The Kong File: The one that was the first sequel

 

 

Title: Son of Kong

What Year?: 1933

Classification: Weird Sequel

Rating: It’s Okay! (3/4)

 

As I write this, I’m looking at things to clear out my backlog, and that brought me to an idea I’ve had on hold for quite a while. It’s nothing less than a survey of the oldest, most influential and most eclectic science fiction franchise of all time, which has already figured frequently on this blog and my fiction and non-fiction as a whole. Needless to say, I will be looking at the obscure and very odd outliers of a wild and woolly franchise whose management has been uneven to put it mildly. There was no better place to start than ground zero. I present Son Of Kong, the very first sequel to the original monster movie blockbuster.

Out story begins with Carl Denham, the adventurer and showman who brought King Kong to New York, now at the center of a very realistic wave of litigation. To stay out of court and perhaps improve his finances, Denham sets out on another expedition to Skull Island, following an obviously unreliable rumor of treasure. Everyone’s back except Anne and Jack, including the minority comic relief cook. Along the way, they pick up a new romantic interest, a clearly untrustworthy sailor who might know about the island, and finally a smaller and more friendly Kong. There’s wacky hijinks, strange creatures, and old fashioned heroics ahead as the expedition explores the island. But when the island is destroyed by a volcanic eruption, it will take all their daring do to get out alive!

Son of Kong was a 1933 science fantasy film by RKO, created as a sequel to King Kong released the same year. The film was the only direct sequel to Kong made by RKO and the cast and crew of the original film. A script was created by Ruth Rose, credited as co-writer on the original film; Rose stated that the script was written to replace all dramatic elements with comedy. The film starred Robert Armstrong returning as Carl Denham and Helen Mack as his romantic interest, identified as Hilda but not named in the film. Other returning cast included Frank Reicher as Captain Engelhorn, Victor Wong as Charlie and Noble Johnson as the islanders’ chief. Fay Wray and Bruce Cabot did not participate, nor was there any evidence that they were offered the opportunity to do so. Willis O’Brien again created special effects for the film, which were limited by RKO’s decision to complete and release the film by the end of 1933. Armstrong reportedly favored the sequel for the expanded role of his character. It was not otherwise well-regarded by critics or fans, and became largely obscure. In 2005, the film was released as a set with the original film and Mighty Joe Young. It is currently available on digital platforms including free streaming from Tubi.

For my experiences, the real background here is the misadventures I went through to get the original King Kong in the 1990s-early 2000s, which I covered when I reviewed the 1976 De Laurentiis remake (see also Mighty Peking Man). After the difficulties I went through for that, I was neither optimistic about nor particularly interested in finding the present film, which I definitely knew about. I finally watched when I got the “franchise” box set as a gift, around the time the 2005 remake came out. Once I did see it, I immediately found my opinions mixed. On one hand, it was obviously far inferior to the original, as well as clearly further weighed down by the rushed production. On the other hand, it is far better than one might gather from casual accounts, and in certain lights better than it had any right to be.

Moving forward, the obvious strengths of the movie lie in the cast, which is mostly a case of leaving well enough alone. Armstrong as Denham is as good as before if not better, in situations that genuinely develop his character. The inherited supporting cast prove that they were always part of the successful equation, especially Johnson (see my rants under Gone With The Wind and Ingagi), with Wong coming up from behind as underrated. Most impressively, Mack is in many ways an improvement on Wray. By my assessment, she gives her character a more mature and melancholy quality than Ann Darrow, which is all the more striking since she was actually significantly younger. That coupled with Armstrong’s more subdued character gives a chemistry far more interesting than that of `the original leading pair. (On the other hand, the real-life age difference gives a solid cringe.) Beyond these obvious points, the story truly builds on the original with some surprisingly realistic consequences. There are even moments where the effects and camerawork improve rather embarrassingly on the previous film, particularly a trip through a half-submerged cave and a dynamic head-on shot of a charging cave bear.

That leaves the stop-motion, which is normally where I would be holding myself back. The unfortunate reality is, it’s not hard to envision the film done just as well entirely without them. The little Kong is a fine creation that takes the art and technology in new directions (compare especially with the prince in Sinbad and the Eye of the Tiger). In far too many ways, however, it’s a case of too much and not enough. The animation isn’t nearly up to the standards of other O’Brien films. (And if you don’t want to be horrified and depressed, do not look up his biography for this time period…) At the same time, the “cute” moments tend to be predictable at best and overdone at worst, with only a mishap with a gun really building on the character. The problems are magnified with the other creatures. The best of the lot is a ceratopsian, originally in the “spider pit” scene of the original, while the bear and a briefly seen plesiosaur both pass. Things get far more difficult with the dragon-like creature of the intended climactic battle, which is the best explanation I can think of for certain talk of a spinosaur somewhere in the franchise. It should have been among O’Brien’s work, and it is by all means very good, yet there are too many corners cut in both the model and the animation, egregiously the uncanny eyes. The common denominator is that only the laziest, greediest suits could have thought that an early release date was a fair trade for the money and time that could have been put into improving the effects. It gets that much harder to take little Kong’s repeatedly extended digit as anything but an expression of Obie’s feelings on the studio system.

Now for the “one scene”, I was honestly debating between a few choices. I finally skipped ahead in the review just to take a look at one of them. At only the 13-minute mark, the leading lady is introduced as Helen, the star attraction of a late-colonial backwater theater. As she takes the stage, Charlie loudly claps, conspicuously alone. She then goes into her predictably underwhelming act, while the camera mercilessly shows the silent stares of the audience. In the middle, we cut to Denham and the captain as they comment at her expense. Denham says in her defense, “She’s got personality… if someone would show her what to do with it.” It’s an effective introduction to a character. The truly funny part for the seasoned bad-movie veteran is that as not-great as it is, the “joke” act is still vastly better than plenty of completely “straight” musical numbers. And that reminds me, I have to do something with Wild World Of Batwoman…

In conclusion, what I come back to is what I am always saying about sequels (see Ghostbusters 2). Sequels are always going to be stuck between studio management, fans and general audiences who have consistently failed to comprehend the things that make an actually good one. The present film is at face value depressing proof that things were no different in the days when sound film was a new and nearly unknown medium. The brighter side is that it proves that even maximum interference and stupidity are not quite enough to keep genuine merit from shining through. The final proof is that I can absolutely say that this film is nowhere near the worst one I have considered for this lineup. And with that, I’m going to go lie down for a while.