I do agree with anyone who says that the 2005 film isn't as good as the 1933 classic, but I did think it was very good. Many complained of the first hour or so being too slow, but I didn't find that. The stunning cinematography actually more than compensated, and throughout the movie Naomi Watts is a delight as Ann Darrow. Jack Black was an admittedly odd choice as Carl Denham but he still manages a worthwhile performance. Although Kong doesn't appear until an hour and a quarter into the movie, he was flawlessly designed, and credit also must go to Andy Serkis for performing him, as he did a fantastic job. In fact, the only weak performance comes from Adrien Brody, his performance was a little too wimpy for my liking. The film is superbly designed, with the amount of detail evident, and the direction from Peter Jackson was excellent. However, I was disturbed by a number of scenes, like any part with the aborigines, and when that flower thing sucked that man's face. My other criticism of the movie, was that although the scenes with Ann and Kong were well handled on the most part, I found the ice skating bit a bit too slushy and unconvincing. Despite the flaws King Kong may have, it was still a very good film, that I will happily award a 7/10. Bethany Cox

Peter Jackson has said that the original KING KONG was the movie that inspired him to be a film-maker in the first place, so it's only fair that he's the helmer of this multi-million dollar blockbuster. Now, I'm the first to admit that the whole Kong mythos has been done to death – the original movie was an absolute classic which nothing can touch; the sequels and Japanese rip-offs were largely forgettable, and the 1976 remake was diabolical. Still, Jackson was on a high after his astonishing LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy, so it was with eager expectations that I watched this movie.

The first hour is fantastic, building up a totally realistic portrayal of 1930s America during the Depression and Prohibition eras. The script is smart, witty and contains plenty of humour to keep things moving along nicely, and the camera-work is excellent; the movie looks tremendous, a visual style pretty much unmatched elsewhere. Jackson works hard at characterisation, so that by the time the guys reach Skull Island, you get a good image of all the major cast members and and what their characters are like. While I'm on the subject, the acting is uniformly good; Adrien Brody is likable as the hero, Jack Black also likable despite being the real villain of the movie, whilst Naomi Watts, although trying a little too hard in places, is pretty good – although no Fay Wray, it has to be said. The supporting cast are outstanding – from Colin Hanks' understated turn to Thomas Kretschmann (so sadistic as the killer in THE STENDHAL SYNDROME) as the salt-of-the-earth sea captain. Jamie Bell works hard, too, to bring sympathy to his minor role, whilst the delightful Andy Serkis steals every single scene as the ship's cook – give this man more roles, please! The second hour involves a massive jungle trek as our increasingly depleted party face off against some prehistoric nasties. Here's where the film gets less good – Jackson is so busy having fun with all his new sparkling CGI creations, he loses the focus of the story, and Kong's match against three Tyrannosaurs quickly becomes tiresome. Still, an interlude in which the heroes fall into a bug pit and are set upon by various centipedes, cockroaches, and slugs is good sick fare, and there's the unforgettable sight of a man being chewed upon by a massive slug which alone makes the entire film worth watching. Speaking of horror, it's in good supply here, from the aforementioned insect escapade, to the Orc-like natives who are gruesome in appearance, to moments of casual violence that reveal Jackson's background – the flying tongue scene, for instance, is one to remember.

The final third sees Kong returning to the city and going on his climatic rampage. Here, things play out pretty predictably, with the addition of a cheesy ice-skating sequence that should have been excised in interests of soppiness. The special effects are well up to the job as Kong goes on his rampage of destruction, so you'll find things totally believable; the giant ape himself, half-acted by Andy Serkis once again, is totally convincing and true to life – but he's still not a patch on that plasticine model we all know and love from the 1933 classic.

The major flaw with this film is its length – half an hour to an hour could easily have been cut out and it would have been a much better, tighter movie. As it is, there are problems with pacing, and some utterly cheesy sequences that belong in a JURASSIC PARK sequel – the vine-swinging T-Rexes are particularly embarrassing, and you find it hard to believe that Jackson himself didn't see this fatal error. Other than that, the film looks good, feels good and IS good – not up there with the original but still pretty damn close.

It's 1933 New York, moviemaker Carl Denham (Jack Black) needs to finish his movie and has the perfect location in mind; Skull Island. So he takes leading lady Ann Darrow (Naomi Watts),script writer Jack Driscoll (Adrien Brody),and his crew to the mysterious island.

Director Peter Jackson remakes one of his childhood favorites. Everybody concentrates on King Kong and Andy Serkis masterful performance in capture motion CG. That is undeniably one great aspect of this movie. There are other things that's superb. Naomi Watts is amazing. She nails the golden age movie star. In many scenes, she completely sells it when all we have is her and a CG ape. Adrien Brody and Jack Black are lesser only by comparison. Jack Black is too cartoonish. But nothing that detracts from the movie. There are some great CG action. But the one that's truly creepy is the bugs scene. That's some nasty stuff.