Arriving a full decade after producer Dino De Laurentiis’ 1976 monster hit, its too-little, too-late sequel, King Kong Lives, was DOA at the box office. Director John Guillermin returned; audiences did not. The entire landscape of cinema had changed in that 10-year gap, and it shows in the new film’s opening. As if an acknowledgment … Continue reading King Kong Lives (1986)
Toasts Charles Grodin’s sniveling corporate villain in the opening scene of 1976’s King Kong, “Well … here’s to the big one!” While he’s referring to his hunt for untapped petroleum on an Indonesian island, the comment winks at an audience fully aware that a big ol’ angry ape awaits. Personally, I can’t help but take … Continue reading King Kong (1976)
Thanks to the People’s Republic of China, Kingkong Is Coming Back! And copyright lawyers are nowhere in sight! That’s right: Kingkong, one word, as if that qualifies as ethical and saves the keisters of all involved parties from the threat of litigation. Still, this so-called “giant” gorilla isn’t large enough to hold anyone in the palm … Continue reading Kingkong Is Coming Back (2024)
After the cultural phenom Enter the Dragon brought Hong Kong cinema into the English mainstream by adding a dose of 007 DNA. However, it was Australia that best ran with Golden Harvest’s formula, producing the Ozploitation classic The Man from Hong Kong. To underline the Bond-ness of it all, they give it a catchy theme … Continue reading The Man from Hong Kong (1975)
According to producer Robert Walterscheid, King Kung Fu lost all but 20% of its roughly $200,000 investment. For regional indies, them’s the breaks; in this case, it is also totally deserved. Good job, American moviegoing public! However, I discovered one good reason to see the massive turd that is King Kung Fu: You live or … Continue reading King Kung Fu (1976)