'Kong' collapses under its own weight

Rating: 3/10 (12 August 2017)

2005's 'King Kong' was a big budget blockbuster that was met with mixed reviews and arguably underperformed at the box office. Despite this lackluster track record, WB took a gamble with green lighting 2017's follow-up effort 'Kong: Skull Island.' While the film is equally bloated from a budget standpoint, it takes a step backward even further in terms of quality.
'Skull Island' follows a somewhat intriguing premise of following monster chasers (John Goodman and Corey Hawkins) and a post-Vietnam military escort (headed up by trigger-happy Samuel L. Jackson) as they explore an uncharted island in the Pacific. On paper, this all sounds fine and good, but as we get deeper into the film, it's clear director Jordan Vogt-Roberts is presiding over just a tired old formula of "pick them off one-by-one." From an acting standpoint, the roles are written very stereotypically, so even though there are some strong actors cast (Tom Hiddleston, Brie Larson, John C. Reilly), they are not done any favors. Whether an antiwar idealistic photo journalist, meek scientists or a jaded yet-adventure-hungry former British special opps agent, all of these characters are just wooden and hollow.
As for the actual events of the film, there are a few scenes that are kind of new and different, but the vast majority feels like it's a rehash of many other films we've seen before, including 'Jurassic Park,' 'Pirates of the Caribbean' and others. Sure, it's pretty standard to see Hollywood recycle things here and there, but when the majority of a film feels like deja vu, that definitely works against it. As for the CGI, it's good but not spectacular, and so there are next to no good aspects of 'Skull Island.'
Sure, there are some who will be entertained by 'Kong: Skull Island' due to its action sequences and formulaic flow. But that doesn't change the fact that it's pretty flawed and generally a mess of a movie.