King Kong (2005)

Plot Summary

Set in the 1930s, this is the story of a group of explorers and documentary filmmakers who travel to the mysterious Skull Island (near Sumatra) to investigate legends of a giant gorilla named Kong. Once there, they discover that King Kong is a real creature, living in a massive jungle where creatures from prehistoric times have been protected and hidden for millions of years. As the explorers search for the great ape, their quest puts them up against both Kong and his dinosaur enemies. Ultimately, it is the attention of a beautiful human woman that soothes Kong long enough for him to be subdued by the explorers and shipped back to New York, where his bleak future involves being put on display in front of humans... but how long can even the mightiest shackles of man hold back an ape 25 feet tall?

Set in the 1930s, this is the story of a young and beautiful actress Ann Darrow from the world of vaudeville who finds herself lost in depression-era New York and her luck changes when she meets an over-ambitious filmmaker Carl Denham who brings her on an exploratory expedition to a remote island where she finds compassion and the true meaning of humanity with an ape Kong. The beauty and the beast finally meet their fate back in the city of New York where the filmmaker takes and displays the ape in quest of his fame by commercial exploitation which ultimately leads to catastrophe for everyone including a playwright Jack Driscoll who falls in love with Ann and plays an unlikely hero by trying to save her from Kong and her destiny.

An overzealous film director, his leading lady, and a screenwriter are part of an expedition crew in search of King Kong, the biggest gorilla in the world. But they're all about to underestimate how powerful this mythical creature may be in size and strength.

A film director and his crew go to a mysterious island to shoot their picture, when they find out the legendary beast on the island does exist, and troubles come when the natives capture the crew's leading lady as a sacrifice to the monster, King Kong. Thus, the crew ventures into the jungle of the island to find the creature, and capture it.

Budget: $207M (estimated)

Opening Wknd: $50.1M (USA)

Gross: $66.2M (USA)

Genre: Action / Adventure / Drama / Fantasy / Sci-Fi / Thriller /

Awards: Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 1 win

User Ratings: 8.3 (11,383 votes)

Also rated #148 in the Top 250

Production Co: Big Primate Pictures

Distributor: Universal Pictures, 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, CA 91608, USA, Phn: 818-777-1000,http://www.universalstudios.com/

Summary: A film crew filming a movie on an uncharted island stumble upon many strange, dangerous creatures, including 'Kong', a giant ape who captures the lead actress.

Filmmakers: Peter Jackson - Director / Writer (screenplay) / Producer, Fran Walsh - Writer (screenplay) / Producer, Philippa Boyens - Writer (screenplay), Merian C. Cooper - Writer (story), Edgar Wallace - Writer (story), Jan Blenkin - Producer, Carolynne Cunningham - Producer, Andrew Lesnie - Cinematographer, James Newton Howard - Composer, Mel Wesson - Composer, Grant Major - Production Designer, Jamie Selkirk - Editor

Naomi Watts ... Ann Darrow 2

Jack Black ... Carl Denham 18

Adrien Brody ... Jack Driscoll 27

Thomas Kretschmann ... Captain Englehorn 160

Colin Hanks ... Preston 59

Andy Serkis ... Kong/Lumpy 31

Evan Parke ... Hayes 383

Jamie Bell ... Jimmy 70

Lobo Chan ... Choy 874

John Sumner ... Herb 1,923

Country: New Zealand / USA

Rating: UK:12A / Czech Republic:12 / Singapore:PG / Japan:PG-12 / New Zealand:M / Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) / Norway:11 / Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) / Canada:14A / Finland:K-11 (re-rating on appeal) / Germany:12 / Ireland:12A / Denmark:11 / Netherlands:12 / Australia:M / USA:PG-13

Language: English

Runtime: 187 min

MPAA: Rated PG-13 for frightening adventure violence and some disturbing images.

Box Office

Budget: $207,000,000 (estimated)

Gross: $66,200,000 (USA) (16 December 2005)

Release Dates

USA: 5 December 2005 (New York City, New York) (premiere)

France: 10 December 2005 (Paris) (premiere)

Norway: 12 December 2005

Production Dates

• 6 September 2004 - ?

Filming Dates

• 29 July 2005 - August 2005 (pick up shots)

• 6 September 2004 - 22 March 2005

News (5 out of 100 articles)

• 16 December 2005: 'Kong' not a monster on first day

• 16 December 2005: 'Kong' promo partners in action with Jackson

• 16 December 2005: AMPAS selects visual effects competitors

Filming Locations

• Beach Road, Parnell, Auckland, New Zealand

• Camperdown Studios, Miramar, Wellington, New Zealand

• Civic Theatre, Queen Street, Auckland Central Business District, Auckland, New Zealand

Technical Specifications

Color info: Color

Sound mix: DTS / Dolby Digital EX / SDDS

Camera: Arriflex Cameras and Lenses

Negative format: 35 mm

Process: Digital Intermediate (master format) / Super 35 (source format)

Printed format: 35 mm

Aspect ratio: 2.35 : 1

Trivia

• Peter Jackson was paid $20 million to direct this film, the highest salary ever paid to a film director in advance of production.

• On April Fools Day 2005, Peter Jackson posted an elaborate practical joke, which he posted on a web diary at www.kongisking.net. He "revealed" that they were already starting production on "King Kong: Son Of Kong" and "King Kong: Into the Wolf's Lair". Both films, supposedly to be released in 2006, contained the principal characters riding Son of Kong, strapping machine guns to his back and fighting Hitler's genetically mutated creatures. The film was going to be produced under the banner of "Big Primate Productions". Peter Jackson has been known to pull pranks of this sort before; see Forgotten Silver.

• Peter Jackson owns a number of props from the original "King Kong" and put some of the items from his collection into this film.

Trailers on other sites

JustMovieTrailers - Trailer (WMP)

Videodetective (Windows Media 28-300Kb)

The BigScreen Cinema Guide - Trailers (various formats)

Virgin.net Movies - Trailer (WMP)

MovieMaze.de - Trailer (Quicktime)

Radio Free Entertainment - Trailer (QuickTime)

TON - Trailer (WMP)

Trailer (various formats)

Trailerdownload.net - Trailer (various formats)

1000films - French Trailer (Quicktime)

CineMovies - hi res, French trailer (various formats)

Trailer (Quicktime)

Full Trailer (Quicktime)

The Entertainment Zone

Film-Trailer.info - Trailer (Quicktime)

Filmz.ru - Russian trailer (Quicktime)

interoutetv.com (Real, WMP)

jurassicpunk - Download the teaser and the trailer

Kinopremiery.cz - Trailer (Quicktime)

Moviecentre.net - Trailer (Quicktime, WMP)

MCN - Trailer (Quicktime)

pocketmovies.net (MPEG-1 / DivX / PSP MPEG4)

Ultimate DVD - Trailer (Quicktime)