By: Ashton Newton
Entertainment Editor

“Sometimes the most dangerous things are the most beautiful,” says Tom Hiddleston’s “Kong: Skull Island” character, explorer James Conrad.

A fitting quote for a movie of such monstrous proportions. It’s difficult to watch “Kong: Skull Island” without being constantly blown away by the beautiful South Pacific setting and the fantastic cinematography.

Each scene of terror is followed by a scene of beauty. The wonder of the uncharted Skull Island is shown throughout, causing smile-inducing scenes of beauty around every corner, which helps to make “Kong: Skull Island” an excellent adventure film.

Accompanied by music and outfits from it’s 1973 setting, “Kong: Skull Island” makes great use of the time period, set up to feel like a Vietnam War film.

The film makes great use of its cast. Samuel L. Jackson, John C. Reilly, Brie Larson, Tom Hiddleston and John Goodman all bring unique and compelling performances to the table. Working with an ensemble cast of well known actors can make for thin characters, but in “Kong,” everyone has their moment to shine.

Even Kong himself is an incredibly done character. Both terrifying and sympathetic, Kong’s special effects help to make him realistic enough to feel like a real threat to the viewer, rather than an animated joke like some “King Kong” movies in the past.

The film does fall into standard action movie tropes though. When the soldiers are focused on in the film, I found myself having heard the same dialogue and seen the same problems. “Kong: Skull Island” doesn’t do much to set itself apart from every other action film.

The plot is also weak. Two hours of “get from point A to point B with monsters” gets redundant and annoying after a while and would be a total bust without the accompaniment of great performances and excellent visuals.

With a great cast and beautiful cinematography, “Kong: Skull Island” is one of the best “King Kong” films ever made. Although brought down by action movie tropes and a weak plot, “Kong” is still a great, beautiful movie that definitely deserves a watch.

Contact the author at journalentertainment@wou.edu

¾
+ Great cast
– Weak plot