"What imaginary monster are you hunting this time?"

Rating: 9/10 (22 March 2017)

Well I'm a big monkey movie fan from way back, having seen the original "King Kong" when I was about nine years old, and even then the picture was already almost three decades old. One might argue that yet another iteration of the mighty Kong is rather unnecessary, but for all that, I was on board to see this flick to see what the latest in story line and technical achievement would bring to the table. I'd have to say I walked away fairly impressed with the epic monster battles the picture had to offer. The technology available today certainly blows away the stop motion photography of the 1930's and adds a dimension of realism that couldn't be captured even a couple decades ago.
Set in the same universe as the 2014 "Godzilla" movie, I was gratified to see that we didn't have to wait around a long time to have Kong show up for his first appearance. It's only a few minutes into the set up of the story when we get our first glimpse of the giant gorilla, and from there things set up for a pretty fast pace once the investigation team makes it's initial foray on Skull Island. I can't say that the action of the military crew against Kong was handled very realistically, but after all, movies about huge apes aren't going to be grounded in reality much anyway. The treat here is in the over the top action sequences, like Kong engaging in hand to helicopter combat, satisfying one's expectation for visceral thrills coming at you non-stop.
With an ensemble cast, I didn't get much of a sense that there was one main star here required to carry the picture for the humans. Some of them, like the John Goodman character, came to an unexpectedly quick demise, as the movie gradually revealed an array of fabled prehistoric creatures in battle against the landing party and Kong himself. I don't know that 'skullcrawler' was the best name they could have come up with for those ancient looking giant lizards; the most creative one was probably the walking tree trunk that came to life when one of the explorers gave it a reason to get up and take a stroll. It was clunky looking, but pretty cool at the same time.
A major departure from the original "King Kong" and it's subsequent remakes was the absence of a Kong/leading lady dynamic. It was teased to some degree with Kong's saving Brie Larson's character from drowning, but the story line didn't take it in the same direction as prior films did. Nor did the story rely on capturing Kong to show him off as some huge sideshow attraction back in the civilized world. Those elements benefited the story in as much as there will be plenty enough time for Kong to make his mark when he takes on Godzilla on the big screen in a couple more years.
So basically, just go for the gusto with this flick. It's positioned to provide an adrenaline rush for fans of great monster action and outstanding visual effects, enhanced by colorful cinematography in the lush and luxuriant backdrop of present day Hawaii and British Columbia simulating 1973 Vietnam. I'll be seeing it again, because let's face it, I'm just a sucker for these big ape extravaganzas.