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If she's wondering why the animals were in small cages in the beginning, the answer is "Welcome to 1933, when animal care and well being in zoos was practically non-existent."

“I did not mentally prepare for that.” “…it’s ok, you have 3 hours to.” 😅

The graphics are so mind-blowing in this movie. I love how they actually made Kong look like a real gorilla (just super sized and battle scarred), even more astonishing to me is that the same man who played Gollum in The Lord Of The Rings trilogy and Caesar from Planet Of The Apes did the motion capture acting for Kong in this movie. Andy Serkis is amazing at what he does.

I love this movie. This was Peter Jackson’s followup to Lord of the rings, and Jackson has comeout and said the 1933 Kong movie is his favourite movie. When Adam Savage toured Jackson’s studio on Tested, Peter showed him that he owns one of the two armatures made for the shooting puppets of the original Kong. I remember before this movie came out a lot of people were afraid Jack Black would go comedic with the character, but now this is the movie I point to when I need to prove how versatile Jack Black is. He crushed it in this movie.

Man, King Kong 2005 is my favourite film of all time! The amount of world building that went into this single film is bonkers! This version of skull island is so fleshed out with history from the natives to the creatures that reside on the island, so cool! Massively underrated imo.

Jen about to watch the most famous movie ever about an animal dying: "do any animals die in this?" Holden: "whose to say 🤔"

Peter and the writers didn''t have to go that hard but they build an entire ecosystem of animals and fauna lore for this movie! Fun fact: The V-Rex was fictionally hypothesized to be what the T-Rex would have become if it were allowed to evolved unabated for millions of years after the original extinction of the dinosaurs; the animal's design was also meant to make it the "scariest thing Kong could fight". Additional fact Peter himself has confirmed that the rex's were imbreed bc of the lack of biodiversity. All from wiki. list of all the creatures that inhabit skull island. Abyscidis carnivore Aciedactylus carnivore Adlapsusaurus carnivore Aerosaurus carnivore Alatusaurus carnivore Aliepesaurus carnivore Ambulaquasaurus piscivore Arachno-claw carnivore Arsarticaedes carnivore Asperdorsus herbivore Aspiscimex carnivore Atercurisaurus herbivore Avarusaurus Omnivore Bear-croc Omnivore Bidensaurus carnivore Bifurcatops herbivore Bile-fin carnivore Bloodfish Omnivore Brightbird carnivore Brontosaurus herbivore Brutornis carnivore Burglar Monkey Omnivore Calcarisaurus carnivore Carnictis carnivore Carrion Centipede carnivore Carrion Parrot carnivore Carver carnivore Celocimex carnivore Chalyceratops herbivore Chamaeleo carnivore Contereobestiolla carnivore Cunaepraedator carnivore Cutiscidis carnivore Dapper Crow Omnivore Dark-wing carnivore Decarnocimex carnivore Deinacrida rex carnivore Deplector carnivore Diablosaurus herbivore Dinocanisaurus carnivore Discus carnivore Dirt Turtle Omnivore Dirusuchus carnivore Draco carnivore Dragonskin carnivore Dung Beetle Omnivore Estrivermis Falcatops Fallow Mantis Feather Devil Ferrucutus Fiery Carrion Parrot Firebellied Tree-talon Fire-side Foeducrista Foetodon Formicavoro Funucaris Furcidactylus Furcifer Gaur Giant Grey Agama Ghoulfish Gladiodon Great Grey Heron Gribbler Guard-bug Gyas Hairy Maggotfly Hamudon Hebeosaurus Howler Hydruscimex Hylaeornis Idolon Impurucaris Incultulepas Inoculopalus Javelin Jewelbug Killer-eel Ligocristus Limusaurus Lividuscutus Lividuvespa Loggerhead Lycaesaurus Malamagnus Malevolusaurus Martial Parrot Megapede Megalatus Megaprimatus Kong King Kong Monstrutalpus Moonspider Morsel Fish Mortaspis Mortifillex Needlemouth Nefacossus Nefundusaurus Nepalacus Noctupervagus Noxmuscus Novusaurus Omnimatercimex Ornate Carrion Beetle Osteodomus Panderichthys Papilio Peracerdon Pinnatono Piranhadon Pitchbug Prickle Fish Profanornis Profanus Pugbat Pugiodorsus Rapanatrix Rhadamanthus Rogue Fish Savage-gnat Scimitodon Scissor Beetle Scissor-head Scorpio-pede Scutucaris Segnix Sepulcro Sicklefin Shagfish Shaggywing Skin-bird Skull Island Egret Skull Islanders Skull Island Hawk Skull Island Hornbill Skull Island Meat Weevil Skull Island Snapper Skull Island White Bat Sparkleside Spinaculex Stickalithus Stink-fish Sun-fin Swamp-wing Sylvaceratops Tartarusaurus Terapusmordax Turturcassis Udusaurus Unguasilus Vastatosaurus rex Venatosaurus Virucinifis Volucerictis Vultursaurus Weta-rex White Wedgehead Wicked Weaver Zeropteryx

