Kong: Skull Island

You won't find a more fun adventurous expedition. Kong; Skull Island has the advantage of having a very good cast, something that can't be said much about competing blockbusters. Tom Hiddleston is a likable hero, Oscar-winning actress Brie Larson adds pizzazz, Samuel L. Jackson is once again a great psychopath, and even the wisecracking John C. Reilly is impressive. The biggest plus is the visuals of the breathtaking island and the monsters, whose appearance is one of the best we've seen so far. The spider scene is begging for a horror sequel, and it's a shame that the ants don't make an appearance. The biggest highlight is the final fight with Kong and the giant lizard, which was very spectacular. What disappointed a little that they didn't show more monsters, I believe this island had a lot to offer and the film runs out of breath halfway through, with the viewer just waiting for the finale. I was surprised that the film was quite gritty and uncompromising in places, I was amazed at how many kids were sitting in the auditorium. Personally, I wouldn't take kids to see it. The post-credit scene is a nice touch. 85%. (2017-03-14)

Kong is big, King Kong 2005 was great. The words are very similar, but from a filmmaker's perspective they are completely distant. Peter Jackson made films for the love of the material, Jordan Vogt-Roberts makes what the current mainstream is most interested in – mainly drive, dynamics, imaginative monsters of all kinds and great fights. The script is unfortunately pulled out of thin air, and if it weren't for the incredibly polished visuals and the fine 70's atmosphere with old music, it wouldn't have been much fun. Brie Larson is only here for her looks, and the ensemble cast is saved by the impeccable John C. Reilly. The 10 percent better visual effects aren't enough to trump the 50 percent better approach to the material of its predecessor. It is also puzzling that the only emotion is evoked by the closing credits. (2017-03-19)

I have an idea. Let's make another version of King Kong, but this time in a Vietnam War style. - All right, what's it going to be about? - That giant ape. - Wait, but the story... - Yeah, the story, it's secondary. If we don't know, we'll put Black Sabbath or Led Zeppelin in there and some silhouettes in the backlight. - Isn't that too little? - No! We'll put Samuel L. Jackson in there, too. He will always say some awfully deep things and look like a crazy Maca Wind. Something between Colonel Kurzt and Captain Ahab, but blacker. - Okay, but what if it has runtime of almost two hours? – Then we’ll put a lot of useless characters in there who can be eaten by some giant beast. - Fine, sounds fun, green light. (2017-09-10)

Kong: Skull Island is very different than it is presented in trailers. It has much closer resemblance to a classic adventure film, and those expecting the seriousness and maturity hinted at in the trailers will not find it. That said, Jordan Vogt-Roberts, an debutant blockbuster director, occasionally delivers some very nice shots and handles the epic monster battles flawlessly, and there are more of them than you would expect. Unfortunately, when Kong disappears from the scene and it comes to the human characters, it becomes significantly worse. For a moment, the film tackles Samuel L. Jackson's war traumas from Vietnam very seriously (and quite impressively), only to change into John C. Reilly's comedic relief the next minute. And in the meantime, a boring Loki and a bunch of other people run around, whom you really won't care about. Overall, it's okay, but I won't deny a slight disappointment. I suppose I'll watch a compilation of the battles at most in a year, but the entire film will be quite difficult. (2017-05-16)

I was looking forward to a great chillout that was alluring me with its premise, digital effects and a mix of actors that under usual circumstances cannot disappoint. In this case the biggest problem lies in the fact that the scriptwriter didn’t properly work out the individual characters, so the only interesting one is Samuel L. Jackson, who really acts, and John C. Reilly, who has some cool lines here and there. Otherwise it’s a military slasher in a similar vein like the legendary Predator, the only difference is that nobody in this movie is able to hold a candle to Arnold Schwarzenegger. Catchphrases are missing, even the whole spirit of the movie is missing, so it is just another mediocre digital film from Hollywood. (2018-07-11)