Oh man look at My Header, I love it So, I've been saying that I'm going to start My own Kaiju Topic that focuses on classic monsters. The time period is the 1920s thru the 2000s which is the Classical, Showa, Heisei & Millennium Era. I consider 2006's Gamera the Brave the last original Japanese Kaiju film and 2008's Cloverfield to be the last of the classic American monster film even though it would be later part of a Multiverse storyline in the 2010s. Anything that came out in 2010 and beyond talk about that in My MonsterVerse Topic here ---> http://www.dctoyrevolution.org/general-discussions/monsterverse-let-s-talk-godzilla-vs-kong-t1085.html or if you prefer Packer's Movie Trailer Topic here ---> http://www.dctoyrevolution.org/general-discussions/this-thread-has-not-yet-been-rated-movie-trailers-t1254.html because there's a lot of good stuff that the majority is by us and I have provided a lot of great content there and besides, Packer is the one that sparked the interest of this subject cause Monsters & Kaiju has always been a fun thing for Me since I was a youngster. Once I see people talking about stuff I like cause most of the time I'm alone in My fave subjects just not here on this board but in general then I begin to talk about them
I know i covered a lot in PB's Movie Trailer Topic and so did he but I felt with most of those entries were incomplete and out of order and with a genre that is so exciting as this there is so much more to say and to show the excellent visuals. I love visuals and surely you know that by now With Monster & Kaiju films, there's a lot of great stuff, I love the music of course, the posters of Japanese Kaiju films which your gonna see a lot of'em plus much more including specials of UNMADE FILMS and trivia which I love that category So this topic will have a different beginning. I'm not going to begin it with 1954's Godzilla: King of the Monsters, nope I'm going to start it with one of the first monster films...no no no, not 1922's Nosferatu, Monsters like that will be elsewhere
No, it's 1925's The Lost World that paved the way for countless monster movies for about a century
It was originally written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in 1912 who was a very brilliant man that so many people nowadays don't mention. My Grandma MiMi really liked his work
The film is about paleontologist & Professor George Edward Challenger Challenger leading an expedition of scientists & adventurers to a remote region with an epic plateau far deep within the Amazonian jungle to confirm his claims that the original rulers of the planet Earth...DINOSAURS still exist
While this may seem like a first Cryptozoogical film, indeed it maybe but it was the first of the kind to present Dinosaurs and they're not presented like animals but since this was still the classical age of truly not knowing much about most of the few amount of species discovered, they are like monsters
Now I said in PB's Movie Trailer Topic that I never seen the movie, only clips. Well just recently I finally watched it and it was very good. I like silent movies, such a focus on music which sadly most of today's society tunes it out or never acknowledges how great music is in films and because of that they miss such extra fun...its always been a great fun part for Me ever since I was a youngster and I'm glad of it Now the film is made excellently with such a great story that is all-too familiar by now but this was the first time it was ever done on film I love the stop-motion special effects and the posters & artwork was done rather well, in fact during these classical times were some of the most extravagant
What I plan on doing for each movie entry is to have bios & stats of every creature within them. I have done a similar thing in the MonsterVerse Topic so if you have seen that then you'll know what to expect here. Here's some cool stills, pictures and small bios for the fauna from the movie I know a lot about Dinosaurs, I've considered Myself an amateur Paleontologist The creatures that is depicted in this film are stop-motion were based on the artwork of Charles R. Knight. Some of the dinosaur models however that were used in the film came into the possession of famed collector Forrest J Ackerman. On many occasions, Doyle has mentioned that Professor Challenger was his favorite character that he created, NOT Sherlock Holmes
Here's a sketch of an Allosaurus near the beginning of the film which was based on a sighting
The unknown region of the continent did have the landscape what one would imagine that of prehistoric times
A 23 foot wide Pteranodon is the first animal that the explores seen confirming that Challenger was correct It caught & ate a baby Toxodon which is an ungulate mammal similar like a cross between a Rhino & Hippo.
The team along with the Chimps (only Monkeys are in South America, not Apes) is also being spied on by Homo Erectus aka The Ape Man This was a prehistoric human
If you know classic Universal Monsters then you can clearly see that this is the precursor to all of that great makeup
Trachodon or Anatosaurus which is synonymous with Edmontosaurus is seen in the film. they are depicted as bipedal and not all fours being a quadruped as well as a biped. Their size looks accurate about 25 feet in length and is depicted as a plant eater like it is theorized to be.
Agathaumas & Stegosaurus are seen in the film as well as Triceratops. These actually look pretty accurate in size & design
One thing they knew already was that the specie was a caring parents
The iconic Sauropod (Lizard Feet) that is known as Brontosaurus is a major player in the film. This is a long while before the controversial name & specie change however the name is now valid as another species again in recent times It looks fairly accurate of how it would appear for the next several decades.
The Allosaurus is the first Theropod (Beast Feet) that is seen as a major monster meat eater and really doesn't look as accurate as others. The size of 25 feet long & 15 feet high looks about right however.
