King Kong revisited

Saw King Kong again after--ten? twelve?--years, and better still,
recorded it. Crummy VHS copy, but that's better than staring
wistfully at the Netflix link to the Jessica Lange remake (good luck
to the Peter Jackson production--he has huge shoes to fill).

What can I say? It's a thriller, built to tell its story as fast as
possible. The first few scenes keep hammering home the several plot
points that the expedition's destination is "mysterious," that the
crew is "tough," and that they're armed with rifles and plenty
of "gas grenades." Only the scenes with Ann (Fay Wray) really stand
out (almost in contrast)--that haunting fog-shrouded moment when she
reaches out for an apple (is she stealing it or buying it?), and the
extended scene where, decked out in her Beauty costume, she receives
instructions from Denham (Robert Armstrong) to look terrified, so
terrified that she can't scream, and if she covered her eyes maybe
she can let one out. She covers her eyes; she screams (as only Fay
Wray could); and then (delicious, delicious touch) Driscoll
flinches, not out of fear, but out of fear for her (two character
details, one of them an important plot development, revealed in a
single moment).

I love it that they gradually learn that the native ritual they
stumble into is a wedding, the girl in the middle is the bride, and
left it at that; I love it that Ann keeps saying she's glad to be on
the trip, that she's glad Driscoll couldn't keep her on the boat;
and when she finally is the star of the night, the look on her face
is as much pleasurable thrill as it is terror. Kong's subtext is
kidnap and rape (and wild, bestial (and interracial) sex), and
that's what gives much of what happens its lurid charge (that was
the mistake of the remake; it put everything in romantic soft-
focus). This was a big family hit back in the '30s, right? Can you
imagine all the young boys (wonder if it was as popular with the
girls?) being exposed to stuff like this?

And when the monsters finally come out--okay, forget that herbivores
shouldn't just charge without provocation (I'm looking at you,
Stegosaurus), but Kong's battles with the various animals are
actually well-thought-out battles. When he faces off with the T-Rex,
it's two wide-stanced wrestles angling for the best hold, the T-Rex
trying to reach with his long neck over Kong's thick back with his
razor teeth, Kong continually trying to push the Rex off-balance by
grabbing at one of his powerful feet (at one point he uses a judo
throw) and landing bone-crunching punches; he finally uses his
definitive advantage--his arms--and climbs on the Rex's back, and--
did I mention how violent this movie is?--rips his jaws apart. Less
elaborate but even more ingenious is how he deals with the whiplike
Plesiosaurus--by cracking him like a whip.

And of course, there's that little after-battle detail we all love
Kong for--cradling his conquest in his arms, examining their limp
necks for signs of life, he drops the corpse, beats a tattoo on his
chest and roars his triumph and approval. "I am Kong! Hear me roar!"
he is undoubtedly saying, but he could as easily be saying "This is
the life! Man, this is the life!"

Then there's his private session with Ann--it isn't just that he
sniffs her clothes, he tickles her and she can't help but respond,
kicking out her shapely legs; to top it off, he sniffs his fingers
after tickling her (Kong has a scent fetish). Did I mention
wondering how all the boys in the audience must be taking all this?

Finally there's the finale atop the Empire State: Ann is at the base
of the domed top, and Kong is hanging on to the dirigible docking
post, puzzled at why he's so hurt. He picks up Ann; puts her down,
then looks (the ambiguity is thrilling) like he's nuzzling her,
almost affectionately; if you hadn't been conquered by his frowning
at all the blood on his chest, you must have succumbed to this
(either that or you just ain't looking). It's perfect that Ann never
reciprocates, never returns his affections; this is Kong's tragedy,
not hers (Jessica Lang is a pretty good actress, but that her
character can grow to love a monster like that is not just a huge
stretch on credibility, it's soft-headed).

His final gesture just before he falls--why, he's hamming it up,
raising his arm in the air like Caruso about to sing his final aria,
or Hamlet about to take a bow. Cut to a long shot of a patently fake
dummy plummeting to its death. That it looks fake is immaterial; you
need that plummet, because that's exactly what you feel like doing
in response to Kong's fate; that sexist, brutal, murderous bastard
has committed the final crime of stealing your heart.

9/15/04