Kong: Skull Island

Thanks for that link. I'm going to check it out in 70mm. Apparently the IMAX screen I saw it at is Digital instead of true 70mm.

 

The theater in Oakland looks fun. Why do I feel like they should take the seats out and replace them with couches and bean bags? The screen in the other theater is magnificent! What a venue.

From the info you posted I can see it @ Look Cinemas. Had no idea this place existed until you posted it. It seems like a compromise between the 2 theaters here, a bit of comfort and a bit of state of the art.

 

That's just because people in general are huge wimps.
Sure, there were quite a few deaths in the film, but nothing overly gory or gruesome.... there was hardly even any blood during any of the death scenes.

The reveal was pretty awesome, and makes me wonder if the upcoming couple of Godzilla flicks are going to be...

Spoiler

partial reboots/remakes of Destroy All Monsters

 

I liked the references to:

Jurassic Park - Samuel L. Jackson saying "hold on to your butts".
Cannibal Holocaust - the soldier getting impaled through the mouth.
King Kong vs. Godzilla - Kong fighting a giant octopus.

 

I used to love to go to the Uptown, but not anymore. I saw "Force Awakens" 3 times: Regal RPX, true IMAX, and Uptown. Uptown was easily the least impressive of the 3 - the place just seemed worn-out...

 

The guy getting impaled in the jungle by that certain insect made me jump. It's not a question of gore -- it's a question of the timing and pace getting the the audience to momentarily relax and then they JUMP when they get slammed with an unexpected death. That's what I call really good editing. Also, there were more people stepped on in this film than the last 10 Godzilla movies put together.

I laughed a lot in the film because the stunts were so outrageous and over the top, and some of the deaths were really nutty. I think if you go into the film expecting it to be an action romp that you can't completely take seriously, it works pretty well without getting real, real stupid, and I give them props for that. I think a film like this pushes the envelope about as hard as you can for a PG-13 film (particularly in language -- even Samuel L. Jackson got to say one 14-letter word).

 

Hey, how about Kong getting wrapped up in the chains and bursting out of them (from the 1933 original)? And there were big winks at the audience on the iconic Apocalypse Now shots of the Vietnam choppers against the red & yellow setting sun on the horizon. The filmmakers clearly had a lot of fun making this thing.

 

I actually had a small quibble with the "chains" scene in Skull Island....
Kong simply falls *onto* the wreckage, and yet when he stands up, the chains have somehow managed to wrap themselves all around him. If he had been thrashing around for a few seconds or something first, it would have made a bit more sense... but all he does is just immediately stand up and suddenly he's completely entangled?
I know that's a really small thing to nitpick, and that type of illogical stuff happens all the time in movies, but it still bugged me.

I agree about the filmmakers having fun with the movie references, though. Here's a list from IMDb:

