King Kong
The most exciting original motion picture event of all time.
King Kong (1976)
Production
Budget
$24 000 000
Revenue
$52 614 445
Director
Scenario
James Ashmore Creelman
Composer
Producer
Actors
Jeff Bridges
Jack F. Prescott
Jessica Lange
Dwan
Charles Grodin
Fred S. Wilson
John Randolph
Captain Ross
René Auberjonois
Roy Bagley
Julius Harris
Boan
Jack O'Halloran
Joe Perko
Ed Lauter
Carnahan
Short description
A petroleum company sends an expedition to a remote Pacific island hoping to find new oil deposits. A palaeontologist sneaks aboard, intent on studying whatever wildlife the island holds, and during the voyage the group rescues a shipwrecked actress. The island turns out to be inhabited, and its people worship a gigantic gorilla they call Kong. When the search for oil comes up empty, the expedition's leader decides to capture the animal and put it on display for audiences in New York, a plan that ends in destruction.
John Guillermin directed the film, which followed The Towering Inferno in his filmography and preceded Death on the Nile. Dino De Laurentiis produced through his company alongside Paramount, with Lorenzo Semple Jr. writing the screenplay and Jeff Bridges, Jessica Lange and Charles Grodin heading a cast of 38. It is a remake of the 1933 film of the same name.
Made for 23 million dollars, the film took about 91 million dollars worldwide. On IMDb it holds 6 out of 10 from roughly 38,000 votes, and on TMDB 6.3 out of 10 from around 950 votes. A critics' rating of 5.1 out of 10 from 51 reviews sits below both audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- The film is based on the novel by Marian K. Cooper and Edgar Wallace.
- Directors such as Roman Polanski and Sam Peckinpah declined to direct the film.
- Carlo Rambaldi made four versions of the ape, filled with electronics – from a 1.5-meter one to a 13-meter one, which appeared on screen for less than a minute.
- Makeup artist Rick Baker appeared in one of the episodes in a King Kong costume – working on 'bringing to life' the gorilla's features.
- The film was shot in Hawaii, Los Angeles, San Pedro, and New York.
- Filming took place from January 15 to August 27, 1976.
- The working title of the film was “King Kong: Legendary Rebel.”
- “King Kong” marked the debut for 27-year-old model Jessica Lange.
- The film ranks 22nd in attendance among foreign films in Soviet cinema distribution.
- The scenes filmed on the island, where the heroes pass through an arch in the cliff and then climb the slope, were shot in Hawaii, on the north side of the island of Kauai.
- Scenes in which Kong had to fight prehistoric monsters were cut from the script for budgetary reasons. Within the film's budget, only Kong's fight with a giant python could be filmed.
- In addition to the theatrical release version, this film has a so-called extended version, which is 45 minutes longer than the first. This version, lasting three hours and divided into two parts, was shown on American television in the early 80s, and it was its broadcasts that revived interest in the film. It is also known that the full version was much more favorably received by both critics and fans of the original 'King Kong'. The full version has never been released on cassette or disc.
- Michael Winner was a candidate for the director's position.
- Bo Derek and Britt Ekland were considered for the role of Dwan.
- The plot generally repeats that of the film "King Kong" (1933), but differs from it in details: A film crew is replaced by an oil exploration group that arrives on the island and discovers Kong. The character of Jessica Lange is much more concerned about her career than about the fate of the captured Kong (when they are left alone on the island after the "sacrifice," she even tries to hit him and screams hysterically, calling him a monkey, but later, on the tanker, she tries to calm him down so that he doesn't destroy the ship). In New York, King Kong climbs not the Empire State Building, but one of the buildings of the World Trade Center. Kong is shot down not by biplanes, but by military helicopters. Kong fights not a Tyrannosaurus, but a giant python.
- Barbra Streisand was considered for the role of Dwan.
- To film the shots of King Kong holding the heroine Jessica Lange in his hand, enormous gorilla hands were created with hydraulic drives. Each such hand weighed 750 kg. Their construction was completed after filming had already begun. Producer Dino De Laurentiis was invited for testing. He walked towards the studio building, and a huge hand extended in the same direction, after which the fist slowly relaxed, and the middle finger pointed upwards. At that moment, something broke in the fist, and it froze motionless. Repair took a week, and all that time the middle finger pointed upwards.
- Rick Baker (special effects and makeup artist) created four gorilla suits for the film. Under the gorilla's skin was a special suit filled with silicone, which realistically emphasized the animal's muscles. The animatronic hands were operated by technicians located outside the set.