I liked how the T-Rex was already eating a dinosaur, but was determined to get Ann. Lol

This movie needs a sequel. Carl's in jail, the crowd wants justice for Kong and Anne. Anne didn't marry Jack because she's too heartbroken over Kong's death.

One of Jack Black's most underrated films.

I can't wait for Jen to see Kong: Skull Island, especially with Nick Fury, Loki, and Captain Marvel starring in it, lol.

This is Andy Serkis’s first time playing an Ape. Kind of a precursor to the planet of the apes remake movies in that regard

The 2005 Kong is the one I grew up with. It’s not just an excellent monster movie. Even in general as far as movies goes it’s an excellent one. The video game for it was also elite as well.

I was seven years old when this movie came out. Went back to the theater 10 times to watch it. Another phenomenal performance by Andy Serkis, who again, SHOULDVE GOT AN OSCAR!!! They need a motion capture award.

I love Jack Black’s performance in this. It’s so different from his other roles

For those who wonder why Herb the camera man didn't try to climb up to save himself is because he has a false leg, which would have made it impossible to climb up cliffs with. A cut bit showed on The Venture when Herb tinkers with a spare false leg and he tells the story of how he and Carl filmed sea lions and one attacked Herb which resulted the loss of his leg (plus his testicles as symbolically shown when Lumpy cracks open a walnut with a nut cracker in shape of a pair of women's legs). It's a shame this bit had to be cut because it would have been more obvious why Herb couldn't have climbed to safety when the raptors attacked him after the Brono/apato stampede.

Originally, Fay Wray (the original Ann Darrow) was going to say "It wasn't the aeroplanes. It was Beauty killed the Beast.". Peter Jackson got to meet with Fay a couple of times (the first time he visited her with Naomi to interview her about how she performed as Ann Darrow in research for the role) and he asked her to this cameo. First time she said no but the last time she said "Never say never.". Unfortunatley, she passed away on August 8 2004 before she could have her cameo filmed so Peter's dream of filming with Fay (who was his childhood crush) were crushed and therefore Carl Denham says the line as in the original.

So fun fact about the "Spider Pit" sequence. That was originally put in the 1933 King Kong, but (and there's various reasons given) the sequence was raken out with the common belief being the audience found it too gruesome for the time. Jackson not only put his own sequence in this movie, but took his own time and money to recreate the stop motion sequence as best he could based on the only still that's still available and filmed it as if it could've been in the 1933 film. Even he claimed the stop motion was very difficult so just imagine how groundbreaking it was back then. It could be found as a bonus feature on the blu ray

The choice of the cast was a 10 out of 10. Jack Black nailed it and Adrien Brody’s characteristic "desperate and tired“ facial expression was so fitting in that movie

You have to see the 1933 original this was based on. The effect at the time were MIND BLOWING - remember, in 1933 nobody saw effects like that at the time. It was the Star Wars of its day.

