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| King Kong Poster |
King Kong, Directed by Merian cooper and Ernest Schoedsack,
is a 1933 American film said to be revolutionary to the Hollywood film
industry. While not as appealing as it
was near to 80 years ago the film consisted of new and innovative techniques
that were used to get around the technological limitations of the time. In the
end this achieves “sophistication and beauty that eclipsed anything that went
before” (Ebert, 2002).
One mentionable scene realising this is shown in fig. 1.
This shot overlooking Skull Island shows a large wall, forest and mountains
which appear to have depth. It is only
when the image is further examined that the backdrop hints that it is a
painting.
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| Fig. 1 |
Several artists including Mario Larrinaga and
Byron Crabbe were hired to create assets for the film set. The effect is
assisted by the use of additional foliage along the matte paintings adding an
extra layer of depth. Use of an
effective background helps to create a more immersive world for the viewers to
be drawn into.
The story begins with a shot of New York City from the sea. Continuing
from this the next few shots focuses on filmmaker Carl Denham who is struggling
to find a female actress. Ann Darrow is seen by Denham who offers her a role in
his next film where she is then introduced to the crew of S.S Venture. Shortly
after they set out, landing on Skull Island where they find out about King
Kong. This results in Kong’s capture and his rampage in New York.
Alongside the matte painting backgrounds a myriad of camera
tricks were used to produce the total film. Arguably the most important trick
was that used to bring King Kong to life. A number of layers are used in
conjunction with live action and stop motion to make multiple creatures move as
if they were alive. This alone though is not enough to create King Kong as he
is around 21 metres tall. As Ebert stated, “The movie plunders every trick in
the book to create its illusions” (Robert Ebert, 2002) with a camera trick
being used to increase the size of the creatures thanks to a translucent screen
that was used to capture a projection.
With the realisation of the background and foreground the
scale of the creatures is brought out. Fig. 2 shows a memorable scene with King
Kong fighting the T Rex in the foreground the heroine looking onwards as the
monsters fight in the mid ground and the forest fades into the distance. With
this the layers lead to a well composed shot that has a lot going on and seems
to carry on.
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| Fig. 2 |
The film seems to have a heavy emphasis on the concept of
‘Beauty and The Beast’ as it is foreboded by Carl Denham early on in the film.
This creates a conversation piece that has lasted to this century. The heroine,
Ann Darrow, is seen as the epitome of female beauty is protected and kept by
Kong, a sign of masculinity. Similarities can be seen in these two stories as a
beast protects a woman; Kong may be a monster but not that in the traditional
sense. Kong feels compelled to do right rather than seek out destruction. It is
only the action of Carl Denham that angers him, as he tries to capitalise Kong.
It is in Kong’s death that we question who was the true monster reflected in Haflidason’s
review “the beast is seen, not as a monster of destruction, but as a creature
that in its own way wants to do the right thing” (Haflidason, 2001). This adds
to the moral complexity of the film while having breath taking shots making up
for the lack in story.
Two other revolutionary firsts in King Kong is the giant
monster genre and the city destruction. Both rather new ideas at the time it
was seen as a rather fearsome depiction as Kong ravaged the city with his sheer
size and strength. While it may seem rather strange back at the time of release
both genres have become more popular with today’s media. Much like an exotic
fairy tale, “One is reminded of Defoe's "Gulliver's Travels." (Hall,
1933) a mystical beast of great size is presented and engages combat with other
creatures such as the T Rex. This was so ridiculous at the time that it would
have been accepted as epic and full of awe as the two giants clashed. The large
beast also rampages around New York leading to a scene of city
destruction. Any future movies involving
both of these can be traced back to “King Kong” showing its impact on the
cinema industry.
Haflidason’s comment, “"King Kong" was created to
grip and thrill like no movie before, and these basic principles hold
surprisingly true today” looks into the influence of this 1933 film on today’s
films. The film is so revolutionary that it can be stated that it was the start
of a golden age of Holly Wood Cinema setting down principles that are still
used in today’s cinema.
Bibliography
Ebert, R. (2002) http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/great-movie-king-kong-1933
Haflidason, A. (2001)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2001/01/30/king_kong_1933_review.shtml
Mordaunt, H. (1933) http://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9F03E3DC173BEF3ABC4B53DFB5668388629EDE
Illustration List
Good review Al! :)
ReplyDeleteOne more pointer - you should italicise both your quotes and the film names, just as a way of making it absolutely clear to your reader that this what they are.