The dino fights Agathaumas in a big battle
The Tyrannosaurs Rex is presented as an even bigger monster and is way bigger than the specie's known length of 47 feet and being 7 tons. It's presented with three fingers like in future films including 1933's King Kong. Allosaurus has three figures however scientists would find T-Rex cousin species Albertosaurus and Gorgosaurus with two fingers but it wasn't confirmed till they found a complete skeleton with a forelimb with two fingers till 1989, 35 years ago this year
A Brachiosaurus appears in the film and fights the Tyrannosaurus Rex. The specie is about the actual size about 80 feet tall but he is missing his nostril bump on his head.
So the big part happens where Challenger captures a Brontosaurus to prove to the world that Dinosaurs still exist. The unthinkable happens as the animal escapes
So this might seem like an age old scenario which it is but this predated 1932's novel of King Kong by Delos W. Lovelace which was requested of his good friend Merian C. Cooper which they hurried and it into a film as a major epic in the now era of sound
The Brontosaurus runs amok causing havoc which again, he is presented as a monster, I personally believe this wouldn't happen. Sure, they would be aggressive if provoked but they would be more scared than anything IMO.
Here's the trailer
If you want to see this masterpiece of a first Monster & Dinosaur movie then look no further as here it is for free
Here's a much longer colorized & enhanced version
Now there has been remakes & inspirations of this fine story including 1960's The Lost World as well as 1997's Jurassic Park 2: The Lost World
In fact, the Jurassic Park sequel had a similar situation of a Dinosaur escaping into a large city scenario however the climax was far different then the 1925 version as is was written by famed iconic author Michael Critchon plus the animal differed as well as it was a T-Rex
I hope you liked & enjoyed this first entry within My Kaiju & Monster Topic. There will be a lot of great content and stuff to come, a lot of it your not gonna expect which I plan on updating this topic like once a week or so which hopefully I can can keep up to plan here My next entry will be 1933's King Kong & Son of Kong
Last edited by BrandonDaCollector on Fri Nov 22, 2024 11:06 am, edited 10 times in total.
The Past isn't a Wilderness of Horrors - We Grow Old Because We Stop Playing - DTA - If it's been done in a movie, then most likely it's already been done in Real Life - ALWAYS Watch the Skies - Question Everything, FTW! = Me + Various <-->
As I said before at the climax of 1925's The Lost World...1933's King Kong is next
Merian C. Cooper is the man who is responsible for making King Kong a realty...without him there would be no giant monsters, Kaiju, Godzilla...NOTHING So many people do not acknowledge the most important things. He was a writer, director and producer as well as a military officer and adventurer. One thing that is very crucial about him is that he had a dream in which a giant gorilla attacked New York City and he wondered what would happen if a Komodo Dragon fought a gorilla which was great that a man his age was thinking like this...
after that he was very creative and spent the years of 1929 & 1930 writing the story that would become King Kong
This is Merian C. Cooper
And this is the original novel of King Kong from 1932
Now I'm about to show the 1933 movie in major detail, there was only one specie of Dinosaur that wasn't in the film, it was a Triceratops in which Kong fought a trio of them. Here's a classical depiction of the species, notice how much it looks like the depictions of them in 1925's Lost World that I began this Topic with
Here we go with the movie...get ready for a very classical visual journey
Here is one of the American Posters...
here's one of the totally awesome Japanese Posters, look at that difference, even then they looked superb
I first saw this film long ago in the early 90s I believe particularity 1992 so this wasn't actually the first film I saw of Kong that I'd watch. I recall very vividly when I was at My Grandpa's friend's house on Hampton & Arsenal, Chuck Wallace. They were doing their talking and stuff that adults do or did then and I sat in his recliner chair and he had it on TV which was the colorized version. Also I recall how'd I go down his basement and see his naked babe posters on his walls Yeah, I was a bit of naughty boy too which I'm glad of it So the first Kong movies that I'd actually see that would actually be 62's King Kong vs. Godzilla and then 67's King Kong Escapes that My Grandparents & Mom recorded for Me and then 76's King Kong & 86's King Kong Lives which I believe My Grandma rented them both for Me over at Annie Burke's Daughter's Movie Mogul which all of that was in the mid 80s So seeing the original after them was still okay because I still saw it at a younger age and it still didn't seem too far away especially since I appreciated Universal Monsters because there really was no difference in My young mind since they were black & white. As I matured I began to really appreciate how great this 1933 King Kong film is
Before I get any further, here's the iconic movie trailer
So this is THE movie that started the King Kong franchise of media for nearly a century and truly one of the most important movies because it was the first that depicted giant monsters If you've never seen the original King Kong then I think it's about time because this was the first monster film of the kind with sound It's truly a horror film with a ton of stuff happening and one can't help but wonder why must there be such havoc especially during these times of the 1930s but then again, ever since humanity was created there was turmoil or better yet since the creation of life such as single cell lifeforms, there's always been the factor of "kill or be killed"...it's just the way life is which I don't think many people ever stop to think to their-selves about this. So the big story goes as film director Carl Denham leads an expedition aboard The The S.S. Venture, a huge tramp steamer....