Peter Jackson King Kong will forever be the most iconic.

This movie is my favorite movie of all time... Thank you for bringing the OG movies

"pretty sure it was the airplanes" is basically how the terry pratchett parody of the scene ends too

As much as I love Skull Island...it has nothing on this one. Peter Jackson COOKED

This movie still looks good today, but lowkey that scene with the bugs is so creepy and it feels like there's no hope of escaping that scenario!

I forgot just how beautiful the ending to this film was. What a job by Peter Jackson to come off three back to back Lord of the Rings movies to give us this.

The ending is an iconic movie moment from the original. But the 1976 version is the one the sticks with me. The long, slow fade of the heartbeat is just brutally done in that version.

Was so happy to hear Holden mention super 8. My dad and I went to see it in theaters. He always comments how he had the best time growing up in the 70s. One of our favorite movies to watch together.

Still my favorite version of kong to date

the music in this is so good. James Newton Howard is a masterful composer. Jackson was gonna have his Lord of the Rings composer Howard Shore do the music, Shore even cameos as the conductor in that theater scene, but Shore got fired super late in the game and James Newton Howard came on extremely last minute and recorded an astounding amount of music in an incredibly short amount of time.

I love that the movie Jack black is filming on the ship in the beginning of the movie is actually a recreation of the original King Kong film from the 1930’s

Holden clapping when Kong is revealed to the theater audience is such an underrated joke

I was obsessed with the King Kong game on the og Xbox and ps2. I used to replay it every day, and to this day, I still come back to it to revisit it because of all the great memories I had with it!

I was born in 2000. One of the earliest memories I have is seeing this movie in theaters with my family. It was also the last movie we saw with my great grandma.

Couple of interesting tidbits: They were originally going to have the original actress of Ann, Fay Wrey, from the 1933 movie, have a cameo, delivering the last line delivered by Jack Black. "It was beauty killed the beast." However she passed away shortly before this could happen in 2004, shortly after meeting with Peter Jackson. Andy Serkis not only had the human role, but he played King Kong as well, and he came to play Cesar in Planet of the Apes.

I honestly couldnt stop laughing at the dramatic zoom-in of Holden's face @28:35 xDD the foreshadowing after Jen's Qs on how Kong would get home haha perfectly timed

Beauty killed the beast I love this movie and the game of this movie “5 magazines on backup” 😂

Damn, If I had known you were gonna check out this movie, I would've told you about the Extended Cut.

I love how loud Jen’s eye rolls are when she hears “who’s to say?” Haha

If you think about it, this is a sad story. A group of explorers go to a “undiscovered” land, kill the native people and take something back as a souvenir just to kill it.

Idk why but Holden's "This island straight up sucks!" Really made me laugh

One of the few cases of the tie-in video game not being horrible. This movie was in production hell for almost 30 years, with Universal Studios acquiring the rights to the novelization of the original 1933 film around the same time Paramount got the character rights from RKO. After Paramount released the '76 film, Universal waited until the 90s to finally get a King Kong remake going. They got Peter Jackson on board early, and were going to use Phil Tippett's GoMotion puppeteering for the animals. Then Universal had to put Kong back on the back burner because of _The Lost World_ and the 2 flops that were Fox's 1998 _Godzilla_ and Disney's _Mighty Joe Young_ . Jackson then bailed in '99 to do the LOTR trilogy. Universal approached him again when filming for _Return of the King_ wrapped production, and he happily returned. The artbook Weta Workshop came out with is awesome as it's done as a field guide to the fauna of Skull Island written by researchers who traveled there between 1935-1938 before the seas reclaimed Skull Island. Based on his sidearm (a LP08 Artillery Luger) Cpt. Engelhorn was a part of the Kaiserliche Marine in WWI. Many of the costumes and props during Kong's unveiling in NYC are original props from the 1933 film from Jackson's collection. The airplanes are also all real WWI fighter craft owned and operated by a trust funded by Jackson. Jackson originally wanted Faye Wray to say the final "beauty killed the beast" line, but she passed away before filming.

