I set the bar fairly low for Kong: Skull Island. But I was pleasantly surprised by Tom Hiddleston (as a SAS tracker) and Brie Lrson (as an award-winning photo-journalist) getting into some serious monkey business in this movie. Director Jordan Vogt-Roberts cranks up the suspense and the explosions as his movie amps up. John Goodman’s character persuades a U. S. Senator (Richard Jenkins) that the Government needed to explore a mysterious island in the Pacific “before the Russians do.” It’s 1973 and the Vietnam War is winding down. Samuel L. Jackson plays Preston Packard, a bitter Lieutenant Colonel who tells Brie Larson, “We weren’t defeated in Vietnam, we just gave up.” Well, he’s not giving up on Skull Island when Kong wrecks havoc on the expedition. There are plenty of gruesome creatures to churn your stomach like the “skull crawlers.” The battle scenes are eye-popping! If you’re looking for an entertaining popcorn movie, Kong: Skull Island is the best one around right now. GRADE: B+
This is on my must-see list.
Bill, you’re gonna love KONG: SKULL ISLAND!
We have our tickets for Tuesday afternoon. Can’t wait!
Jeff, just be sure you and Jackie buckle your seatbelts when KONG: SKULL ISLAND starts! You’re in for a wild thrill-ride!
It’s one that sure deserves to be seen at a theater, but it will have to be netflix for me. If it was less of an action movie, I’d say from the ads that Jackson is really over doing it, but he’s doing what the movie called for.
Maggie, I found KONG: SKULL ISLAND a finely crafted action film. I would have released it in the Summer, but there’s nothing out there competing for 100-foot giant gorilla movies so I’m assuming KONG will clean up this weekend.
No doubt I’ll see it, perhaps in another theater while Barbara sees MANCHESTER BY THE SEA, which I don’t care to see. Yesterday she saw HIDDEN FIGURES and liked it a lot. Otherwise, I’ll put it on the Netflix queue.
Rick, KONG: SKULL ISLAND is one of those movies you’ll enjoy more in a theater with a big screen. KONG fills the screen!
Jackie has a list of “big screen movies ” like this and STAR WARS and GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY.
As far as suspense is concerned, it’s a Kong movie, so, briefly, discover big gorilla, kill big gorilla. Not much suspense there.
Rick, this KONG movie doesn’t follow your formula!
This is definitely my kind of movie.
I’ll be seeing it this afternoon after I slog thru all the snow to the theater. From your review, I know it will be totally worth it.
Beth, KONG: SKULL ISLAND brought in $61 million over the weekend. It’s worth every dollar!
I think Jackie liked it more than I did. Not that I didn’t like it, but she really liked it. Surprisingly, as he can often be so annoying on screen, the best one in it was John C. Reilly.
Good job all around.
Jeff, I agree that John C. Reilly was excellent in KONG: SKULL ISLAND. Brie Larson, who I really like, wasn’t given much to do.
No, but I liked that she wasn’t in any way a “damsel in distress” as she kept her cool even with Kong literally right in her face. No Fay Wray-like screaming here.