King Kong (2005 film)

Peter Jackson was nine years old when he first saw the 1933 film, and was in tears in front of the TV when Kong slipped off the Empire State Building. At age 12, he attempted to recreate the film using his parents' Super 8 mm film camera and a model of Kong made of wire and rubber with his mother's fur coat for the hair, but eventually gave up on the project.[12] King Kong eventually became his favorite film and was the primary inspiration for his decision to become a filmmaker as a teenager.[13] He read books about the making of King Kong and collected memorabilia, as well as articles from Famous Monsters of Filmland.[14] Jackson paid tribute to the 1933 film by including Skull Island as the origin of the zombie plague in his 1992 film Braindead.[8]

During the filming of Jackson's 1996 film The Frighteners, Universal Pictures was impressed with Jackson's dailies and early visual effects footage. The studio was adamant to work with Jackson on his next project[13] and, in late 1995,[14] offered him the chance to direct a remake of the 1954 film Creature from the Black Lagoon. He turned down the offer, but Universal became aware of Jackson's obsession with King Kong and subsequently offered him the opportunity to direct that remake.[13] The studio did not have to worry about lawsuits concerning the film rights from RKO Pictures (the studio behind the 1933 film) because the King Kong character is held in the public domain.[15] Jackson initially turned down the King Kong offer, but he "quickly became disturbed by the fact that someone else would take it over," Jackson continued, "and make it into a terrible film; that haunted me and I eventually said yes to Universal."[12]

At the same time, Jackson was working with Harvey Weinstein and Miramax Films to purchase the film rights of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, while 20th Century Fox was trying to hire him for the 2001 remake of Planet of the Apes. Jackson turned down Planet of the Apes and because Weinstein was taking longer than expected to buy The Lord of the Rings rights, Jackson decided to move forward on King Kong. Weinstein was furious, and, as a result, Jackson proposed a deal between Universal and Miramax that the two studios would equally finance King Kong with Jackson's production company Wingnut Films. Universal would receive distribution rights in the United States, while Miramax would cover foreign territories. Jackson was also warranted the right of final cut privilege, a percentage of the gross profits,[14] as well as artistic control; Universal allowed all filming and visual effects to be handled entirely in New Zealand.[13] The deal was settled in April 1996, and Jackson, along with wife Fran Walsh, began working on the King Kong script.[14] In the original draft, Ann was the daughter of famed English archaeologist Lord Linwood Darrow exploring ancient ruins in Sumatra. They would come into conflict with Denham during his filming, and they would uncover a hidden Kong statue and the map of Skull Island. This would indicate that the island natives were the last remnants of a cult religion that had once thrived on Asia's mainland. Instead of a playwright, Jack was the first mate and an ex-World War I fighter pilot still struggling with the loss of his best friend, who had been killed in battle during a World War I prologue. The camera-man Herb is the only supporting character in the original draft who made it to the final version. The fight between Kong and the three V. rex also changed from the original draft. In the draft, Ann is actually caught in the V. rex's jaws, where she becomes wedged, and slashed by the teeth; after the fight, Kong gets her out but she is suffering from a fever, from which she then recovers.[13]

Universal approved of the script with Robert Zemeckis as executive producer, and pre-production for King Kong commenced. The plan was to begin filming sometime in 1997 for a summer 1998 release date. Weta Digital and Weta Workshop, under the supervision of Richard Taylor and Christian Rivers, began work on early visual effects tests,[13] specifically the complex task of building a CGI version of New York City circa 1933. Jackson and Walsh progressed with a second draft script, sets were being designed and location scouting commenced in Sumatra and New Zealand.[14] In late 1996, Jackson flew to production of the 1997 film Titanic in Mexico to discuss the part of Ann Darrow with Kate Winslet, with whom he previously worked with on his 1994 film Heavenly Creatures. Minnie Driver was also being reportedly considered.[12] Jackson's choices for Jack Driscoll and Carl Denham included George Clooney and Robert De Niro.[8] However, development for King Kong was stalled in January 1997 when Universal became concerned over the upcoming release of the 1998 film Godzilla, as well as other ape-related remakes with the 1998 film Mighty Joe Young[16] and the 2001 film Planet of the Apes. Universal abandoned King Kong in February 1997[12] after Weta Workshop and Weta Digital had already designed six months' worth of pre-production.[8] Jackson then decided to start work on The Lord of the Rings film series.[12]

With the financial and critical success of the 2001 film The Fellowship of the Ring and the 2002 film The Two Towers,[16] Universal approached Jackson in early 2003,[6] during the post-production of The Return of the King, concerning his interest in restarting development on King Kong. In March 2003, Universal set a target December 2005 release date and Jackson and Walsh brought The Lord of the Rings co-writer Philippa Boyens on to help rewrite their 1996 script.[16] Jackson offered New Line Cinema the opportunity to co-finance with Universal, but they declined.[6] Universal and Jackson originally projected a $150 million budget,[17] which eventually rose to $175 million.[18] Jackson made a deal with Universal whereby he would be paid a $20 million salary against 20% of the box office gross for directing, producing and co-writing. He shared that fee with co-writers Walsh (which also covered her producing credit) and Boyens.[19] However, if King Kong were to go over its $175 million budget, the penalties would be covered by Jackson.[20]

