King Kong (Two-Disc Special Edition)

The still pictures of Fay Wray are from the special feature, "Camera's Roll on King Kong the Eighth Wonder of the World." Wray was indeed the beauty counter parting the beast. The pencil art work displayed in the special features segments is way cool also. The special features are vast and detailed, thus making this Blue-Ray Disc of 1933s "King Kong" a real gem to own. There's an interview with Fay Wray decades after "King Kong" was released and so much more. Interviews with modern day film technicians praised the technical team of King Kong and said many of their basic techniques are still used to this day. The details of the 18 inch model of King King and stop motion photography are explained perfectly. I merely touched the tip of ice burg about the special features on this Blue-Ray Disc. Simply stated, the special features alone make this version of "King Kong" worth having. "King Kong" was way ahead of it's time, and not just for the special effects. Early in this flick, Fay Wray struts her fabulous frame in a transparent top with no bra, a big no-no for main stream movies that was rigidly enforced by 1935, so 1933s "King Kong" is a true Pre-Code Hollywood film for ignoring the boundaries of sexuality and violence on the the movie screen upon its time. Screenplay writers James Creelman and Ruth Rose transformed Edgar Wallace and Merian C. Cooper's story into a cinematic masterpiece that cemented the ground work for solid story telling and captivating special effects. Fay Wray as Ann Darrow wanted Cary Grant as her leading man and said Bruce Cabot wasn't her ideal choice, but regardless, this 1933 flick contains realistic romance and the idea that only love can kill the beast. Robert Armstrong portrays a successful, yet controversial film maker, Carl Denham who cast's Ann Darrow as the female love interest for his next motion picture. Denham, Darrow and his entire film crew sail the vast seas to Skull Island, an uncharted island where the mighty Kong dwells. Kong's soul is caressed with love be the mere sight of Darrow (Wray) and when she's taken away from mighty beast, Kong roams the streets of New York with vengeance and a quest for sheer serenity. While on Skull Island, Kong combats dinosaurs and other giant beasts from millions of years ago. Bravo to Willis O' Brien, the technician who inspires the likes of today's special effects gurus. This 2022 restoration is fantastic. The sound is crisp and works very well on today's sound systems and the picture quality is amazing. The Overture before the credits is more than four minutes long before the opening credits even begin. Simple use the fast skip button on your DVD player once, and the opening credits roll, press fast skip once more, and the movie begins in its entirety.

The Commentary Track is on the 2006 1-disc DVD issue of the original 1933 "King Kong". The commentary was recorded while Peter Jackson's 2005 remake was in production, and the remake is mentioned a couple of times. Commentators are Ken Ralston and Ray Harryhausen. Ralston was one of the founders of Industrial Light & Magic and has won 5 Academy Awards for Best Visual Effects. Ray Harryhausen is the father of stop motion animation. He calls Willis O'Brien, the "Chief Technician" of "King Kong", the grandfather of stop motion. The two introduce themselves at the beginning of the commentary, with Harryhausen saying "We're both in love with the same picture, 'King Kong'!" Ray, born in 1920, saw "King Kong" in 1933 at the fabled Grauman's Chinese Theater. O'Brien (O.B. as he and Ken call him) was his mentor. There are also a few places in the commentary track with inserts from archival interviews with Merian C. Cooper, director and co-producer, and Fay Wray, who, of course, played Ann Darrow, the beauty to Kong's beast. At one point, Merian says that the last line in the film was one he'd had in mind for many years: "It was beauty killed the beast". And, in case you're wondering, he made up the "Old Arabian Proverb" at the beginning of the movie. Both Ken and Ray are very complimentary to Max Steiner's great score. Harry: "I can't stress [enough] how important music was to this film." Ken: "I remember hearing this, and it may be wrong, but technically, they had less ability to do a lot of levels of sound effects, and ... nuances like that. So for Steiner, he was adding a lot more musically to this. [Music] that took the place of what would now be the sound effects realm basically burying the music. This is like an opera piece, where you've got great music and visuals going through the whole piece." Harry: "And each character has their own leit motif ... It's just marvelous." I couldn't agree more. For example, it is a masterwork how Steiner's music builds the tension as the kidnapped Ann is kneeling in front of the giant gate, and then it opens and she is dragged through to the columns where she is tied. Then the music STOPS. The gong is struck. Then the music starts low, again, as you hear growling, then trees crashing, and then.... But it's not just the music. I love the expert scene composition. When Kong beats his way through the giant gates, you see him from below, the torches lighting him up with his eyes blazing, while silhouettes of terrified villagers run towards you on your level. Great stuff! Ken reminds us: "When this was released, this was their 'Jurassic Park'. When this came out, Kong blew everyone out of the theater, totally took them by surprise .... It raised the bar on visual effects." Merien adds: "Willis O'Brien was a technical genius. In this picture, we had to invent 11 new processes [for visual effects]. This was the first time that rear projection was really ever used. There had been 2 or 3 [prior] tries at it." Then there was Ruth Rose's dialogue. As Ray says, "You notice the dialogue is so tight. There's no superfluous inferences.... [The script] takes you by the hand from the depression era to the most outrageous fantasy." This brings up the TV versions of "King Kong". You must view the fully restored movie if all you've seen is the TV version. It wasn't just the censorship of scenes like Kong or the lagoon dinosaur chomping on the crew. They cut out huge swaths of the beginning of the movie, where the stage is set, where the characters are filled out, where the mystery starts to build, of, just what the heck is Carl Denham up to? I could go on and on about favorite comments in the commentary, but you get the idea. I loved this original "King Kong" before, but watching it through the eyes of Ray Harryhausen and Ken Ralston added to my enjoyment immensely. If you're interested, you can get many CD's of Max Steiner's film work. Probably his most famous soundtrack is for 1939 "Gone With the Wind". Here's the CD of the 1933 "King Kong" King Kong: The Complete 1933 Film Score I love Peter Jackson's "King Kong" - Jack Black and Naomi Watts took iconic characters and made them their own - but I will always have a place in my heart for the original "King Kong". Happy Reader