To travel to the uncharted Skull Island in order to film his next movie on location rather than at a movie set. Denham along Captain Englehorn, first mate Jack Driscoll, leading lady actress Ann Darrow among a whole host of crew members that really has no clue what they about to get into
When the crew arrives on the mysterious island, Ann is kidnapped by the Tribal Natives for a sacrifice to their god and only deity they know, the giant gorilla Kong
As before, I'm going to include as many of the creatures in the film as possible. The location of these magnificent entries is on Skull Island which is a lost, unknown continent off of the coast of Indonesia within the region of the Pacific Ocean.
"Skull Island, the land where God did not finish creation." — Bill Randa
First here is the main entry
"And now, ladies and gentlemen, before I tell you any more, I'm going to show you the greatest thing your eyes have ever beheld. He was a king and a god in the world he knew, but now he comes to civilization merely a captive, a show to gratify your curiosity. Ladies and gentlemen, look at Kong, the Eighth Wonder of the World!" — Carl Denham (King Kong)
Kong was a huge deal. Hollywood went crazy over apes from then to the 70s because Gorillas were actually Cryptids and stuff of legends at one time. They almost had a Bigfoot legacy till their discovery. It was when explorers heard the stories of "Ape Men" in the Jungles from the natives. Well, they didn't believe it. Then they found them and found Chimps, Orangutans and so forth. It was a huge, I mean huge thing back then. That's why Hollywood had that craze with King Kong and The Three Stooges had many gorillas in them, Universal Monsters & Abbott & Costello really did too, remember the Jungle Captive films I showed in PB's Movie Trailer Topic. Planet of the Apes really did as well obviously The Komodo Dragon had a similar story...during WWI a fighter pilot saw these "Dragons" off the island of Komodo. He told his squad and commanding officer about it and they didn't believe him like expected...then they investigated and saw them for themselves and then it was a major discovery back then I mean look at how fascinated Cooper was about them as I said above in the beginning here. Still as I type this people don't take Cryptozoology seriously as they laugh and dis at it when they need to look back at how animals we know today were not recognized by science and look at how they are now Even the people that doesn't laugh at it still doesn't take the time to study and be in awe of all of the possible wonders That's one of the reasons why I like the Kong story and Skull Island, so many living fossils and undiscovered fauna there That's also why I loved the 2005 Kong, the way it was presented was more of a Cryptozoological film compared to the ones made prior to it
Now the 33 version isn't as realistic like an actual gorilla like standing upright like a human for example however he does knucklewalk from time to time with other ape behaviors including pounding his chest. He's about 50 feet tall, weighs about 20 tons which is huge for a simian especially during this era
Now like in so many things and basically since the creation of humanity, sacrifice is required and is involved with the islanders. These natives look quite different as they would be depicted throughout movies like this for a while. The beautiful blond Caucasian Ann Darrow was the perfect specimen for this because she was so unique to them.
Since she was quite different than native females, Kong took to a major liking to her not to eat but to love.
It's awesome when the opens the gates opens
The scene with a close-up of his face was golden and was one of the first puppeteering of this nature seen in movies
However, you can tell that there is a mixture of Stop-Motion as well.
Like any animal or sentient being, King Kong has his own lair.
Like 1925's The Lost World Brontosaurus, Kong is brought to a big city and escapes thus terrorizing it
Now there's a whole host of animals that's inhabiting Skull Island that is presented as monsters First is the Meat-Eater that is a huge theropod Dinosaur similar like a Allosaurus and a Tyrannosaurus Rex. I have explained the origins of this in the entries of 1925's The Lost World in My first post of this good Topic. The monster is depicted excellently with a very sinister demeanor. He's larger than Kong standing at least 50 feet tall, 75 feet long weighing more than 20 tons
Here's an original concept art of this Carnosaur fighting the Great Giant Ape
They have a fight that is one of the most iconic battles in cinematic history
The Stegosaurus looked pretty accurate in not only size but also in appearance.
Like the Brontosaurus specie was depicted as a monster in 1925's The Lost World, this time it's seen in the water and is actually depicted like the Loch Ness Monster sightings that would occur before and after this...now that's amazing
It's odd that they did that because there's a specie of Plesiosaur called Elasmosaurus in the film that is believed what Nessie really is
This creature in the movie inspired many if not all of the Serpents/Snakes in future King Kong films
A Pteranodon is seen attacking Kong's beloved Ann. The individual is large and looks very accurate. This specie would be featured in countless Dinosaur & Kaiju films in the upcoming decades. In fact, well known Kaiju Rodan would be inspired and based on this Pterosaur specie 25's The Lost World was the first new animal to be seen in the film, in 33's King Kong it is the last
After Kong had defeated the Meat-Eater, a Scavenger Raven was seen on the slain carcass eating off of it. These large Crow or Raven-like Avian Birds are bigger than an average human-being. They are not Birds of Prey and only scavenge on carrion and have no fear of humanity.
SUPER SPECIAL ENTRY
In the the 608th issue of the 23rd volume of the English story paper Boys' Magazine on October 28, 1933 was "souvenir issue" to commemorate the King Kong film...
In the Boys' Magazine short story, there was a new Dinosaur that replaced the Stegosaurus & Triceratops called Dinosaurus which was a very strange Stegosaurus and Triceratops hybrid
Also within this special publication it actually gives the Two-Legged Lizard a name...Polysauro.