Immediately after the completion of The Return of the King, Weta Workshop and Weta Digital, supervised by Taylor, Rivers, and Joe Letteri, started pre-production on King Kong.[8] Jackson brought back most of the crew he had on The Lord of the Rings series, including cinematographer Andrew Lesnie, production designer Grant Major, art directors Simon Bright and Dan Hennah, conceptual designer Alan Lee, and editor Jamie Selkirk.[13] Jackson, Walsh and Boyens began to write a new script in late October 2003.[16] Jackson acknowledged that he was highly unsatisfied with the original 1996 script.[6] "That was actually just Fran and Peter very hurriedly getting something down on paper", Boyens explained. "It was more one of many possible ways the story could go."[8] The writers chose to base the new screenplay on the 1933 film rather than the 1996 script.[8] They also included scenes from James Ashmore Creelman's screenplay that were either abandoned or omitted during production of the original film.[13] In the scene where Kong shakes the surviving sailors pursuing Ann and himself from a log into the ravine, for example, directors Merian Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack originally intended to depict giant spiders emerging from the rock to devour their bodies. This was cut from the original release print, and remains known to Kong fans only via a rare still that appeared in Famous Monsters of Filmland. Jackson included this scene and elaborated upon it.[8] Jackson, Walsh and Boyens also cited Delos W. Lovelace's 1932 novelisation of King Kong as inspiration,[14] which included the character Lumpy (Andy Serkis).[6] To make the relationship between Ann Darrow and Kong plausible, the writers studied hours of gorilla footage.[21] Jackson also optioned Early Havoc, a memoir written by vaudeville performer June Havoc[6] to help Walsh and Boyens flesh out Ann Darrow's characterisation.[11] Carl Denham was intentionally modeled after and inspired by Orson Welles.[6] Their new draft was finished in February 2004.[8]

Principal photography started on September 6, 2004 at Camperdown Studios in Miramar, New Zealand. Camperdown housed the native village and the Great Wall, while the streets of New York City were constructed on its backlot and at Gracefield in Lower Hutt, New Zealand. The majority of the SS Venture scenes were shot aboard a full-scale deck constructed in the parking lot at Camperdown Studio and then were backed with a green screen, with the ocean digitally added in post. Scenes set in the Broadway theater from which King Kong makes his escape were filmed in Wellington's Opera House and at the Auckland Civic Theatre.[13] Filming also took place at Stone Street Studios, where a new sound stage was constructed to accommodate one of the sets.[22] Over the course of filming the budget went from $175 million to $207 million over additional visual effects work needed, and Jackson extending the film's running time by thirty minutes. Jackson covered the $32 million surplus himself[20] and finished filming in March 2005.[13]

The film's budget climbed from an initial US$150 million to a then-record-breaking $207 million and received a subsidy of $34 million from New Zealand,[23][24] making it at one point the most expensive film yet made. Universal only agreed to such an outlay after seeing a screening of the unfinished film, to which executives responded enthusiastically. Marketing and promotion costs were an estimated $60 million. The film's length also grew; originally set to be 135 minutes, it soon grew to 200, prompting Universal executives to fly to New Zealand to view a rough cut, but they liked it so their concerns were addressed.[25]

Other difficulties included Peter Jackson's decision to change composers from Howard Shore to James Newton Howard seven weeks before the film opened.[26]

Andy Serkis in his Kong bodysuit

Jackson saw King Kong as opportunity for technical innovations in motion capture, commissioning Christian Rivers of Weta Digital to supervise all aspects of Kong's performance.[27] Jackson decided early on that he did not want Kong to behave like a human, and so he and his team studied hours of gorilla footage.[28] Serkis was cast in the title role in April 2003[6] and prepared himself by working with gorillas at the London Zoo. He then traveled to Rwanda, observing the actions and behaviors of gorillas in the wild.[7] Rivers explained that the detailed facial performance capture with Serkis was accomplished because of the similarities between human and gorilla faces. "Gorillas have such a similar looking set of eyes and brows, you can look at those expressions and transpose your own interpretation onto them."[27] Photos of silverback gorillas were also superimposed on Kong's image in the early stages of animation.[29] Serkis had to go through two hours of motion capture makeup every day, having 135 small markers attached to different spots on his face.[27] Following principal photography, Serkis had to spend an additional two months on a motion capture stage, miming Kong's movements for the film's digital animators.[30]