Capolavoro del grande cinema americano degli anni 30, Kong ha il merito di aver raggiunto, all'epoca, incredibili vette negli effetti speciali (oggi, ovviamente datati). L'edizione qui editata (a parer mio una delle più complete in circolazione) propone un BD che contiene il film in alta definizione in B/N (restaurato davvero magnificamente), e a colori (seppur questa versione presenta dei cromatismi un po' sballati), e un DVD pieno zeppo di speciali, tra cui una recente intervista all'attrice Fay Wray e alcuni interessantissimi film d'epoca quali "Il mondo perduto". Ottimo il servizio di Amazon, con il pacco arrivato nei tempi prestabiliti e in perfette condizioni.

I purchased this just recently and on the day it came, I watched it at night and I was totally surprised! It was like watching a brand new version. Honestly, the digital sound and the pristine quality of the video made me feel like I was among the actors and filmcrew. And when the hero, King Kong appears, it is mind-blowing. I believe more scenes were added. I never ever remember so much more action, and it is un-edited and we get to see king kong battling so many dinosaurs. It is such a fun watching him and the most stunningly beautiful actress, Fay Wry. She has an innocent beauty which I LOVE. With all respect to all the others, I will always place her as my number one actress to play Ann, the bride of Kong. Only one thing I will say. As I, and millions of others feel, I am an animal lover so cannot watch beyond the point when our hero and heroine make it to the top of the Empire States Building. For me, I want to live in my own fantasy ending that King Kong found a safe refuge where he lived happily ever after with Ann and he let her wander freely, a bit like the Hunchback of Notre Damn, keeping Desdemona in the safety of the church. Simply beautiful and classic movie which I highly recommend to all loyal fans of King Kong.

Ce film de 1933, remasterisé mais (dieu merci) non colorisé, se regarde avec grand plaisir en famille. L'image est excellente, le son aussi a été retravaillé, mais cela reste, évidemment, une BO mono avec les limitations techniques de l'époque. Les effets spéciaux sont spectaculaires, ce n'est pas étonnant qu'ils fassent référence. Bref, un must dans toute cinémathèque un peu sérieuse, à mon humble avis. PS. J'ai regardé la VO, je ne peux donc rien dire sur le doublage qui suscite pas mal de critiques dans les commentaires.

B&W Still a great movie with a great story and special effects that still impress. The story, music, action are al blended so well it really keeps you watching like an old time movie

Está claro que el que esté leyendo esta reseña va buscando si merece la pena este blu-ray o se queda con ediciones anteriores o en otros formatos de esta película, así que voy a intentar no dejar nada en el tintero y dar la mayor información posible. Lo primero y dado que a veces se confunden ediciones decir que estoy reseñando el blu-ray siguiente ; Estudio : Warner Bros. Entertainment France Referencia : ASIN : B07895V7YQ Y por lo tanto no otras ediciones en blu-ray del clásico de 1933 que también han salido, siendo por tanto esta una edición que se ve sin problema en la región B ya que es francesa. Lo primero decir que toma como base tanto la película como los extras del celebérrimo DVD en dos discos que salió en el 2005 en la región 1 y que hizo disfrutar tanto a los aficionados que pudimos comprarlo. Esta edición , la norteamericana en DVD traía subtítulos en Español, en la película y no en los extras (Mas tarde en américa latina salió una edición en DVD que subtitulaba todo y doblaba al español latino la película). Pues bien este Blu-ray tiene audio y subtitulos en Español latinoamericano en la película y y subtitulos en español en todos los extras, ya de entrada por tanto es bienvenida la edición. De dos discos de aquella edición en DVD pasamos a uno solo en blu-ray que trae todos los contenidos, de aquellos dos discos. Calidad de imagen : A años luz de los DVD's de la editora Manga que se publicaron en España hacia 2006, que tenían calidad inferior al de la región 1 USA, y ciertamente mayor definición en la película y en todos los contenidos que el DVD de 2005. El sonido el original de la época, que era Mono que para el standard del momento en que se hizo era de una gran calidad. No olvidemos que aparte de la película en si, que son unos 100 minutos, este blu-ray trae mas de 3 horas de extras muy trabajados y de extraordinaria calidad que no dejan practicamente nada sin explicar o documentar sobre la película. En mi caso decir que la compra de esta película merece la pena, es un clásico y un film que lo tiene todo, buena producción y dirección (Cooper & Schoedsack), sonido (Murray Spivack), actores (Fay Wray , Robert Armstrong, Bruce Cabot, et...), una historia sólida de Ruth Rose sobre todo (cosa muy típica del cine de entonces y que se va perdiendo) y unos efectos especiales del genial Willis O'brien y una banda sonora de Max Steiner que la hacen inmortal. En su momento, en España tuvimos que comprar aquella mítica edición en DVD importada de America, esta vez podemos comprar esta edición en Blu-ray europea, mas barata y con mas resolución y calidad. Siendo como soy un gran admirador de esta película no puedo por menor que recomendarla, pero...atención al número de referencia que hay varias y cualquiera puede confundirse.