A remake to go ape over

Some films should be left alone. Cinematic history is littered with masterpieces whose reputations are unfairly tarnished by the clunkers repackaged for a later generation, remade with little or no regard for the original’s integrity, vision and soul.

The 1976 John Guillermin-updated remake of Merian C. Cooper’s 1933 classic King Kong was a perfect example of such misguided monkey business, proving that colour, big stars, bigger bangs and Dino De Laurentiis as producer can add up to something you’d rather not step in.

However, hot on the heels of his Lord of the Rings trilogy, Peter Jackson’s triumph, quite rightly set in the same period as Cooper’s original, thankfully combined fervent homage and rip-roaring CGI reworking, and is a completely different kettle of monster.

There may be a few souls unaware of the story – in a nutshell, unscrupulous but persuasive down-at-heel film-maker Carl Denham (Jack Black) coerces his assorted crew of showbiz wannabees to travel to the mysterious Skull Island (near Sumatra) to investigate legends of a natural microcosm that time (and evolution) has forgot. Also onboard is serious playwright Jack Driscoll (Adrien Brody), yellow-bellied movie idol Bruce Baxter (Kyle Chandler) and, of course, Fay Wray revisited, Naomi Watts as beautiful budding starlet Ann Darrow.

The island surpasses all expectations; a huge jungle in which prehistoric creatures still survive. Unfortunately, Ann is grabbed by the savage human inhabitants and offered as a sacrifice to Kong, the 25-foot ape that rules the roost. What no one expects, and what Denham ultimately uses to his advantage, is the love that blooms in Kong for Darrow, an affection that allows the beast to be tricked, subdued by gas and (ahem, really?) transported back to New York, there to be sold as the ultimate show – The Eighth Wonder of the World. BIG mistake…

It’s been a long time since such a satisfying blockbuster hit you where you live; an ostensibly mid-range cast gels perfectly and perform well ahead of spec, with Watts, Black and Brody perfect as the leads. The witty script is functional, tight and rarely contrived, while the stars of the show (a superb life-size model and his CGI finishing touches) are breathtaking. “We’ve seen it all before,” Jurassic Park devotees may whine; not so. The sensational scraps between Kong and the hungry meat-eating dinosaurs, as he protects his paramour, plus an exhilarating chase through an ever-narrowing rock corridor, with a brachiosaur herd close behind, are among the finest s/fx set-pieces ever put on screen. Kong is at once terrifying and touching; his love for Darrow is real, as her initial all-screaming terror is replaced by affection and understanding for the bewildered beast.

Then, of course, there’s the ending, and you really must have been living on a prehistoric island if you don’t know about the rise and fall of the once-proud Kong. Will you cry? Does a colossal, love-stricken ape shit in the woods? Discover a huge hit that engages heart and adrenaline.

187 mins.