I’ve been waiting patiently for this one! This is my favorite movie of all time. Holds a special place in my heart.

I worked on the 3D version of this film as it was being shot. I'm having flashbacks of long shifts keyframing and "dimensionalizing" a bunch of scenes. The bug pit and the vines sequences were brutal.

I LOVED THIS LOVIE AS A KID. And also super scared , I can’t believe how much violence and deaths are in it way more then I remember as a kid

I truly believe this movie is underrated. Not only do I consider it a “classic” in a way, but Jack Black, Adrien Brody, Naomi Watts, Kyle Chandler and he’ll even Jamie Bella performance is awesome. Also, love movies based on older times like the early 1900’s going forward. Funny note: Holden, when you randomly and subtly said that comment about the club in LA, I literally and audibly choked out of laughter. Heart you guys!

The conductor is played by Howard Shore, who wrote and conducted the music for The Lord of the Rings. Originally, he was going to do the music for King Kong but left the project due to creative differences, so he was replaced by James Newton Howard. He did the music for The Hobbit trilogy, though, so there wasn't a serious falling out between them.

Absolutely love it so much the end when he died was emotional

Hell yeah we're getting so close to the MonsterVerse Reactions! While I do understand Jen's love and sympathy toward King Kong, but I really hope she at least appreciates and respects Godzilla in the MonsterVerse films. If anything I hope she loves Mothra in Godzilla King of the Monsters, my most favorite movie in the MonsterVerse series.

I remember watching this in theaters as a kid and I was in awe of this film. still holds up today

I think this film is what really started my interest in the process of filmmaking. They have a behind-the-scenes featurette that's like 1.5-2 hours long just covering the entire process from the day Peter Jackson found out he was green lit to make the movie. You see everything from auditions, model sculpting, set building, the whole shebang. Wish movies still did that on their DVDs.. they all seem half assed or just don't have any BTS content.

This is definitely my favorite king kong movie it has plenty of creatures and great actor's 🙂

from the perspective of the Dinosaurs (and the other creatures I guess) of Skull Island, I love that this movie used the not very often considered angle (before or after) that, these are not Dinosaurs we would be familiar with from the fossil record, that in the 66 million years between the end of the Cretaceous period and modern day, they would have continued to evolve and change over that stretch of time, whereas in other 'Lost World' Dinosaur movies, the animals are basically exactly the same as they were in prehistory, and identifiable because of that, which is why those 3 Rex's Kong fought here are the fictional/hypothetical descendants of Tyrannosaurus Rex, rather than just T-Rex itself, instead called Vastatosaurus Rex, or V-Rex if you will, and I just love that this extra level of detail was added for this version of Skull Island

My grandpa used to watch a lot of the old monster movies and the 1933 film was one we saw a number of times together over the years. The thing I remember the most is him putting emphasis on the fact that Kong loved her at the end when I was a child. He wanted to make sure I understood that love takes all forms and that even animals were capable of experiencing and expressing emotion. I can always hear his voice in my head saying one of the many variations of it whenever I see the conclusion no matter which version of the movie it is, even now that he's long gone.

King Kong with Jeff Bridges is a classic, too. Perhaps that would’ve been another one to add to your collection.

This is one of the first films I remember ever seeing in theaters. I have never forgotten the visceral ride it gave me as a little boy. I was scared out of my mind throughout the Skull Island sequences, and emotionally drained when it was all over. This was a truly sensory and out of body experience for my young self. Not one I have nor will I ever forget. All these years later, it has not lost its edge for me. I have a strong nostalgia for this movie and a greater appreciation for what it is. While _King Kong_ is not a favorite of mine, I believe it deserves better than the legacy it has gotten in the wake of Peter Jackson's monolithic achievement of _The Lord of the Rings._ It is a sincere and lovingly made creature flick with a strong heart at the center. 8/10

JEN WAS NOT MENTALLY PREPARED FOR THIS!

