King Kong

Probably, the greatest monster movie ever made. A classic that belongs to the now forgotten Lost World genre, which was extremely popular during the global economic crisis and which was popularised by film adaptations of novels by A.C. Doyle, E.R. Burroughs, J. Verne, etc. These films had one thing in common: a tightly circumscribed territory with prehistoric animals or almost extinct civilizations. In the 1920s and 30s, they were made on a treadmill, full of visual effects sequences, and King Kong was their king. It was truly a technical marvel in its day, and some of the visual effects scenes still look great today. The first two thirds are basically a kind of Jurassic Park on a small island in the middle of the Pacific, with many prehistoric lizards, among which a giant ape from much later times is inadvertently mixed in. Ignoring such lapses of the time, like turning a harmless herbivore brontosaurus into a bloodthirsty beast, I can't help but recall such delights as King Kong's duel with a tyrannosaurus, a perfect example of stop-motion animation of the time. And the last 15 minutes, with King Kong on a rampage in New York, are a joy to watch even today – in 1933 it must have been a total blast! I'd even be willing to go so far as to say that many of the effects in King Kong look better than those in monster movies of the 1950s and 60s. It's a pity that such gems are no longer shown on TV today. (02.10.2004)

Even after more than seven decades, the unique testament of old Hollywood, dominated by mystery, fantasy, fragile beauties, fearless heroes, and terrifying monsters, has not lost any of its power. The visual aspect in particular is shockingly timeless, and a certain hallmark of naivety has already become a solid part of the film's poetics. But it's not just the effects that make King Kong live – it's also the excellent scenes on the ship that fuel the feverish anticipation of events in a masterful way, in the light of day (especially Ann Darrow's camera attempts). Kong himself has a much more brutal and animated feel than previous versions, and the beauty in distress does not conceive the slightest dose of sentiment about his fate. Her constant hysterical screams, accompanied by the roar of a monster, are unbearably affective, but they simply belong to this version. Sympathy for the giant monkey is primarily a secondary product of viewers who fell in love with the furry giant and made it feel more human than its creators. A taste of the old-style film craft in its most solid form, this is King Kong. A film full of great atmosphere and grazing for the eye, which finds its popularity in the black and white aesthetic of the 1930s. (17.12.2005)

The first big pop-corn movie with the works. And also one of the best. In addition, the ravages of time have not taken any significant toll. Just better in every way than the later two remakes. (02.03.2008)

Finally, finally, finally, finally... Thanks to the stunningly good 2DVD release of the original King Kong, I watched the film in its original version and it was worth it. Five stars are most deserved - there is simply no better monster movie than this (this year) seventy-seven year old classic. Great special effects, atmosphere, actors (especially Bruce Cabot is as good as it gets), Steiner's music, literally timeless direction and great "how the hell did they do that?" special effects. It's great! (02.06.2010)

A film with no flaws. Jackson's King Kong was nearly three hours long, had a 70-year advantage in development and better actors, but this original version manages to richly capture the same atmospheric, amorous and pure narrative charge in the span of a hundred minutes. The special effects are great, the pacing is breathtaking, and some of the shots or multi-plane action within the mise-en-scène (a crying baby being approached from afar by a huge monster) bring one to tears given their inspirational cinematic significance. The final attack on Kong on the Empire State may seem tedious, but given that it's the dramatic demise of an essentially likeable creature, stretching the scene is entirely warranted. Adventure fantasy and its most important representative… (07.02.2013)