Rating: 
Summary: Underrated 1970's Remake of 1930's Classic
Review: 1976's "King Kong" may not have the panache and legend assigned to the 1933 original, but it does have its share of moments. If a remake can be satirical, outrageous, and just plain different, then this one takes the cake. One recent criticism, but not in its time, was the unrealistic gorilla suit of Rick Baker's design. It may not be on par with the remake of "Planet of the Apes" (also by Baker), but just watch the Japanese movie "King Kong Vs. Godzilla" to see how GOOD Baker's design really is.
It is an interesting 70's time capsule, with Lange's Marilyn Monroe-esque acting, Jeff Bridge's hippie hair-do and "Greenpeace" attitude, and Charles Grodin's oil-obsessed hysteria. Remember the gas lines of the mid-70's? This movie will remind you.
Some of the special effects are dated by today's terms, but that's okay. Enjoy the 1976 version of "King Kong" on its own merits: just inoffensive good fun. After all, where else can you see King Kong blow the wet Jessica Lange dry? With puffy cheeks, no less?
Rating: 
Summary: THE MOST UNDER-RATED MOVIE EVER!!!
Review: I shall cut to the chase.1. American film critics especially in the 70's and 80's never had minds of their own. They have no courage to go against the cultural sacred cows. One such sacred cow is the idea that no one is allowed to criticise the original King Kong or suggest that this 1976 version is better. Well this 1976 is better, far far far superior on every level. 2.This DVD is in itself a masterpiece with a gorgeous image transfer and DVD authoring of a 24 year plus old movie making it look brand spanking new. The sound is very good and John Barry's most over-looked and under-rated score comes to life. 3.This film is superb it is a movie that is both highly entertaining, very well made and contains themes and issues that are even more relevant today. These themes include... a. endangered species b. tribal cultures c. corporate greed d. corporate globalisation Jessica Lange was at the time the sexiest girl on the planet and Jeff Bridges is in one of his most heroic roles while Charles Grodin does a great camp portrayal of the evil oil corporation imperialist. The sensuality in this film is so elegant and John Barry's score is pure genius and the basis of his later OUT OF AFRICA and DANCES WITH WOLVES compositions. I am not saying it is the greatest film ever made but I do believe it to be the most under-rated. Considering how unfair a representation it has received. Buy this DVD it is a revelation. The critics are all wrong!! Howard in Manchester UK
Rating: 
Summary: Another remake Ho-Hum
Review: Further evidence that today's (meaning post 60s) Hollywood would rather appropriate someone else's idea than have to actually think up a new one. If you're going to attempt a remake why start off with 2 strikes against yourself by remaking one of the greatest classics of all time, a classic that no one will ever be able to approach quality-wise? Can you imagine a remake of "Citizen Kane" with, for example, Alec Baldwin and Johnny Depp? Too bad Dino never gave his project this much forethought. This movie is really no worse than the average recent Hollywood product (I guess that in itself is quite damning). But I felt complelled to add my review here only to correct an egregious mis-statement. Another reviewer here mentioned that one of the few points where the '76 version beat the '33 version was in its musical score. An unbelieveable statement. Max Steiner's score for the '33 version is widely held to be one of the epitomes of film scoring. Bottom line, if you want to see an ageless classic stick with '33. If you want to see typical, current Hollywood drek, go with '76.
Rating:
Summary: King Kong
Review: This is a movie that is a sit down family movie, all will enjoy.
I remember watching as a young teenager and now have purchased it to watch with my young teenagers.
After visiting Universal Studios and doing the backlot tour and seeing King Kong again it made me think about how to get hold of this wonderful movie. I rate it high on family enjoyment also prepare for the tissue boxes on the sad scene's.
Hooray I have it
Rating: 
Summary: King Kong of the 1970s
Review: I was 8yrs-old when my dad took me to see my very first King Kong movie in 1977. I was in awe of this big-budget presentation remake with the beautiful and mysterious Skull Island, the tropical location's and action/adventure that was beauty & the beast. Rick Baker's contribution's as Kong are impressive,though the film is letdown by the actual-size mechanical version. The story take's too long to get going and momentum is lost on (Charles Grodin)s oil-tanker with stowaway scientist (Jeff Bridges) and luscious Jessica Lange in film-debut. Not until the crew land on the Island does the mystery and excitement build into adventure and mayhem. Climax in New York City is okay with the two-lead characters fighting and in favour for the preservation of a unique species Kong from further exploitation and suffering. The original 1933 version is excellent and featured some cool dinosaur battle's that unfortunately this 76' version contain's only 1)a poorly executed fight-sequence with a big python. Cheesy dialouge and dated spfx only add's to it's charm, Kong himself is the star and does a terrific job. Follow-up sequel 1986's King Kong Lives!
