STACK #153 Jul 2017

DVD&BD FEATURE

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S ince his first appearance in Merrian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack’s groundbreaking 1933 classic King Kong , the mighty ape has stamped his simian footprint into popular culture and been reimagined for subsequent generations, including two remakes and even a stage musical. Now the King has returned in the action- adventure Kong: Skull Island , directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts and produced by the team who resurrected another iconic monster in 2012 – Godzilla. “Kong represents all the mystery and wonder that still exists in the world,” says Vogt-Roberts. “That’s why he will never stop being relevant.” The director also acknowledges that with reviving a great monster, comes great responsibility. “Kong is film history. Kong

is where special effects came from and when genre went mainstream,” he says. “It’s an enormous responsibility and also an enormous honour to tell a new story within that mythology. We’ve seen the old story over and over again, the beauty and the beast angle, so it’s a huge responsibility.” Kong: Skull Island is a different beast to the remakes by John Guillerman and Peter Jackson. There’s no Empire State Building or exploitation of the ‘Eighth Wonder of the World’ in this new take, which unfolds on Kong's titular stomping ground and offers an exciting expansion of the mythology. “Kong is an adolescent when we meet

Hail to the King! It's time to go ape as screen royalty returns for a major monster mash in Kong: Skull Island . Words Adam Colby

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JULY 2017

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