That's actually the only known media to do so In the 2017 MonsterVerse movie called Kong: Skull Island, it is believed that the Skullcrawlers are an homage to the Two-Legged Cave Lizard
Now that critter is actually part of a very special part of King Kong and this is arguably My favorite scenario of the whole movie and story...it's the Spider Pit Sequence However most of this was cut thus becoming a deleted scene and then it was lost never to be seen Here is some pictures of the lost scene from Pre-Production to Post-Production
Epic Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson would remake the film come 2005 and that version would be a 3 hour extravaganza and there would be a Spider Pit scene in his film that would be very gruesome
Since he's a King Kong fanatic, he'd go the extra mile as he'd put together exciting existing material and remake the parts that was lost to Oblivion This would be featured on the 2005 DVD
The creatures featured in this would be King Kong and the Brontosaurus and of course Polysauro but there would be a whole host of others as well including a very accurate looking Styracosaurus.
Many are of unknown origins like a Giant Lizard that that resembles a Therapsid which a Mammal-like Reptile.
A Giant Crab Creature,
A Huge Spider
The most bizarre of all of these is the Octopus-Insect aka the Tentacled-Bug which is how in the heck did something like this come to be because Arthropods & Mollusks are in two completely differently types of Fauna
As I said, Peter Jackson is a Kong fanatic but also is a sort of a Biologist & Cryptozoologist himself I really like that when a director is a fan of something he/she is making. Why Because then you know that they know all about what their making and that it is going to be be cared for and not half-@$$ So since he had the control, he decided to edit and remake the The Lost Spider Pit Sequence and really I don't think it could have been done any better especially since it was done in 2005 when there was still remnants of the old classic times we once knew. Here's the high quality clip in it's entirety, just ignore the brief subtitles & the Youtuber stuff toward the end. You'll see all of the pit creatures I posted above plus look in the scenes when Kong is walking, you'll see Giant Vultures flying around. I love how this is and I really love when the men are on the tree bridge and Kong walks around...that is such a marvelous scene and his roar is something else. Also, the people cast as the crewmen were actually pretty convincing here because people were very different then than they are now is many ways.
Get ready to see a horrific monster scene that's the first of it's kind brought into fruition by Peter Jackson
NOTE: I had to replaced the video, it was terminated so this one doesn't have the Brontosaurus in the beginning plus it's lower quality but it's still great to see
Last edited by BrandonDaCollector on Thu Jun 06, 2024 7:17 am, edited 3 times in total.
The Past isn't a Wilderness of Horrors - We Grow Old Because We Stop Playing - DTA - If it's been done in a movie, then most likely it's already been done in Real Life - ALWAYS Watch the Skies - Question Everything, FTW! = Me + Various <-->
Next during the same year of 1933, they quickly came out with the sequel as they filmed them back to back...it's called Son of Kong and it was quite similar yet quite different than the predecessor
As King Kong before it, this is an RKO Radio Picture and Merian C. Cooper is the Executive Producer
The Son of Kong had a huge premiere in Japan in 1933. You can clearly see how "they went Ape" over this and I believe this truly sparked their desire to do what was being done in the USA and really to out-do what the Americans would do despite many of them still laugh at their creative & fun films. Soon they would have their own version of King Kong during this year but that will have to wait for another time
So the story goes as follows. Soon after King Kong's unfortunate fall from the Empire State Building...
Carl Denham escapes with Captain Englehorn aboard The Venture to flee the public scrutiny and financial debacles blooming from Kong's transport to New York City.
As they get into the Cargo business, Denham and Englehorn learn of a huge Treasure that is whispered upon hidden on Skull Island They make the decision of a risky return trip there with stowaway Hilda Petersen whom is a musical entertainer and animal trainer plus others along the way.
After a short while, she & Denham get married because that's what people did back then when they feel in love, they didn't waste time at all.
Now that they reach Skull Island. Things are the same but then they differ from the last time they experienced the horrors of this isle of predators. There they encounter Kong's friendly albino son Kiko. He helps defend them from the dangers of the island has to offer as they search for the legendary treasure
I believe I seen this one not to much longer after the first King Kong and I think this one is a bit better the first one.
So as with 1933's King Kong and 1925's The Lost World, here in the entries of all of the Monsters that is seen within this great film
First is King Kong himself as a Poster, this is all that remains of him to be seen in the film.
While not monsters, they are little Circus Monkeys that was trained by the very nice looking Hilda and they were performing during her act as "La Belle Helene"
These are real live cute animals that they used in the film and NOT stop-motion animations
So as they reach Skull Island there is a whole host creatures there. the main one is Kiko aka Little Kong or Baby Kong
His name is short for King Kong.
He's an albino ape with gray skin and it about 12 feet tall weights a few tons.
This is an astounding because this predates Snowflake by at least 31 years because he was the only known albino Gorilla
An homage to all of this was done in the 2018 epic Video Game[/b[ film [b]Rampage as George was Albino rather than having brown to reddish fur. While it isn't game accurate, it is very cool that they did that
Kiko is very docile & friendly unlike his father before him. In fact Denham & Hilda befriend him and they become allies.