Rating:
Summary: This King Kong is no Turkey!!!
Review: This was the first big film of my childhood, I'm 28 now, and I still really enjoy it. This ambitious re-telling of King Kong has it's share of faults but overall, it's still a pretty exciting adventure film. The story itself of course is absurd but it's played to the max here. The screenwriter knows this and gives the film a quirky sense of humor. Many of the special effects are outdated which simply can't be faulted here in 1999. The robotic Kong briefly seen in the presentation is laughable, but you got give them credit for actually building the beast. I still believe the acting is light years better than the original. Jessica Lange was perfectly cast as the naive starlet Dwan. She obviously wasn't a "dumb blonde" and had far more personality than Fay Wray. Jeff Bridges is just fine as the conflicted and noble hero and Charles Grodin is terrific as the weaselly and desperate oil executive. The haunting and evocative music by John Barry really gives the film character. Yes it was a guy in a gorilla suit, but that guy was Rick Baker, and his gorilla suit is simply amazing. He gives Kong a real personality and becomes a sympathetic character, which is the biggest difference in the two films. The original is a landmark film and was ahead of it's time in its production qualities, but the acting and characters leave a lot to be desired. The cinematography of the remake is another standout feature. This version of King Kong has gotten more than its share of punches, but I still find this to be a very entertaning and exciting adventure film with a breezy sense of humor. I don't have a DVD player just yet, but this will be one of the films of my collection.
Rating:
Summary: STICK WITH THE ORIGINAL!!
Review: The thinking behind this remake escapes me. Why redo a nearly perfect movie, and leave out the dinosaurs? There is one encounter with a giant snake that's not bad, but that's it. The first half of this movie is an acceptable adventure story, but after Kong is captured, it goes downhill, becoming a politically correct monster movie(ie, Jeff Bridges cheers Kong as he defeats the military). Just stick with the 1933 movie, perfect in every way, almost, and keep hoping they find the lost footage of the spiders at the bottom of that ravine!!
Rating:
Summary: "Lights! Camera! Kong!"
Review: Wow, what a movie! As a fan of Giant Monster Movies, I openly declare that this movie was great! But it's not great enough for 5 stars... The movie has only two downfalls which will be noticable to fans of the Kaiju genre. Although they're not serious downfalls, it's enough for me to subtract a star from my rating. Downfall #1
We don't see Kong until the 52nd minute of the movie. That's a long time to wait to see any monsters. But even though Kong doesn't show up until the 52nd minute, the movie does manage to create some great suspense leading up to his first appearance. Some campy dialogue helps us along the way. And the blatent use of Jessica Lange as eye-candy doesn't hurt either. Downfall #2
Kong only gets to fight one monster throughout the entire movie, and the scene is roughly 1 minute in length, which is kind of short. He actually fights a giant snake which tries to eat Jessica Lange. Luckily, Kong knows how to kill overgrown reptiles. (I suppose this scene answers that question: 'who would win in a fight: a gorilla or a snake?') Anyways, as a fan of the Monster genre, I've come to expect guys in rubbersuits causing mayhem in addition to campy scenes/dialogue. And does "King Kong" deliver that? It certainly does! The Monster Scenes in this movie are great! King Kong's costume is absolutely cool-looking. Sure, it's not as cool-looking as Godzilla's, but it definitely ranks up there. As for the scenes with King Kong, they're all very well-done. Just one minor gripe: when we first see Kong, the actor inside the rubbersuit is walking around like a man. Aside from that, this ape is mean, and he breaks a lot of stuff - and it's all great fun to watch! Oh yeah, he even steps on a few people while he's looking for his beloved Jessica Lange. If one comment could be made about Kong, he's not very durable compared to Godzilla. When you see Kong fight the military, you'll see what I'm talking about. The Human Scenes (scenes where no monsters are present) are also very well-done. For me, I'm a happy camper as long as I'm interested (or having fun) in what the humans are doing/saying. And honestly, I totally enjoyed every minute of this movie even when I didn't see Kong. The Human Scenes in this movie are campy good, and they're fun to watch. Anyways, here is some of the campy dialogue you'll hear during the movie: Campy Dialogue #1
JEFF BRIDGES: Who the heck do you think went through there? Some guy in an apesuit? Campy Dialogue #2
JEFF BRIDGES: There's a girl out there who might be running for her life from some gigantic, turn-on ape! And here are some of the Hilarious Situations you'll encounter while watching this movie: Hilarious Situation #1
As soon as King Kong breaks free of his "unbreakable" cage, all of the spectators run away from the giant ape. Well, everyone except for Charles Grodin who runs TOWARDS Kong, and throws himself at the monkey's feet (waiting to be squashed). Hilarious Situation #2
Jeff Bridges and Jessica Lange are running away from Kong. Jessica Lange stops Jeff Bridges and tells him to buy her a drink. Hilarious Situation #3
After Kong kills the flame-thrower team, Jeff Bridges cheers the ape on. It goes without saying that this movie will entertain you throughout its entirity. In any case, I only had a few questions at the end of the movie: 1) Why is the entrance to the tribe's village specifically big enough for Kong? It seems strange to design a fort that keeps King Kong out, while making the door big enough for him to enter through. 2) How exactly does a wooden wall keep King Kong out of the tribe's village? If you think about it, King Kong is able to grab the very top of the wall with his hands, but somehow decides that climbing over it is out of the question; whereas Kong has no trouble whatsoever climbing the World Trade Center.
