King Kong

About King Kong (1933)

"King Kong" is an epic pre-Code monster film that was released in 1933. It was directed and produced by Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack. The film follows a gigantic, prehistoric, island-dwelling ape called Kong, who dies in an attempt to possess a beautiful young woman.
Ann Darrow, an actress from the World War I era, was hired for a film by an ambitious director, Carl Denham. They set sail on the SS Venture to travel to the mysterious Skull Island where they discovered Kong, a giant ape. Kong is captivated by Ann and kidnaps her. The crew, afterwards, tries to rescue her leading to the ultimate capture of Kong, who is brought back to New York for display. But Kong escapes and captures Ann again and climbs the Empire State Building where he is attacked by planes leading to his tragic death.

Making / Production

Merian C. Cooper, inspired by his adventures and love for gorillas, conceived the King Kong character. Willis H. O'Brien provided the stop-motion animation for Kong's scenes, pioneering the field of visual effects. A variety of techniques were used for capturing Kong such as miniatures, rear projection, matte painting, and life size models. The Empire State Building climax was a breakthrough in live action combined with animation.

Actors

• Fay Wray (Ann Darrow) – The leading lady of the film. She effectively portrayed Ann's fear and fascination towards Kong.
• Robert Armstrong (Carl Denham) – The filmmaker who captures Kong, Armstrong provided a performance full of ambitious energy.
• Bruce Cabot (Jack Driscoll) – As the love interest Jack, Cabot did an exceptional job showing the softer, romantic side amidst the thrilling adventure.

Trivia / Interesting Facts

• In the original script, Kong was supposed to fight Komodo dragons, but was later changed to dinosaurs for the final film.
• King Kong was one of the first movies to sell merchandise like model kits, toys, and action figures.
• The scene where Kong shakes the sailors off the log was removed from the original release and restored in the re-releases.

Awards

While "King Kong" did not win any awards at the time of its release, it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry in 1991 for being culturally, historically and aesthetically significant.

Quotes

• "Oh no, it wasn't the airplanes. It was Beauty killed the Beast." - Carl Denham/li>
• "You're alright, but the whole world's gonna know about Skull Island now." - Captain Englehorn
• "Wait a minute, what about Kong?" - Jack Driscoll

Music, Soundtrack

• The music was composed by Max Steiner, considered one of the greatest achievements in film music. Steiner's score used various motifs for different characters and situations, adding depth to the film.
• "Overture" - Played during opening credits.
• "A Boat in the Fog" - Played as the Venture approaches Skull Island.