Look, Kiko fits right in
Like I posted in the special section of the Lost Spider Pit Sequence, there was a Styracosaurus in that major deleted but remade scene. A Styracosaurus appears and attacks the people here in Son of Kong which appears to be very accurate and I do believe if provoked, the specie would indeed attack
Next is the Cave Bear aka Ursus spelaeus. I have always found that it was really cool that this species was in this film. He looks really good and is as big as Kiko if not a bit larger.
The Cave Bear has an epic fight with Kiko
Nothosaurus aka The Dragon was a cool species in this film. He looks like a possessed Sauropod since he has no pupils. It is quite questionable about the depiction of the monster. I love those temple ruins there
The Sea Serpent is a big surprise which this is a possible fictional specie.
The Brontosaurus makes a surprise return when the unfortunate Earthquake destroys Skull Island
Kiko saves the survivors sacrificing his own life during the Natural Disaster
Last edited by BrandonDaCollector on Thu May 16, 2024 7:28 am, edited 1 time in total.
The Past isn't a Wilderness of Horrors - We Grow Old Because We Stop Playing - DTA - If it's been done in a movie, then most likely it's already been done in Real Life - ALWAYS Watch the Skies - Question Everything, FTW! = Me + Various <-->
There was great comics as companions to the films at the same time which during this era it was a first Take a gander at how comics were done then with bonus material likes creatures that wasn't in the films
KING KONG
Proof Pages
The Comic from the Pressbook
Comic in the Daily Enterprise
SON OF KONG
The only documented part of the U.S. strip
Spanish release
The Past isn't a Wilderness of Horrors - We Grow Old Because We Stop Playing - DTA - If it's been done in a movie, then most likely it's already been done in Real Life - ALWAYS Watch the Skies - Question Everything, FTW! = Me + Various <-->
OK, now here's a special section of the people that made all of this happen. You already met & read about Merian C. Cooper when I first began the original King Kong spotlight and what he dream was.
So now meet his good friend Ernest Schoedsack whom directed BOTH King Kong & Son of Kong. He was also a cinematographer and producer as well.
They worked together with Ruth Rose whom wrote the movies for the screen and was one of the first women to accomplish such a feat such as this
In fact, they would work together one last time for 1949's Mighty Joe Young as well which look for an entry of that sometime in the near future
Now of course one of the most important aspects of the movies is the special Stop-Motion Animation effects. These were by none other than "Founding Father of Fun Films", Mr. Willis H. O'Brien
He was like your first Special Effects technician. He made the marvelous monsters in 1925's The Lost World however his very first work was for a film that predated that by a decade in 1915 That film is titled The Dinosaur and the Missing Link: A Prehistoric Tragedy which this has some very important history
The very short silent movie features Cave People...
a Brontosaurus...
and "The Missing Link" Wild Willie aka "Terror of the Countryside". Willis O'Brien named him after himself and considered his character Wild Willie to be King Kong's figurative ancestor
A I said it has some story. This predates The Flintstones and all Cave Men movies The story is actually a comedy and goes as follows which this contains spoilers: Wild Willie watched a group of cave people from a tree. A taskmaster that is Mr. Rockface ordered the Duke, Stonejaw Steve, and Theophilus Ivoryhead whom were competing for the affections of his daughter Araminta killing something new for supper. He assigned Theophilus to catch some fish. During this time Wild Willie went to a stream to grab a few snakes to munch on. He mistaken the tail of a Sauropod for a large serpentine animal making the Dinosaur mad when he bit the tip of his/her tail and bashed'em with a big rock. After realizing & seeing the big body of the Sauropod, he threw the rock at the creature's side and climbed onto the mountainous back to fight'em. He landed a few punches however the Sauropod was able land a fatal blow to "The Missing Link". Theophilus, a witness of the fight, confirmed his demise and then lied that he had effortlessly killed "The Missing Link" himself thus winning Araminta’s heart in the first act of misleading someone
Innovator Thomas Edison was greatly impressed and Willis was hired by the Edison Company to produce more dinosaur films A couple years later the film was distributed by Thomas Edison's film company Conquest Pictures in 1917...names would be changed like Wild Willie being called Monkey, Baboon, Ape and the name of the film was changed as well to The Dinosaur and the Baboon. Holy cow, now that's truly incredible and if that's not I don't know what is
He is basically the "Granddaddy of all Special Effects Artists Here's a picture of his work of Mighty Joe Young
Another very important part of the movies is the music and is My favorite part of any film. Here is legendary composer Max Steiner. He was one of the first major composers for movies especially when the silent era ended
Here's his great theme he wrote for 33's King Kong, it was truly the first of it's kind
I found the music much more exciting in 33's Son of Kong. The first 31 seconds is absolutely gold and astounding
SUPER BONUS
Here's this really short but very special Japanese Kodak commercial featuring Son of Kong Kiko from 1984, 40 years ago this year Watch this amazing classic
Well, I hope you liked My entries thus far in this Topic of Mine of 1925's The Lost World, 1933's King Kong & Son of Kong. You can look back and see all of the classical & glorious content that I've posted. There's a ton of King Kong stuff to get to that was abound throughout the decades. Next will be the long forgotten 1933 Japanese King Kong movie & it's sequel plus some others that were all lost during unfortunate wars in Japan during those years, until then keeping checking this Topic cause there's a ton of great stuff to read & look at and heading here soon
The Past isn't a Wilderness of Horrors - We Grow Old Because We Stop Playing - DTA - If it's been done in a movie, then most likely it's already been done in Real Life - ALWAYS Watch the Skies - Question Everything, FTW! = Me + Various <-->
I think I talked about this before, but I read the novel to Lost Word by Crichton before the movie came out, so I was really invested in the film. Except, the film was nothing really like the book. It's been a long time so I don't recall things like I did way back then, but in the novel, they never leave the island and there's a virus released at the end of the novel that would eventually lead to the extinction of all the dinos. Because of that, I hated the movie. Not the virus part per se, just that they were two nearly completely different stories. If you never read the novel the film is probably fine, but to me it just felt like a cheap King Kong rip-off compared to a more unique story the novel told.
