Why I didn't like King Kong.

Um... there are some spoilers ahead, or something.

The movie opens with the Great Depression... or maybe it's just a depression. People are living in shacks by the zoo, wading through muddy make-shift streets and alleys, standing in soup lines, stealing food, going to Vaudeville shows! HEY It's a fun time at the old Vaudeville theater! People are dancing, having a good time then BAM! Depression again. Vaudeville's closed. Naomi Watts and her amazing CGI juggling are out of a job, and her friend an elderly gentleman actor desides to move back Chicago, did he I mention he was sort of a father figure? Cause he is... trust us! (us meaning the screenwriters) Yup, life pretty much sucks for Ann Darrow. She can't get a job as a serious actor and has no choice but to work at a burlesque. She can't catch a break.

Enter Carl Denham, played by Jack Black. Is he comic relief? Is he a horrible person that exploits people for his own personal gain? Is he a visionary filmaker who refuses to give up on his dream? YOU DECIDE! We certainly won't tell, we'll just leave it in a sort of awkward middle ground. Carl picks up Ann and takes her aboard his ship leaving for skull island, where he's filming his latest picture.

On the boat we meet Jack Driscoll, played by Adrien Brody. Ann happens to be a fan of Driscoll, who is the screen writer for the movie Denham is making and a playwright of some note. There are some sparks between Driscoll and Ann. They kiss, then the movie is over. Well technically there are two more hours of monkey fighting left after the kiss but that's about it.

The last 2 hours of the movie... maybe even more than that are devoted to character development for Kong. I suppose Phillipa and Pete thought, well since he can't talk, there is no way people will understand that Kong is to be pitied unless we spend TWO HOURS MAKING HIM THE MOST PITIFUL CREATURE IN CINEMA HISTORY! Kong's life sucks. We get it. Aren't there other characters in this story that we could learning about, maybe see grow? "No no," say the screenwriters, " don't you see Kong HELPED Ann, he's a good guy. See, he's not a monster. He's just tortured relentlessly by the creatures of the island, and revered by the Skull island natives for some inexplicable reason... No no... you don't understand... he doesn't want to hurt people... he just wants his friend back! He's a kind creature at heart. It's not his fault that he was gassed and put onstage and exploited then goaded into a rage by the blinding flashes of camera bulbs... don't you see? Kong is the victim here!" REALLY!? You think?!

The thing that really bothers me about this film is the fact that I can't put my finger on why I don't like this movie. The 3 hour running time was a bit much... but I thought that Peter Jackson would make good use of that time. Make a better Kong story. Maybe tell parts of the story that the original left out. I don't know. The one thing that suprised me about this movie is how much I liked Adrien Brody. I really like him in this movie. I thought he was terrific. Naomi Watts was good. She did a lot of screaming. Jack Black was... I didn't like Jack Black in this movie. Why would you cast Jack Black in this movie. His performance was inconsistant... he was good at the parts where he was supposed to be funny... well not really. I don't know. This movie puzzles me.