linguistic aspect of the film which included some ‘catchphrase’ type sayings that weren't fitting to their era.
Secondly, the performance from Hiddleston was good, but if there was any action involved…yikes. There was one sequence in particular that I'm thinking of that was not far from tragic and it was really just bad. Cheesy aspects were thin in this movie which was great, but that one instance definitely stayed in the back of my head.
The casting however was nicely done and everybody seemed to fit into place well. John C. Reilly was a needed comic relief, and delivered well. He had comedic and shocking lines that kept the story fun amidst the chaos of trekking through a deadly island.
How the cast interacted together and with each other was nicely done and seemed to flow well. The relationships illustrated in the story helped the story grow and made it more interesting while never veering off from the main plot. There was just enough chemistry shown among each other to create a world around each character and build on each piece that kept the story together.
How those stories were told were interesting and nicely put together, as well as the main plot. Each chunk of the movie flowed together really nicely, and much better than expected. From beginning to end you started to take pieces of the movie and put them together to understand the full depth of the story and that made it interesting. If it weren't for a few almost ‘side-story’ moments, the story wouldn't have been as fulfilling and those parts are definitely present.
I mentioned earlier that I would come back to a few era-related things, and I’m going to elaborate on that! A few key elements like wardrobe and vocabulary didn’t really add up to the 1970’s era that the movie was set in. Sayings like “lets do this!” etc were very modern in comparison and stood out. On another note, the wardrobe was a bit thin as far as representation of the timeline.
Another wardrobe related issue I really wanted to mention was the fact that it seems like EVERY woman in EVERY adventure movie somehow goes to go explore a jungle in a skin tight tank top and a blouse that ends up wrapped around her waist. I understand Hollywoods way of making women attractive etc, but cmon. It was something that was very unrealistic and stood out for me as a viewer in general.
I won’t say what it entails, but there is an after-credits scene that highlights some pretty cool developments for future movies and I would for sure stay and wait for it. It’s the type of after-credits scene that makes you go “ooo” and I honestly didn't expect it.
To close, Kong: Skull Island was one that I would recommend and it was much more entertaining than expected. If you're looking for a fun to watch thriller with some serious explosions, than this movie is for you.