Apart from Kong, Skull Island is inhabited by dinosaurs and other large fauna. Inspired by Dougal Dixon's works, the designers imagined what 65 million years or more of isolated evolution might have done to dinosaurs and the other creatures.[31]

The billboard at the Odeon Leicester Square premiere

In North America, King Kong grossed $9,755,745 during its Wednesday opening and $50,130,145 over its first weekend for a five-day total of $66.1 million.[36] Some analysts considered these initial numbers disappointing, saying that studio executives had been expecting more.[37][38] The film went on to gross $218,080,025 in the North American market and ended up in the top five highest-grossing films of the year there.[39] The film grossed an additional $344,283,424 at the box office in other regions for a worldwide total of $562,363,449, which not only ranked it in the top five highest-grossing films of 2005 worldwide,[40] but also helped the film bring back more than two-and-a-half times its production budget.

During its home video release, King Kong sold over $100 million worth of DVDs in the largest six-day performance in Universal Studios history.[41] King Kong sold more than 7.6 million DVDs, accumulating nearly $194 million worth of sales numbers in the North American market alone.[42] As of June 25, 2006, King Kong has generated almost $38 million from DVD rental gross.[43] In February 2006, TNT/TBS and ABC paid Universal Studios $26.5 million for the television rights to the film.[44]

King Kong received positive reviews from critics. On aggregate review site Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 84% based on 267 reviews, with an average rating of 7.68/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Featuring state-of-the-art special effects, terrific performances, and a majestic sense of spectacle, Peter Jackson's remake of King Kong is a potent epic that's faithful to the spirit of the 1933 original."[45] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 81 out of 100, based on 39 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[46] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale.[47]

It was placed on the 'top ten' lists of several critics,[48] with Roger Ebert giving it four stars, and listed it as 2005's eighth-best film.[49] The film received four Academy Award nominations, for Visual Effects, Sound Mixing (Christopher Boyes, Michael Semanick, Michael Hedges, Hammond Peek), Sound Editing, and Production Design, winning all but the last.[50][51] Entertainment Weekly called the depiction of Kong the most convincing computer-generated character in film in 2005.[52] Some criticised the film for retaining racist stereotypes that had been present in the 1933 film, though it was not suggested that Jackson had done this intentionally.[53] King Kong ranks 450th on Empire magazine's 2008 list of the 500 Greatest Movies of All Time.[54] The Guardian reviewer Peter Bradshaw said that it "certainly equals, and even exceeds, anything Jackson did in Lord of the Rings."[55] However, Charlie Brooker, also of The Guardian, gave a negative review in which he describes the film as "sixteen times more overblown and histrionic than necessary".[56]

• Fay Wray, the original Ann Darrow, was asked by Jackson to appear in a brief cameo role in which she would utter the film's final line: "It was beauty killed the beast." At first, she flatly refused, but then seemed to consider the possibility. However, she died shortly after her meeting with Jackson.[57] As in the original film, the line ultimately went to the character of Carl Denham.
• An ad for Universal is visible while Kong is tearing up Times Square. In the 1933 film, an ad for Columbia Pictures appeared in the same spot, and the production designers replicated it, but Columbia asked for a large amount of money for its use, so effects artists replaced it.[58]
• When Denham is considering who to play the part before meeting Ann, he suggests "Fay", but his assistant Preston replies, "She's doing a picture with RKO." Music from the 1933 film is heard, and Denham mutters, "Cooper, huh? I might have known." Fay Wray starred in the 1933 film, which was directed by Merian C. Cooper and released by RKO.[58] At the time she was performing in another Cooper/Schoedsack production, The Most Dangerous Game with Robert Armstrong.
• In the 1933 film, Cooper made up an "Arabian proverb" about "beauty and beast". The 2005 remake repeats the fake proverb.[58]
• Early in this film, Denham shoots a scene for his film in which Ann, in-character, proclaims she's never been on a ship before, and Bruce Baxter improvises lines proclaiming annoyance. The dialogue they exchange is taken verbatim from early scenes between Ann and Jack Driscoll in the 1933 film. Ironically, in this film, Jack Driscoll expresses disapproval of such words toward Ann.[58]
• Kong's New York stage appearance looks very much like a re-enactment of the 1933 film's sacrifice scene, including the posts the 'beauty' is tied to and the nearly identical performance, costumes, and blackface makeup of the dancers. In addition, the music played by the orchestra during that scene is Max Steiner's original score for the 1933 film.[58]
• The battle between Kong and the final V. rex is almost move-for-move like the last half of the fight between Kong and the T. rex in the 1933 film, right down to Kong playing with the dinosaur's broken jaw and then standing, beating his chest and roaring victoriously.[58]
• After the crew captures Kong on the beach, Denham speaks a line from the 1933 film: "The whole world will pay to see this! We're millionaires, boys! I'll share it with all of you. In a few months, his name will be up in lights on Broadway! KONG, THE EIGHTH WONDER OF THE WORLD!"[58]