Saw Kong: Skull Island (2017) by Jordan Vogt-Roberts at a local theatre last week.
Starring Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, John Goodman, Brie Larson, John C. Reilly, Corey Hawkins etc.
The most interesting part is probably the Tencent Pictures, the one Chinese entertainment corporation who also sponsored Warcraft (2016) movie. So they planted one of their favourite talent: Jing Tian, who attracted a lot of criticism back in China due to various reasons, including her lack of talent, alleged insider connections to get her pass auditions, and so on. It kinda shows in Kong: Skull Island, Jing Tian's character is rather dead. Her hinted romance with Corey Hawkins is just thrown away like that. Basically, you looked at that Tencent logo, noticed Jing Tian, and then how her character is delivered and how she acted, you just know that she was only "planted". And selling movies in China is her only in-movie job. She did that while being in Skull Island, chased by monsters.
Anyway, yeah, so this is MONARCH back in 1973, remember that arseholes? The organisation with so much dead Asian characters like Ken Watanabe, and this time Jing Tian. The world nearly ended because of their lack of social skills. Gladly, John Goodman is not. He successfully lobbied a D.C. guy, well to fund his pet project of finding monsters. Because cold war, we got USSR as the budget justification. Got it? And what could be more fitting other than going to Vietnam, baby? The Nam! Now, everybody seems to be hyped about Vietnam war era music, from Creedence Clearwater Revival to Jefferson Airplane, and predictably, the movie is filled with high quality musics. But that doesn't excuse the hum-drum plot progression thereafter.
We get to Samuel L. Jackson, a helicopter assault squadron colonel who is war-struck. The plot device is pretty much used to excuse military incompetence at dealing with unfamiliar enemies of unknown capabilities, and later, to built tense. Well, this villainous military angle came after the Americans came to terms with spitting at Vietnam war veterans, and now ever-worshiping them with banal greetings and expression of neutral gratefulness. What an angle!
Then we have the world war 2 part, where the "Skull Island" was a big mystery back then. A Mustang with Normandy invasion markings crashed, and a Japanese with his "mentioned" Zero crashed into it and simply enrich the plot further.
Then there is the charming posh green-looking ex-SAS operative (played by Hiddleston with little make up) building on-screen romance with the anti war activists / reporter / token feminist character played by Brie Larson. Every hero character needs the audiences' sympathy, but Brie Larson's don't, she is a straight forced activist / feminist show off from the start.
In this movie, Kong is the king, Kong is the force of nature, and he is the act of "balance", remember this tune? Well, if yes, you should be curious about what is at the other tip of the see saw, what sort of balance are we maintaining? No spoiler there.
Then there is the Unfortunate Ones under Samuel L. Jackson's command. This movie were much more like Band of Assault Helicopter Crew Brothers meeting a P-51D camouflaged for Normandy Invasion, Pacific theatre fighting US Army Air Force veteran pilot. If it weren't for the meddling hodge podge of drama acting class of civilians, this movie will be just another military science fiction porn.
Why is this movie getting rave reviews even from the tight ones like Rotten Tomatoes? Well, perhaps because critics nowadays are easily impressed by good classic musics? But that's not the case, I think are we afraid that we might jeopardise another effort to balance the trade with China? Nope! I think it is because of 2017, and people are easily getting offended, and critics are too afraid to offend people nowadays. But I will give it a decent and fair 6 out of 10, why? It is good, but just not that "good enough". Everything falls flat, no shining stars, just too many people waiting for their turn to talk, and monsters fighting helicopters and other monsters.