King Kong ***
Cast: Naomi Watts, Jack Black, Adrien Brody, Andy Serkis, Jamie Bell, Kyle Chandler, Thomas Kretschmann
Director: Peter Jackson
Running Length: 3:07
MPAA Classification: PG-13

Carl Denham (Black) is a filmmaker who wants to get his film made. The problem is that creditors are after him and he is missing a leading lady. Ann Darrow (Watts) is an out of work actress who stumbles across Denham's path. When she agrees, they make a hasty retreat to the "Venture", the ship that will take them to the filming location. In the process, he manages to strand screenwriter Jack Driscoll (Brody) on board. Soon, they ae heading for Skull Island.
Once there, the filming begins, only to be interrupted by the natives, who have a tendency to remove the heads from their victims. Ann is offered up as a sacrifice to the dominant male of the island, a big ape by the name of Kong (Serkis). Instead of killing her, he develops a crush on her. After a long chase on the island, we go back to New York for the fateful ending.

"King Kong" is a good movie, full of action, special effects, and heart. Serkis gives Kong a realness that has not been seen before. The action is tense and unrelenting. Black and Brody do good jobs as their respective characters. Watts shows she can act convincingly with a green screen. The biggest drawback to this film is the running time. At over three hours, "King Kong" is at least an hour too long. This is not an epic tale, despite getting the epic treatment, and the film is hurt by it. Fans of Peter Jackson (and there are many) will no doubt be thrilled by everything in this movie, and for them I recommend this film highly. Otherwise, you may want to wait to DVD so you can have access to a pause button.