I love old movies, but really 30s to the 50s, so I can't say I've ever actually watched an entire silent film. I don't know, it just never was something I wanted to spend time doing. It's kind of why I don't do foreign films because I'm not there to read, lol.
That's a lot of dinosaur info. I was never too into dinosaurs as a kid, it was more robots and superheroes and such. I can tell you're much more into them from all the details provided.
"Somewhere in a lonely hotel room, there's a guy starting to realize that eternal fate has turned its back on him. It's 2 AM."
I've actually never seen Son of Kong. Never knew it came out the same year. That's a surprisingly quick turn around, especially for so much stop motion back then.
"Somewhere in a lonely hotel room, there's a guy starting to realize that eternal fate has turned its back on him. It's 2 AM."
Yes, I recall you talking about that and I was surprised that you got into the book before the film I never did but I know many times My Grandma would tell Me how they changed Jaws with book vs. movie comparison so I know what you mean there PB No, I never read the novel so I cannot compare. Really I'm glad they didn't have it end that way, it has a very nice ending that I've always thought was way more satisfying than the 33 Kong plus the 76 remake and it's sequel King Kong Lives. Had I read the book I'm not sure how I would have felt, I may would have been glad that they changed it...I don't know about that Yes, old movies are good and yes with silent films you gotta read but there's a lot with much history behind'em. Oh yes, My passion for Dinos never ceased thank goodness. Like I've said before with wrestling, fighting & martial arts goes hand to hand, wrestling themes & soundtracks & scores go hand to hand...well Dinos & Kaijus do too. Look how much Dinos are featured in Kaiju films. Godzilla 54 had a big Dino presence there for example
Yes, it was extremely quick. It was like they filmed it all at the same time. If you ever see Son of Kong, make sure you see King Kong first...it's so cool when you watch'em back to back
I hope you liked the history that I brought at the end there especially about Cooper and his dream and really the importance about it as a whole. I get disgusted how he isn't credited as much as he should be. It's almost as worse as H.P. Lovecraft...there's so many films with his work and there's no credits about him whatsoever
Okay, well keep watching for new content and stuff in this Topic, I really haven't even begun it yet really All of those that I entered were such apropos entries because without them there would be no Kaiju films. Next will be the long lost 1933 Japanese King Kong film plus more...there's gonna be a lot of surprises here in the near future
The Past isn't a Wilderness of Horrors - We Grow Old Because We Stop Playing - DTA - If it's been done in a movie, then most likely it's already been done in Real Life - ALWAYS Watch the Skies - Question Everything, FTW! = Me + Various <-->
I hope everyone and anyone that is seeing this great Topic of Mine has enjoyed it and found at least some amazement thus far with all of the history that I know and that I have entered here. I just placed a few more imperative pictures in the 1933 King Kong entry. I especially hope that you saw/see the The Lost Spider Pit Scene of the 1933 King Kong because I find that truly remarkable not only as a historical piece but a wonderful horror scene that's extremely fun
So now I'm about to present 2 VERY important entries in this Topic, these are two very crucial historical films of the history of Kaiju movies that most people don't know about. They are "LOST" films. For example, 1927's Universal Monster silent film London After Midnight was destroyed in a huge fire. The film was "lost" in the burning blaze and only a very small percentage of it like pictures & music exists. It's such a shame because it was heck of a spooky film In fact, I loved this so much it, the London After Midnight Vampire is the reason why I collected My great 12"-1/6 Sideshow Toys Universal Monsters way back in 2001 which you can see him plus so much more here ---> http://www.dctoyrevolution.org/general-toy-discussions/my-1-6-12-figure-collection-huge-post-t1162-10.html
Now sure, that's very sad but not as bleak as the ones that I'm about to present. It's the short Japanese 1933 King Kong and two-part 1938 King Kong that Appeared in Edo and both films were made without the permission of RKO Pictures whom owned the rights to the character of King Kong at these times
These two films plus countless others were destroyed during the war in Japan by America It's estimated that over 90% of Japan's copies of movies and so much more were destroyed by senseless wars during the 1945 Allied bombing of Hiroshima and/or Nagasaki It's believed that only around 1% of their movies & media survived the prewar era...now to Me, that it totally heartbreaking Now there is very few pictures & info available. I'm always talking about how limbolic this modern age has become and how plebeians don't talk about history nor do anything to preserve it much less their own...I don't want things falling to Oblivion and in My Showcases. if your a faithful reader then you know I'm extremely serious about that stuff and this is no different. The 1933 Japanese Kong which the Japanese title was Wasei Kingu Kongu. It was at the theaters on October 5, 1933 compared to American's King Kong on April 7, 1933. This lost & forgotten masterpiece was Produced by Shochiku Kinema, Written by Akira Fushimi and Directed by Torajiro Saito. The film was Distributed by The Shochiku Co., Ltd. whom still exist as I type this, they distributed such greats as Ultraman & Gamera
Keep in mind that this film predated 62's King Kong vs. Godzilla by 30 years The silent film was only about 45 Minutes and that is very short, around the time of an episode of your favorite TV Show Here's two of the only surviving Promotional Posters which these are so outstanding
These are the last of the only few images of the Japanese 1933 King Kong This is a good look at what he looked like, pretty impressive for the era if you ask Me