Plane Nuts (1933) (Short)
Samuel L Jackson's squadron are known as the Sky Devils, named for Howard Hughes' 1932 Aviation comedy starring Spencer Morgan
Them! (1954)
Hank Marlow mentions that a species of giant ants that sound like birds lives on Skull Island.
Sora no daikaijû Radon (1956)
A cave painting of Rodan is seen after the credits.
Mosura (1961)
A cave painting of Mothra is seen after the credits, there is also a Mothra symbol painted on the forehead of one of the natives.
Kingu Kongu tai Gojira (1962)
At one point in the film, Kong fights a giant Octopus.
Monster of Monsters: Ghidorah (1964)
A cave painting of Ghidorah is seen after the credits.
Daikaijû Gamera (1965)
During the opening credits there is a sketch of a turtle skeleton with the words 'MUTO - Massive Unidentified Terrestrial Organism' written on the right side.
M*A*S*H (1972) (TV Series)
"Don't do that, Radar!"
Taxi Driver (1976)
In Taxi Driver, Travis Bickle has a badge on his jacket that reads "King Kong Company". Director Jordan Vogt-Roberts revealed that a similar designed badge is on Preston Packard's jacket as a homage. It reads "Lizard Company".
King Kong (1976)
Kong destroys early in the film are UH-1 Iroquois, the same type of choppers that seemingly killed Kong in the climax of the 1976 remake.
Cannibal Holocaust (1980)
SPOILER: Director Jordan Vogt-Roberts has confirmed that the soldier impaled by the giant spider is a reference to Cannibal Holocaust (1980)
Akira (1988)
The patch and slogan on the back of Hank Marlow's jacket in this film are a reference to Kaneda's jacket in Akira
Jurassic Park (1993)
Samuel L. Jackson says his "hold on to your butts" line again
Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995) (TV Series)
The Skullcrawlers' design was inspired by the Two-Legged Lizard from Sachiel from Neon Genesis Evangelion, No Face from Spirited Away, and Cubone from Pokemon. Also, the japanese character is called "Ikari", the name of the protagonist of Neon Genesis Evangelion.
Pokémon (1997) (TV Series)
The Skullcrawlers' design was inspired by the Two-Legged Lizard from Sachiel from Neon Genesis Evangelion, No Face from Spirited Away, and Cubone from Pokemon
Princess Mononoke (1997)
Sker Buffalo's design is inspired by the Forest Spirit
Spirited Away (2001)
The Skullcrawlers' design was inspired by the Two-Legged Lizard from Sachiel from Neon Genesis Evangelion, No Face from Spirited Away, and Cubone from Pokemon
King Kong (2005)
During the film's final battle, Kong appears to attempt to pry open and break the giant Skullcrawler's jaws similar to the V-Rex fight in the 2005 remake.
Check It Out! with Dr. Steve Brule (2010) (TV Series)
Hank Marlow (John C. Reilly) wears a jacket that says 'Good For Your Health' on the back. In his role as Dr Steve Brule, one of his catchphrases is "For your health!"
10 Cloverfield Lane (2016)
John Goodman's Bill Randa character mentions that he has been trying to prove that monsters exist for 30 years which is the same dialogue that John Goodman's Howard Stambler character says in this movie

 

With the music blaring.

 

It was entertaining, but it just looked like human actors were inserted into a cartoon to me. As good as Kong looked, he still looked fake.

 

That photo makes me nostalgic for Kansas City's long lost Glenwood theater.

 

Saw it last night and enjoyed it. OK, Samuel L. Jackson was playing Samuel L. Jackson, but nobody plays Samuel L. Jackson better than he does, so why shouldn't he? He's a great actor, but he's also a movie star, and to a great extent we go see movies because of movie stars.

I liked it a LOT more than one of the other films we saw last night - Life - which was dreadful. It was set on the International Space Station. Normally, the ISS is filled with highly intelligent people - most with a Master's degree or a Phd. But these people were as stupid as...as...Hollywood screenwriters. It was a moronic monster movie in space. Rules are set, then broken inside of five minutes. Presumably intelligent scientists are violating protocols left and right. Dumb, dumb, dumb.

 

A-star cast, fine effects, decent story and a strangely un-exiting movie. Jurassic Park meets King Kong meets Moby Dick. Some nice moments (almost a comedy) and light on real tension.

 

I miss the Glenwood theater as well. Sadly, the last movie I saw there was Godzilla (1998).

 

It will remain forever in my heart as the place I saw a film called Star Wars.

The Star Destroyer moving overhead on that huge curved screen, the sound through those Altec-Lansing A2 speakers...seated in the front row.

 

The single best image for me was the explosions reflected in the sunglasses of the grinning De Niro-Duvall dude in the helicopter. That was it for me. The other 99% of the movie paled in comparison.

 

I'd call it Jurassic Park meets Moby Dick in the time and place of Apocalypse Now. But yeah. I agree that the movie didn't exactly get real deep or heavy, but it was pretty decent light-hearted entertainment. And some moments did make me jump in the theater.

 

I just saw this on a flight. I noticed the cave paintings of Godzilla and Ghidrah but didn't notice Rodan and Mothra. I'll have to check it out again when it comes on cable.

 

Great, another Kong movie. That's what I was thinking before I watched this for the first time this weekend. It was much better than I thought it would be.

 

where did they get the gas for the boat?

 

Nice bit of entertainment. Good popcorn movie but did they set us up for a sequel?

 

They did in the post credits scene.

 

The sequel, featuring Godzilla, was being talked about before Skull Island even premiered!