The avaricious Denham is the perfect villain. Denham has heard of a prodigious prehistoric primate on the island and plans a sort of faux fiction, hoping the beast and the beauty’s spontaneous reactions to each other will be film worthy.
Darrow is an out-of-work New Yorker hired by the fast-talking Carl Denham (played by Robert Armstrong) who whisks her off to Skull Island to star in his movie. He plotted backwards from there.įay Wray’s portrayal of Ann Darrow is perfect. They’re still stunning today.įilm historians claim that Cooper’s inspiration for the film derived from a dream of a giant gorilla fighting biplanes from atop the Empire State Building. The film’s stop-action special effects, perfected by Willis O’Brien, were stunning. King Kong grossed $90k its opening weekend.
The tale of going ashore on an unknown island and encountering a massive ape, huge spiders, and dinosaurs was keyed perfectly to popular tastes.
In 1933, with the depression in full swing, escapist films were far more attractive to the movie-going public than gritty, realistic drama or overbearing social commentary. Will beauty and her beast survive a crazy night in New York? It stars Robert Armstrong ( The Mad Ghoul and The Most Dangerous Game), Fay Wray ( Black Moon and Doctor X), and Bruce Cabot ( Smoky, Avalanche, and Divorce). Cyclops and Mighty Joe Young) and features special effects by Willis O’Brien. Cooper ( The Last Days of Pompeii and The Four Feathers) and Ernest B. It’s about animal cruelty in the big apple.