These are from a Japanese Kaiju Encyclopedia that was published in the 1970s
It speaks of Japan's King Kong that was in 1933 and how they brought the Kaiju back in the film that made the return of Godizlla happen in 1962 and that they made a great sequel called King Kong Escapes featuring Kong, Mechani-Kong & Gorosaurus I'm sure this book is worth more than gold
Now the film was considered a parody of the American 1933 King Kong. Here's what the story was: After becoming jobless and poor, Koichi and his friend struggle to make money. Koichi's friend separates from his girlfriend Omitsu by her Dad who sets her up with a filthy rich man instead. He's inspired by the American film Merian C. Cooper's King Kong, the man comes up with the idea to dress up as an Ape since that was the all the new rave in America and elsewhere and play none other than King Kong himself. He was able to secure a partnership with a big Vaudeville theater and become a big & instantaneous success in a show of miniatures to depict the Kaiju as a towering giant monstrous Ape However during a performance he notices Omitsu with her new boyfriend in the audience Throwing a tantrum, he leaps off the stage and begins chasing her new lover through the streets of Japan actually with his gorilla suit still on Thinking of him to be an escaped animal, he is chased down by Authorities, Firefighters and even hunters Eventually, he knocks the boyfriend down unconscious and has the brilliant idea of dressing him up in the gorilla suit thus leaving him to be found lying in the street The owner of the theater pays the man handsomely for his performances and he uses the money to marry Omitsu
Gosh, I really love that story, that totally rocked Here's a good look at Kong and his beloved Omitsu
So now here is the other lost Kong film that came out three years later in 1938...it's called The King Kong that Appeared in Edo which the Japanese title was Edo ni Arawareta Kingu Kongu Written by Daijo Aoyama, Directed by Soya Kumaga and Distributed by Zensho Cinema. Here's one of the only surviving images of the official Japanese Poster
Edo was actually the name of the small town before it's population grew and became the huge city that is now known as Tokyo so you could say that this title could also mean The King Kong that Appeared in Tokyo
It was a twp part Silent film. The first part was called Volume of Transformation - (Henge no Maki). It was released to theaters on March 31, 1938. The second feature was titled Volume of Gold - (Ōgon no Maki) and came out on April 7 this was only the second Japanese film to have a character based on King Kong and already the fourth King Kong movie overall within a five year time span This was one of the very first Tokusatsu which means Special Effects in Japanese which is usually practical or optical. A good example of that is late 1970s icons Spider-Man, Kamen Rider Stronger, Kamen Rider V3, Battle Fever J, Ultraman Joneus plus anime icon Doraemon
This predated the original 1954 Godzilla by 15 years, the Tokusatsu were considered to be remarkable at the time
The story is as follows: After his daughter Chinami is kidnapped, Hyoe Toba offers his employees a 3,000 ryo (that's one of many currencies used by the Tokugawa shogunate) reward for her recovery. Yuzuru Kawasaki is among those who look for her while Magonojo Go goes on the sidelines. Go himself is the actual kidnapper of Chinami He ordered his father Senbei's pet trained Ape to seize her Toba had previously jailed Senbei for refusing to counterfeit coinsfor him prompting Go to go undercover to try and find him. Backed up by the ape, Goconfronts Toba and trades him Chinami's location for the reward money and then locks him in his cellar. There the Ape attacks and slain Toba but is dealt mortal wounds himself Go leaves Edo with the reward. I love that this beast was initially owned by former prisoner Senbei and that The Anthropoid was employed Magonojo Go to securse durty deeds for him including kidnapping Chinami whom is the daughter of Go's wealthy boss Hyoe Toba Part of this story is from the March 1, 1938, issue of Kinema Junpo. Now in the Kinema Junpo, it declares "The Kaiju King Kong appears in Edo!" as Kaijū Kingu Kongu Edo ni araharu!. This means it's used as an alternative to "Anthropoid" or Apeman so that means that the Ape name is simply Anthropoid. Here's a great surviving picture of him
Here's a Advertisement that features the Anthropoid that was published in the April 14, 1938 issue of Kinema Junpo that has a great picture of the official Poster
Here is a Production still of the Ape (center) with Magonojo Go (left) and the Hunchback Kuroami (right). Now that is really, really cool
His great looking body suit was created & designed by Fuminori Ohashi . He was a Japanese actor, suit actor, a great sculptor & modelmaker and even a director. Actually beginning his career in 1935 as an assistant director like many composers begin their famed careers. He was also a cameraman for the now-defunct film company Shochiku Kamata. He would soon be transitioned to acting and became inspired by the 1933 King Kong film and of course its Japanese counterpart. He began his dream job modeling and portraying an Anthropoid for the 1938 film The King Kong that Appeared in Edo. After that he was hired by Toho and would do many wonders there however he continued to act under his pseudonym name Sanshiro Sagara
Now there is some contradiction & confusion, There is stills of the Anthropoid being the size of a human while there is others of him being the size of a Kaiju. Unfortunately this has never been known as to what the deal was about this
Here's several more images that was able to be saved from Japanese Publications & Collectors
These are very old Lobby Cards, I would imagine that their value is immeasurable
Here's a picture of the Ape/Anthropoid standing on top of a Minka Strangely I think he kinda looks like The Predator/Yutja from the great movie & comic franchise in this picture
This is master Hyoe Toba and his lovely daughter Chinami.