- King Kong, over 12 meters tall, consisted of an aluminum frame (weighing 3.5 tons) covered with rubber and horsehair tails sewn onto it (460 kg). Inside, there were over 900 meters of hydraulic hoses and almost 1,400 meters of electrical wiring. 20 operators controlled Kong, and its construction cost $1.7 million.
- The climactic scenes in New York were filmed in June 1976, and 5,000 extras were called for the shoot. However, over 30,000 people showed up, and everyone was given a role.
- Outraged by the filmmakers' decision to shoot the finale of the remake of the original film “King Kong” (Merian C. Cooper and Ernest B. Schoedsack, 1933) in the World Trade Center building, employees of the Empire State Building, dressed in monkey costumes, organized protest actions on the 102nd floor of the skyscraper.
- King Kong's sounds are credited to Peter Cullen, who wasn't even mentioned in the credits, despite dedicating himself to the work to the point of straining his vocal cords so much that he sometimes coughed up blood.
- William Cronick later recalled preparing for the filming of the film's finale, in which, among other things, Kong passes by a priest on the steps of St. Patrick's Cathedral. This all took place on a stifling summer evening. The filmmakers needed to block off traffic on 5th Avenue for several blocks on either side of the cathedral. The only lights on were those in the cathedral and nowhere else. Among other things, it was necessary to prepare a scene with a carriage without a driver and resolve many other issues. And when all the issues were resolved and everything was ready, it suddenly started to rain, and the filming had to be canceled, and everything had to start over the next day.
- Producer Dino De Laurentiis had only two requirements for the remake: that the action take place in the present day and that the recently built Twin Towers of the World Trade Center feature in the film.
- The scene with the World Trade Center had to be filmed twice, and cost nearly a quarter of a million dollars. Approximately 45,000 extras participated in the filming – to this day, it is the largest scene in the history of cinema.
- To convey various emotions of King Kong, special effects artists Carlo Rambaldi and Rick Baker created seven masks. It was necessary to use different masks because all the electrical wiring and mechanical devices required to display a particular expression could not fit into a single mask. Each mask consisted of a plastic skull on which facial muscles were placed with control wires attached to them, which ran inside the costume through the legs, and a rubber skin was placed over everything. Hydraulic drives were responsible for the movement of the masks, and operators controlled everything with remote controls. Baker, who played Kong, wore contact lenses to make his eyes look like those of a gorilla.
- Following the September 11, 2001 attacks, Paramount Home Video voluntarily recalled all sold DVD copies of the film with a cover depicting Kong on the roof of one of the World Trade Center buildings surrounded by helicopters. The DVD was subsequently re-released with a different cover.
- While working on the models of the World Trade Center buildings, the film's artist Dale Hennessy used the original blueprints of the buildings, which allowed him to create the models with meticulous detail. Among other things, the main square was recreated (built on the studio grounds), and this set featured a three-dimensional model of the South Tower and a two-dimensional model of the North Tower.
- To film the scene where King Kong breaks a subway train traveling on the surface, a large section of track and several miniature subway cars with appropriate graffiti (from the 1970s) were constructed. A cable was attached to one of the cars, which lifted the car in the scene where Kong lifts it and then throws it into the wall of a building. A series of explosions were arranged in a similar manner after the car hits the wall. According to Baker, the explosions were so powerful that he seriously feared his gorilla suit would catch fire, which fortunately did not happen.
- Originally, it was intended for Fred, played by Charles Grodin, to survive. Dino De Laurentiis planned to make a sequel soon and asked Grodin if he would be willing to reprise the role. However, when audiences at previews disliked that Kong was aiming to crush Fred with his foot but missed, the scene was rewritten and Grodin's character died (which automatically resolved the issue of his participation in any sequels).
- In addition to Kong and his hands, Carlo Rambaldi constructed a full-scale pair of gorilla legs (the legs were shown in the scene with Jessica Lange's character on the tanker, in the scene of the character played by Charles Grodin's death, and in the scene on the roof of one of the World Trade Center buildings). He also constructed a full-size rubber figure of Kong lying on the asphalt after the fall.
- For some shots in the helicopter scene, Rick Baker stood on a platform, and real helicopters fired blanks at it (forced perspective was used here, making the helicopters appear closer). The casings fell on Baker, but thanks to the Kong suit, he barely felt them.
- Steven Spielberg could have directed the film, but he was busy filming 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' (1977).
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Auditions in India
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Castingi w Polsce
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