Kong: Skull Island

I really love kaiju films, so I'm heavily influenced, but I had a great time watching Kong: Skull Island! Kong is excellent here, the effects are stunning, there are great monsters and incredible action scenes, and there are also interesting characters. Simply a thrilling spectacle for the movie theater. And to top it off, that fantastic poster with the green signal smoke! (12/03/2017)

A rather weak screenplay, balanced by excellent tricks and fine actors. A movie buff’s enthusiasm is evident in Jordan Vogt-Roberts’ work as director, and lots of great ideas and situations are just what I hoped for. Unfortunately, some catalysts leading to these situations don’t make absolute sense (very conveniently located chains and ship’s propeller in the last fight, gas grenades and the simple stupidity of some characters). This is a great shame, because it really spoils the effort. Interesting casting is confronted by a screenplay where for instance the wonderful Sam L. Jackson’s behavior occasionally defies common sense. But all it needs is a little more depth to his motivation. (14/03/2017)

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. (10/07/2018)

The new Kong offers a good dose of audiovisual orgy, which is nice to watch, but if you've seen all the trailers, the film itself doesn't offer much more, which is a shame. Personally, I was (pleasantly) surprised by Kong's fairly early arrival on the scene. The mysterious and almost inaccessible Skull Island offers a lot of giant, bizarre-looking and very dangerous creatures going after the "intruders from the other side". The action scenes all work well for the most part – the giant spider, the battle in the burial ground and the final fight. On the other hand, the plain and nonsensical dialogue, especially between the soldiers, was a real problem. Of the cast, I was most impressed with the unhealthily deranged Samuel L. Jackson and the healthily deranged John C. Reilly. In the end, this is a typical popcorn flick that you shouldn't expect too much from, because then you'll enjoy it all the more. Unfortunately, there were some expectations on my part. (20/03/2017)

At first I was loving this romp unburdened by logic, and I wanted to come back to it repeatedly, but after a second date, the flaws in the form of the overly stylized script (as if the story was pieced together only around pre-conceived cool shots and scenes), the unfunny dialogues and the almost zero atmosphere don't do it anymore. I like the film as an ultra-loud, polished audiovisual spectacle, and for its sincere nature of a simple, fun blockbuster, the impressive 70s feel full of period songs, and the looks of the mesmerizing Brie Larson, but I can't forgive it for its reprehensible waste of a subject promising atmospheric goosebumps like Edwards' Godzilla. There are a few scenes that are genuinely hilarious and John C. Reilly steals the second half, but this could (and should) have turned out differently (and a little better). 70% (09/03/2017)