Rank the King Kong Movies

[Legion]

Well there's...

King Kong (1933)
King Kong Escapes
King Kong vs Godzilla

and...ummm....well...

Honestly I just don't like the '76 film, King Kong Lives or Peter Jackson's version. Can't really rank them.

[jellydonut25]

^Son of Kong???

[Gojilove]

You guys. Lest we not forget King Kung Fu?!

[Pkmatrix]

Ladies and gentlemen, prepare the throwing tomatoes!

1. King Kong (2005) - Granted that it has a bunch of problems (too long, poor pacing, too many characters), I still think this is the best Kong film and one of the best Giant Monster movies in general of the last 40 years.

2. King Kong (1933) - Nothing will EVER take away this film's place in history, it's magic, or its wonder. I still love this film, but it is a product of its era and the result is a very simplified story with very flat characters. As I've said in the past, the impression one gets from watching 2005 and 1933 back to back is that the 2005 film is the book that the 1933 film is adapting.

3. Mighty Joe Young (1949) - This is a great and under-appreciated movie, IMO. Yeah, Kong technically isn't in this, but you can't talk about King Kong and NOT talk about Mighty Joe Young.

4. Son of Kong - A fun sequel, though obviously not as great or iconic as the original.

5. King Kong (1976) - I honestly do not understand the hate for this movie. When I was a child I hated it because when I asked my father to rent King Kong he rented the '76 version instead (which I didn't know existed) and was upset because there were no dinosaurs. Watching it as an adult, though, it's a good film on its own and not worth the hate so many genre fans lash at it with.

6. King Kong vs. Godzilla (US Cut) - This used to be one of my favorite Godzilla films, but rewatching it as an adult I could barely stand it. It's dropped significantly in all my rankings because of how terrible it is. I'd like to see the Japanese cut, though, because I suspect that version is much better.

7. King Kong Escapes (US Cut) - I hate King Kong Escapes. There, I said it. I've only seen the US Cut, but it's been painful torture every time. The movie is AWFUL. For the longest time this movie was mythical for me because it was impossible to find and the one time I had a chance to get a fansubbed bootleg on VHS, I opted for Gamera 2 instead. Reading about it in G-Fan and, later, on the Internet just built it up as this truly great kaiju film, as one of the best in the genre. Finally, I got to see it when the US DVD came out. And? It's TERRIBLE. Why do people like this movie? Is it for Mechanikong and Dr. Who alone? I don't get it. Maybe the Japanese cut is way better? I'm holding out hope that that is the case.

8. Mighty Joe Young (1998) - This movie is BAD. Oh GOD is this movie bad. I'm just glad nobody remembers it.

9. King Kong Lives - Oh God. I saw the first half-hour of this movie way back in the early '90, actually before I was a genre fan, as part of a planned double feature with Mothra. Mothra was great, but KKL was a tantalizing mystery because I never got to see where the story was going. Fast forward 20 years. Due to various circumstances, I did not get another chance to rewatch Mothra until the Icons of Toho set came out and I LOVED it. It was everything I remembered and more, easily one of my absolute favorite films. I had received KKL for Christmas back in 2005, but didn't sit to watch it until 2012. It is one of the worst Giant Monster movies I've ever seen. SO BAD. SO SO BAD. x_x

I've never seen the Japanese cuts of KKvG or KKE, so those two might rank higher after I do. I've never seen The Mighty Kong either, but I've heard some rather awful things, so I don't expect it to be all that high.

[klen7]

[MekaGojira3k]

[kiryugoji04]

KILL THE HERETIC.

[Gwangi]

For me, it is ridiculous to put the original Kong movie with the others, since it is head and shoulders above them all (heck, above any giant monster film in my book).

The more intriguing part is looking at the other Kong and semi-Kong movies and making the list of out of that:

1. King Kong Escapes - fun movie. Dr. Who is a great villain (thanks in part to Eisei Amamoto and Paul Frees).

2. Mighty Joe Young - first saw this movie on 8mm film back in the day. Loved it then, love it now.

3. King Kong vs. Godzilla - yes, this movie has taken a beating, and it is one where many fans want to see a remake. The movie is not perfect, but the final battle does deliver.

4. Son of Kong - the film does looked rushed, but I always found it very underrated (and underappreciated). The stop-motion is top-notch.

5. Mighty Joe Young (1998) - it was a worthy remake, and one where we were fortunate enough not to have globs of CGI.

6. King Kong (2005) - very ambitious attempt. Let's just say that both helped and hindered this movie.

7. King Kong (1976) - I actually enjoyed the beginning, but once Kong makes his first appearance, it became very standard (something Peter Jackson tried to avoid, but ended up overdoing it).

8. King Kong Lives - I've seen this move once or twice. Really did not think much of it.

9. The Mighty Kong - dreadful musical cartoon adaptation.

[Pkmatrix]

[klen7]

[lhb412]

[MekaGojira3k]

[jellydonut25]

I understand the love for King Kong Escapes....I dunno if I agree with it, but I get it.

[sentaison]

Well here's my list:

1. King Kong (1933)-The original "giant monster" movie of the sound era. Compared to the modern effects of today it does look dated, but without it, I'm hard pressed to believe we would have anything like what we have of a kaiju genre on film or tv.

2. King Kong vs. Godzilla-I honestly like King Kong Escapes better, but this is the iconic Godzilla film in popular culture. When most people think "Godzilla movie", this is what pops up in their mind.

3. King Kong Escapes-This film is just so much fun. I think the description of live action cartoon fits it perfectly. It's too bad Toho and Rankin-Bass couldn't make more of these.

4. Mighty Joe Young-King Kong with a happy ending. King Kong Escapes barely edges this out in my opinion, but it is probably the best work of Willis O'Brien's career.

5. King Kong (2005)-I do like this film, but it really suffers from Peter Jackson's weakness in wanting to pad the film with a lot of extraneous story. But he gets the heart of the film right.

6. Son of Kong-A decent sequel to the orignal, but it's almost forgotten these days it seems. I'm trying to remember the last time I saw it on tv, and I've never gotten a video of it.

7. Mighty Joe Young (1998)-Great effects and acting, but a little heavy handed on the anti-hunting message.

I have never seen King Kong Lives, and from what I've heard I'm not going to hunt it down.

[O.Supreme]

[DannyBeane]

[John Schuermann]

[John Schuermann]

I'll just rank the American Kong movies:

1. King Kong (well, for obvious reasons)
2. King Kong (a good try, but didn't quite match the brilliance and depth achieved by King Kong, IMO)
3. King Kong (this one just doesn't measure up to the other two, IMO).

[klen7]

so... 33, 05 then 76?

[John Schuermann]

Good guess

I can't rank the Toho films along with the American ones. I just can't. They are two different animals, if you know what I mean.

[Hybrid Gojira]

The original Kong is the best.

The American remakes (Kk 76, Lives) are the bottom.

I thought SOK was pretty good for what it was...and sad.

KK Escapes is nostalgic for me and I haven't watched it in ages. KK vs G is fun.

I liked KK 05 but it's pretentious and over the top much like most of Jackson's films...so much is going on and you're wishing the dino stampede would kill most of the people just because there's no way they should live through it. The ending was handled well, so I sort of think that redeems some of it.