 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
   |
KING KONG ESCAPES Starring Rhodes Reason, Akira Takarada and Linda Miller Toho, the film production company responsible for the Godzilla franchise, had made a great deal of money at the box office worldwide with their Kaiju Eiga, or giant monster movie series, into the late 1960s. One film that brought about such success was King Kong Vs. Godzilla. The movie had done so well that they filmed a follow-up, King Kong Escapes. Kong escaped the movie houses and drive-ins across the globe, and invaded television next. A long-time running favorite among weekend and late-night science fiction film television viewers, King Kong Escapes had never been released on home video in the US. After over 25 years since the release of the home video format, King Kong Escapes comes to DVD courtesy Universal Home Video.
United Nations scientists Commander Karl Nelson, Lt. Susan Watson and Lt. Jiro Nomura are on an expedition to Mondo Island, the home of the legendary King Kong. They are seeking to find the truth and gain prestige from their terrific discovery. When they are confronted with the legend-come-to-life, they witness a battle between Kong and Gorosaurus, a tyrannosaurus-like resident on the island. They escape and hold a public convention announcing to the UN that they have come face-to-face with the legend. Another expedition is planned to study Kong in his natural habitat.
Dr. Who, a world-renowned mad doctor, has partnered up with an Asian country bent on world domination. He creates Mechni-Kong, an electronic replica of the real King Kong, to mine a new radioactive material, Element X. Mechni-Kong fails, succumbing to magnetic damage to its circuits. Dr. Who then kidnaps the real Kong and the UN team. Kong escapes, and Madame X (the representative of the unnamed Asian country) double-crosses Dr. Who by setting the UN team free. Kong lands in Tokyo, and is pursued by the repaired Mechni-Kong. Their battle leads the top of a great tower, where one false move can lead to either monster's demise..... Although not as popular as King Kong Vs. Godzilla, King Kong Escapes has a decent story and strong entertainment value. Kong is portrayed a bit more innocently (as in the original King Kong) than his character in King Kong Vs. Godzilla. Kong seems to want to do the right thing, and is in no way conniving about his moves against an opponent (when he battled Godzilla, he seemed to enjoy having the upper-hand a bit TOO much).
Universal Home Video presents King Kong Escapes in anamorphic widescreen at 2.35:1. The image quality is superb. If there are any specs or scratches present, they are hard to find. The image is sharp and colorful, and as in Universal's release of King Kong Vs. Godzilla, the black levels are very good. In many cases where a film is remastered for DVD, black levels tend to be off, appearing either navy blue or dark green. Universal has taken great care with mastering this release. The Dolby Digital mono soundtrack is clean and full. The music and sound effects really shine through and it is highly probable that the film will never sound any better than it does on this disc.
There are no extras included on this disc, but the fact that the film is being released at all for purchase is a blessing. The image/sound quality is top-notch for a film that was released nearly 40 years ago. With this release, audiences get to experience Japan's interesting interpretation of the film icon known as King Kong all over again.
|
   |
||||||||||
