A Fuga de King-Kong

As it states under 'Trivia', 'King Kong Escapes' was a tie-in to the Rankin-Bass 'King Kong' cartoon series, and to be honest, this film is very much a children's movie, featuring a cartoonish super-villain, a faintly ridiculous plot and comical fight scenes. This shouldn't be taken to mean that I hate the film, however. While it's not as good as Toho's previous Kong outing, 'King Kong VS Godzilla', it's still okay if you're in the mood for that kind of thing. I've never seen the cartoon, but the plot of this film is straightforward enough that you don't need to.

The film does have a number of flaws, the most notable being King Kong himself. I personally thought the ape suit from KKVG looked pretty impressive, but KKE's version is more than a little silly, particularly the face, with its wide, staring eyes and permanently open mouth, which makes Kong look like he's high. Also, the fights with the other monsters aren't overly impressive; the battle on Mondo Island (Kong had obviously moved from Skull Island after it was destroyed at the end of Son of Kong) with Gorosaurus is actually quite funny, particularly when Kong gets repeatedly drop-kicked, but the showdown with Mecha-Kong is a bit anticlimactic, particularly compared to the city-destroying smackdowns of KKVG and the best of the Godzilla series.

The plot is some silly gubbins about mining a radioactive element, and King Kong comes into the story after the evil Dr Who (not the time-travelling character from the long-running British T.V series) builds a robot ape, only for it to fail. He then kidnaps the real Kong, but he escapes (hence the title) and the usual Kaiju action ensues. The human element is rather bland, although this is probably the fault of the script rather than the actors. Linda Miller is the ersatz Fay Wray of this picture, her role generally consisting of being picked up by Kong and trying to save the big ape from getting into trouble. Rhodes Reason is solid if unspectacular, and Dr. Who makes a good, over-the-top villain.

Having said that, I do think it's a shame Toho never made any more Kong movies. Personally, I would have loved to have seen Mecha-Kong come back, perhaps in a Godzilla movie. Given that Godzilla battled so many monsters over the years, it might have been interesting if he had come up against King Kong again, maybe in a scenario that forced them to work together against one or more of the many monster that big G faced.

Yes, there is a difference in American King Kong and Japanese King Kong. Japanese Kong is much bigger and stronger and would be ashamed to be taken down by planes. Also, he would not climb the Empire State building, he would most likely annihilate it. He is back after his fight with Godzilla to once again save the day to some extent. It has been awhile since he last grace the screen since that fight, but somehow he manages to get tangled in a plot by some madman to dig up stuff in a mine. This madman already has the formidable MechaKong at his disposal, but MechaKong is incapable of digging in said mine thanks to something down there that causes it to malfunction. So they capture the real monkey and somehow hypnotize it to dig for them. Still you know in the end there is going to be a showdown between Kong and his mechanical counterpart. A fairly decent movie from the company of Toho, however I will always like Godzilla the best. Still, they have enough monsters and some pretty good fights to keep one entertained. I do believe this was Japanese King Kong's last movie, which is a bit sad, I would have loved to have seen a reemergence during the Hensei Godzilla movies and had Godzilla get some revenge for that earlier loss. MechaKong is rather cool, but not as cool as MechaGodzilla, mainly because MechaGodzilla just had way to many cool weapons and was a way more impressive fighting machine.

There is nothing about this movie that can be taken seriously but unlike the ugly mess "King Kong Lives" this movie is bright, colorful fun that adults will enjoy as a comedy while the kids will get a blast out of the crazy mayhem.

Just thinking about the plot makes me laugh and watching it is never dull, it has such a no holds barred silliness about it and the new DVD release is stunning. I had no idea just how impressive the look of the film was.

The complaints about the film are rather misguided in many ways and there is some serious confusion about it. The female lead Linda Miller was dubbed by another actress, so the complaints about her performance are a bit moot (though the combination of nutty dialog and weird delivery actually help the film for most since it is so funny).