Rating:
Summary: Why Ruin The Good Things?
Review: I love King Kong. I Like King Kong, King Kong vs. Godzilla(dispite the ending), and I want to see King Kong Escapes(a movie that's not on amazon but the soundtrack is). When I saw this movie I was bored out of my mind. They did nothing on Skull Island but having a fight with a giant snake for 15 seconds(I'm not joking) and a girl flirting with a gorilla that looks like he just kissed Ethen(a kid at my school and it means the ape looks like wax). The bummer is, there's no dinosaurs or humoungus plane fights! I gave this monstrosity a 2 because one it followsthe origenal plot and two, it's better than King Kong Returns.
Rating:
Summary: Great camp trash from the '70's
Review: As many film fans are painfully aware, the sight of producer Dino De Laurentiis' name in the credits of any project virtually guarantees the stamp of mediocrity, and this 1976 version of "King Kong", less a faithful remake than a "re-imagining", doesn't escape that fate. With its leaden tone, wooden acting and creaky special effects (even by Seventies standards), it works best as unintentional high camp, and as such, has long since been relegated to the "so bad it's good" category. Properly viewed in that spirit, though, it is undeniably entertaining, and does offer at least two redeeming qualities: a superlative (and often overlooked) musical score by longtime James Bond composer John Barry, and the staging of the finale, which occurs not atop the Empire State Building but on the World Trade Center towers, one of the few films (along with John Carpenter's 1981 hit "Escape From New York") in which the late buildings actually played a key role rather than as background scenery. Though at the time the filmmakers obviously could not have forseen the two buildings' gruesome demise, it nonetheless makes for a strangely compelling, if extremely eerie, experience watching the movie today, as several scenes were shot inside the actual towers themselves. That being said, however, the other aspects of the film are undeniably awful, and some that have posted reviews here have wondered how such talents as Jeff Bridges and Jessica Lange could possibly been involved, obviously unaware that this was Oscar-winner Lange's very first film role, and that Bridges (who in my opinion has long been overdue for an Oscar) was at this point in his career still very much a B-list, journeyman actor. Considering the script he had to work with, he turns in a solid performance, and unlike other members of the cast, at least doesn't manage to embarrass himself (though I'm sure he's happy few people today probably recognize him under the wild unkempt hair and beard he sported at the time). Of course, no discussion of up-and-coming talent in this film would be complete without mentioning the contributions of makeup artist Rick Baker, who would go on to become one of Hollywood's top designers of special makeup effects, winning several deserved Academy Awards for such films as "An American Werewolf in London", "Gorillas in the Mist", and "Ed Wood", among many others. Here Baker both created and wore the Kong "gorilla suit", to good effect, after plans to create a full-size, working mechanical Kong proved unattainable. (The full-size Kong does appear in two brief scenes: one late in the film and of course at the very end, looking equally dead in both.) As high camp goes, though, scenes like this (as well as the scene with the giant snake) are hard to beat, and overall the film is, for me, still a lot of good, cheesy fun. Paramount's DVD release at least allows the film to finally be seen in its original widescreen format, and includes the amusing trailer. Here's looking forward to "Lord of the Rings" maestro Peter Jackson's true-to-the-source remake of the 1933 original, set to wow us all in 2005!
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