MOVIE REPORT CARD: KONG: SKULL ISLAND

DATE: 3/10/17
TITLE: KONG: SKULL ISLAND
DIRECTOR: JORDAN VOGT-ROBERTS
STARRING: TOM HIDDLESTON, BRIE LARSON, SAMUEL L. JACKSON, JOHN C. RILEY, TOBY KEBBEL, JOHN GOODMAN

GRADES

ACTING: 75
DIRECTING: 90
SCREENPLAY: 70
EDITING: 75
CINEMATOGRAPHY: 85
EXTRA CREDIT: 5

​FINAL: 84/B

COMMENTS

Kong: Skull Island, may have glaring flaws. The dialogue can be eye-roll worthy at times, the pacing is off in the mid-section, and the screenplay has more holes than Swiss cheese. However, Jordan Vogt-Roberts, directs the shit out of this movie. Despite the flaws, Kong: Skull Island is helluva lot of fun. They style alone, is worth the price of admission. Despite the lead characters being as hollow as the ground on Skull Island, these are actor's who know what kind of movie they are in. It's not about them. The vast majority of them, know they are going to be monster food. These are stereotypical, archetypal, characters. It's a monster movie. Samuel L. Jackson, is all kinds of fun here, and John C. Riley chews up the scenery to perfection. Kong, is fantastic here. He's leaner, taller, more aggressive, and still has that soft spot for us humans (well, some of us. And those of us who are not blonde women). It's not perfect, but Kong: Skull Island delivers what it promised. It also sets-up King Kong Vs. Godzilla, nicely. It's a fun monster flick, and way more entertaining than the Godzilla of 2014. It even outshines Peter Jackson's King Kong remake of 2005. Jackson, made an Oscar movie disguised as a monster movie. Kong: Skull Island, is a monster movie to its hollow core. And that's OK with me.