Also this is not a sequel to King Kong Vs Godzilla, Kong in this film is a myth found to be real (and utilized to dig out a cavern for bizarre reasons that just get funnier the more you think about it).

As a last note for anyone interested in King Kong in any of his incarnations seek out Ray Mortons book "King Kong The History of a Movie Icon" released recently. He actually set aside a chapter of the book detailing this film.

It would seem that the Eight Wonder of the World isn't just popular in America. After clashing with his biggest rival Godzilla, the big ape made another appearance in Toho Co.'s long line of kaiju films. Originally, King Kong was supposed to star in a film where he does battle with the sea monster Ebirah, but was ultimately replaced by Godzilla and the resulting film was "Godzilla vs the Sea Monster". However, at the time there was a Kong TV series, so Toho decided to loosely adapt that into film instead. The result was a fun kaiju thrill ride that is known to this day as "King Kong Escapes".

Plot: Somewhere in the North Pole lies a secret base, where lurks the nefarious criminal mastermind Doctor Hu (spelled Who in America, not to be confused with the TV show of the same name). Under the employment of the mysterious Madame X aka Madame Piranha, he builds a robotic version of King Kong to harvest a highly radioactive material called Element X. When Mechani-Kong proves less than reliable, Doctor Hu goes to the prehistoric jungles of Mondo Island to kidnap the real Kong to harvest the Element X. However, the great ape escapes (get it?) and with the help of his newfound human companions who discovered him on the island, King Kong does battle with his robot double in a giant-sized fight to the death in the heart of Tokyo.

This movie is cheesy and the acting is on par with the Adam West "Batman" series, but that's why I like it. The human characters stand out at least and have distinct personalities, from the level-headed Commander Carl Nelson, his trusted companion Jiro, and the beautiful Susan (Kong's love interest). Doctor Hu is a fun villain, over-the-top and being delightfully despicable (even if he has some ugliest bottom teeth in history). The effects are the standard guys-in-suits and miniature sets that are to be expected by Toho and, for the most part, they look good. The music by Akira Ifukube is also nice, great to hear and adding to the thrills and great action scenes throughout the film.

Now for the monster roll call! Kong looks kinda silly, looking a little more like Donkey Kong without the bow tie, but he definitely looks better than his appearance in "King Kong vs Godzilla". The filmmakers at least got his gorilla proportions right and he can still show emotion and character. He has the same roar as before too, which itself is cool. Now, a robot version of the ape might sound ridiculous (and it is), but Mechani-Kong is a good nemesis for his flesh-and-blood counterpart. If it weren't for Mechani-Kong, there wouldn't be a Mechagodzilla, so props to this movie. The mighty dinosaur Gorosaurus makes his first appearance in this film, putting up a good fight against King Kong, a homage to the original 1933 version. Gorosaurus would later have a role as Godzilla's ally in the hit kaiju classic "Destroy All Monsters" and gain a small bit of fame. I guess prehistoric reptiles gotta stick together, especially with those dang dirty apes around!

King Kong Escapes is an unforgettable kaiju film that definitely surpasses the dreadful "King Kong Lives" any day by a mile. It's full of nice characters, cool monster battles, fun cheesy effects, a memorable score, and a silly story too good to resist. Even if you're not a kaiju fan or a Kong fan for that matter, definitely check this one out for at least a few good laughs and thrills.

I've seen this film a number of times growing up. Most recently in '94. I can't wait to see it again! I loved it. Loved it all. The bad guy was scary when I was young but was down right hip when I saw it when I was older. The characters were pretty much weak and the story was weak but when "Kong" gets mad and starts kicking butt; I just enjoy the ride. I don't recommend this as a "feel good" movie. Nor is it a "cinema experience" of note. It is entertaining and fun if you're a "Kong" fan like me. The props and costumes are old school and cheap! Brings back all sorts of fun memories. The soundtrack was also cool too. Excellent inspiration for aspiring Avant-Garde types. I loved this film!