An evil oil company (is there any other kind?) has found a long lost island and plans on searching it for some of that liquid gold. A stowaway (Jeff Bridges) makes it onto their ship and attempts to stop them. Also on board is the sole survivor of a shipwreck, Dwan (Jessica Lange) randomly floating in the middle of the ocean.
On the island they encounter the inhabitants who seem to be keeping out a something large with 100 foot tall fences! Of course they are keeping out Kong! The giant gorilla who is hellbent on capturing, seducing I don’t know Dwan!
King Kong was the brain child of Dino De Laurentiis who wanted to remake the legendary picture and turns it into an event film. And while the ambition of the project is admirable, the pieces do not all come together.
The acting is fine, the dialogue is laughable. The direction is flat, not giving Kong the power he deserves. Most shots of Kong are level, so it doesn’t give him the weight or size the film os trying to convey, unless it is trying to show you how many times his giant hand can grab Dwan.
As for Kong himself it is a mixed bag. The animatronics for his head are impressive, but when we see him in action, he looks like a man in a monkey suit, because that’s what it is. Gone is the awe of the stop-motion monster from 1933.
Having said all that, there is a goofy charm to the film. It is silly and not very well made but there is something to the silliness of it all. It is a fun way to spend an afternoon.
Grade: C-
King Kong (1976) Video Quality
King Kong (1976) is not too smashing on blu-ray but it looks pretty good. Colors and details are great and the the disc retains the movies film like quality. Also included in the set is the TV version which comes with a quick note from Scream Factory about framing issues, but it too looks solid with no major blemishes.
Grade: A-
King Kong (1976) Audio Quality
Trees never sounded more broken on a powerful 5.1 DTS-HD MA mix. The film delivers a high quality sound mix which is a must in a monster movie. Kong’s roars, his chest thumps have a ton of weight behind them which gives the film a robust sound.
Grade: A+
King Kong (1976) Bonus Features
A branded Collector’s Edition from Scream Factory never disappoints and King Kong (1976) has some truly great features, and a lot of them.
Arriving in two discs, disc one is the 134 minute theatrical cut and disc two is the enormously long TV cut that clocks in at a whopping 182 minutes!
Disc 1
Commentaries by King Kong Performer Rick Baker and a second one by author Ray Morton
On Top of the World: Interviews with production manager Brian Frankish and assistant director David McGiffert give some great insight into making the film.
When the Monkey Dies, Everybody Cries: A fun discussion with two production messengers, that give insight on the film and the difficulties of biking between 30(!) sets.
Maybe in Their Wildest Dreams: An interview with Steve Varner a sculptor who worked on the 40 foot Kong.
Something’s Haywire: An interview with actor Jack O’Halloran who is candid and funny, this is a great interview.
From Space to Apes: An interview with photographic effects assistant Barry Nolan and his move from aerospace to Kong.
There’s a Fog Bank Out There: An interview with second unit director Bill Kronick who is also candid about the difficulties with a 40-foot King Kong.
Four Image Galleries
TV and Radio Spots
Two Theatrical Trailers
Disc 2
King Kong ‘76: A panel discussion
NBC Promos: A fun collection of clips from the TV broadcast promoting the film.
Grade: A+
King Kong 1976 is not a good film, but it is fun. Hats off to Scream Factory for giving this film a proper home video release, with compelling interviews, awesome commentaries this is an easy purchase for fans of monster films.
Overall: A