Man seeing this movie and then playing the movie based game of it afterwards as a kid was a top tier period of my childhood, the game legitimately still holds to this day, not graphics wise obviously but everything else is just amazing man

Still my favorite King Kong movie

The video game tie in was actually pretty good, a rare exception

The most underrated King Kong adaptation.

"It's like going to a club in Los Angeles" LOL

The “oh it’s starting!” gets me every time 😂

“It was beauty killed the beast.” Jen: “I’m pretty sure it was him.” Holden: “I’m pretty sure it was the planes.”

There was a time when this was often on HBO (Philippines) when I was growing up. We were glued to the TV because, at the time, and as young kids, it was not like anything we've seen before. I somehow agree with Holden that among these American monster movies, King Kong (2005) is like the most "cinema." I guess it's because the director/the creators clearly had a vision, and they executed em excellently. And speaking of "cinema," I'd you check out Shin Godzilla (2016) as well. Set in modern day Japan, it's relatively grounded, as it explores the on-the-ground human aspects and the geopolitical aspects of such threats. It's just as spectacular and it's really good. One of the best modern kaiju movies! One of my fave Hollywood kaiju movies; love the sense of adventure mixed with some eco-horror.

I remember seeing it in theaters back in 2005. I was 7 lol. At the time, the Shaman, the islanders, and the toothed worms scared the s*** out of me. I also remember seeing Charlie and The Chocolate Factory in 3D in the summer of 2005. Now that I am aware and older 2005 was a year when many notable movies came out, such as The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Batman Begins, Zathura: A Space Adventure, The 40-Year Old Virgin, The Longest Yard, War of The Worlds, Monster-in-Law, Memoirs Of A Geisha, etc. I vaguely remember seeing Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire in theaters. My family and I went to the movie theaters a lot in the 2000s and watched many notable movies. To me, the 2000s was a great decade for watching films in theaters. The last time I went to a movie theater was in 2019. It's not the same as it was in the 2000s.

@10:20 That has to be one of the strongest eye rolls I've ever seen in my life lol. 10/10 Jen!

I remember being in the 1st or 2nd grade, and my dad took me and my brother to this right after school. Both them fell asleep for the first hour, but I was sitting there having a religious experience. And while I know many who prefer the monsterverse Kong, this is the pinnacle of King Kong movies for me. Nothing comes close. Also, I think the Kong Rex fight is maybe the best monster fight ever put to screen. Truly cinema at its finest.

33:30 "Pretty sure it was him." ...whew! Y'now, I'll take that comment by Jen as a beautiful consolation prize. In all the years of me always being wrong about everything, let me just say this... I remember being in the theatre as this was playing, and progressively getting some sense of 'i get it' with the over the top Denham, and his horrible and conniving nature. All the time "I'm gonna make restitutions to the family" and the sort, but constantly being just bad. Then it occurred to me (lol) that this is all intentional on Peter Jackson's part(!), that the ending, with that historical line (possibly) coming up, he will actually, from a modern stance anyway, flip the line and that will be the only way Denham can redeem himself, if it ended with Denham saying: "No... it was the beast that killed the beauty." And it would have made a beautiful bookend to the '33 version. And of course I was waiting to walk out of the theatre thinking Peter Jackson once again nailed it once again. Alas, I was wrong (as usual), so instead I left a tiny bit angry... Denham had no right in saying that line, it wasn't in keeping with his character. I just thought Jackson just missed it. And on a side-note, with all the (missed) reference's in this version, I kinda wish Jen had started from the 1933 (maybe even '76) version. Either way, this was a fun watchalong with the two of ya :)

Super underrated movie for sure, even if I'm a huge Peter Jackson fan. The theme still gets stuck in my head randomly too.

I absolutely love this movie. Beautiful story and intriguing storytelling and direction, beautiful cinematography, incredible visual effects, fire music, wonderful acting, incredible action and all put into one mindblowing package. One of the best remakes of all time.

7:00 Jen is one of the only people I've heard who even knows that Early Edition exists. Great show.

One of my favorite movies. Brings back so many memories from Christmas 2005. When I listen to the soundtrack (Which I often) I'm transported back in time to 2005 and feel 16 again. Really loved watching this video.

Thank you so much for reacting to this classic ❤. This is my favourite movie. Reminds me of my childhood, how emotionally I connected with the characters. Not many people have watched/reacted to this one. Thanks 🙏🏻

This is one of my favorites, I'm so glad yall enjoyed it! I was able to meet Andy Serkis at a convention earlier this year and told him how my much brother and I enjoyed this movie growing up. Side note: Thanks for mentioning Super 8! It'd be a great one off movie to react to somewhere down the line. It deserves more recognition.

"Holden Thomas Hardman!!!' - Jen "What I didn't capture him" - Holden Idk why that was pretty funny hearing him say that 🤣

I saw King Kong 19 years ago when I was 10 years old. I remember seeing Kong during Christmas break with my dad sis and grandma and we absolutely loved it.

5:08 don't apologize for showing us your films! They've all been great so far and its always nice to see someone's passion projects

Just to think, this version of King Kong came from the same director and production team that brought Middle-Earth to the big screen. Also, fun fact! The big crickets seen in the chasm are called the Weta-Rexes, named after the production company for the film, Weta Workshop/Digital.

I love that y’all love this movie! This is one of my personal favorites, saw it in theaters when I was only 3 and at 21, I have this kong tattooed on me because it’s held a special place in my heart growing up!

An amazing movie!! Love to you both from my mom and I in So. Cal USA 🇺🇸

Man the memories. The King Kong game for PS2 used to creep me out. So many monsters. It was awesome.

The ending to this movie is so heartbreaking which makes me appreciate the aleternative ending to the video game, where Kiong is safely returned to his island.

The extended version of this film has a river sequence that's really cool!

Holden. Listen I have been requesting King Kong for 6 months lol. PRAYING to be comment of the day on this one 😂 The way I yelled at my tv seeing comments from 3 weeks ago lol. All jokes aside happy you finally watched this with Jen.

The thing I remember most about watching this movie in the cinema was looking at my watch and thinking, "1 hour in and still no monkey".

“He’s in Friday Night Lights and Super 8”. Yeah. He’s also in Godzilla: King of the Monsters and Godzilla vs Kong. So he’s in 2 Kong centric universes.

The actor that she recognized from the TV show Early Edition Kyle Chandler is also in the Godzilla / Kong movies. And the actor that he said looks like Tom Holland, Jamie Bell was the Thing in Fantastic 4 reboot. Plus he played Billy Eliot in the movie but Tom Holland played Billy Eliot on stage.

This is the first movie I remember watching in the theaters as a kid and it made me love movies ever since

This Version of King Kong is and always be my most favourite version made. Part of it is the love of Peter Jackson with all the movies he's done.

I think my mind may be dirty because the edit at 27:27 was too damn funny to me.

Twenty years old and the cgi fx in this look better than much of what we get today. Shows a difference in craftsmanship.

11:11 A friend pointed out that the old lady in this part is holding up the middle finger and now I can't not laugh when it comes up. 😅🤣

I love this movie a lot Holden glad you showed Jen, would also really appreciate if you could show her titanic too 😅

2:31 Not gonna lie… I like the little insights you have about the origins and reasons for directors, studios and actors doing certain things! You’re sharing in depth knowledge without being a dick about it to us and your wife! Well done!

You guys are super chill. God bless your family 🙏

You should watch Tremors (1990), a great monster movie that doesn’t get talked about enough

Nothing beats a King Kong reaction from my fav (only)reaction channel on a Friday

LOL HOLDEN MENTIONING THE KILL COUNT!