The manacle villain Magonojo Go
A Geisha in distress as the Anthropoid attempts to get her
This is a fan made film from around 2012. It made major headlines back then because the person whom made it claimed to show "surviving footage" of the film The King Kong that Appeared in Edo However, it was confirmed it just uses edited clips from the 1977 film Yeti: Giant of the 20th Century so when this first appeared on YouTube back then already 14 years ago, it was a massive bummer for those who were excited about it Now I do believe that the film does give you a glimpse & good idea of how radically excellent the film was
This will do it for the two "LOST" King Kong films on the 1930s. I hope you liked it and like where My Topic is heading. I also hope you like all of this American & Japanese trivia & history that I'm presenting as well When I say I'm into something and that I'm all about history, I mean it and I try to do the best that I can Next will be another "lost" film from 1934 called The Great Buddha Arrival and it's recent sequel/remake from 2018 Until then I'll see you around
The Past isn't a Wilderness of Horrors - We Grow Old Because We Stop Playing - DTA - If it's been done in a movie, then most likely it's already been done in Real Life - ALWAYS Watch the Skies - Question Everything, FTW! = Me + Various <-->
I hope you've been following this so far. I absolutely loved how I did the Japanese 33 King Kong and 1938's King Kong That Appeared in Edo. There is so much history there. So, next up is yet another "LOST" film called The Great Buddha Arrival that was at the theaters in 1934, 90 years ago this year
This maybe THE MOST IMPORTANT of all Kaiju films because this is considered THE FIRST GIANT KAIJU film ever made The film's Japanese name is Daibutsu Kaikoku which means "The Giant Buddha Statue's Travel Through the Country". the film is also known as The Great Buddha Arrival: Chukyo Edition (Daibutsu Kaikoku Chūkyōhen). I'm about to tell & show you all that I know about the "LOST" movie. Here's two of the only surviving Poster Advertisements of the film
If your wondering what a Buddha is, Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly known as the Buddha ('the awakened'), was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 5th and/or 6th century BCE founded the religion known as Buddhism...if you practice this you are known as a Buddhist. Many action actors & wrestlers are Buddists including Steven Seagal, Keanu Reeves and the Sydal Brothers, Matt & Mike. Here's an old picture of Buddha touching the Earth while the armies surround him
The Japanese word for the Buddha Statues is Daibutsu. Their really common in Japan so it was a no-brainer for them to make a movie about one that comes alive walking around the country. This predates Talos from 1963's Jason and the Argonauts and even Japan's very own Godzilla & Daimajin Trilogy by decades
Now if you didn't see My great spotlight on the "LOST" Japanese King Kong films then I urge you to check it as I explain why their "LOST" and so much history. Now like I said, this film is the first Japanese film that is known to have a character that is Kaiju-sized. The "LOST" Japanese King Kong films were not though Edo is very questionable. The movies was Produced by Yoshiro Edamasa and Directed by Yoshiro Edamasa and was made by the Production company Giant Buddha Movie Factory. They planned to have a sequel, actually a franchise however they were never able to make them became the initial movie was destroyed by the bombings of the Allied Forces during World War II Thank you senseless wars for power, greed & money It was a fairly short film at only 75 minutes which that is 1 hour, 15 minutes and released at Japanese Theaters on September 14, 1934. Now here's the plot as follows with some fan made CGI and possible surviving footage: The Buddha statue in Shurakuen Park suddenly becomes alive and arises on 33-meters height which that's about 108 Feet tall He starts a quest to save humanity because of serial suicides as people think their lives are meaningless (Japan is known to have a major high number of self-kills. Since the age of the Samurai, their practice of committing "seppuku" or being "kamikazes" is a severe problem. This is a major social issue as I type this, an example great wrestler Hana Kimura ended her life that way because of bullying and in fact WWE Superstar Logan Paul had a very controversial incident about this sort of thing a long while back about Japan's Suicide ForestThe Giant Buddha goes through many tourist attractions located in the Chukyo region which is currently the modern Nagoya. Unlike most Kaijus, he's extremely considerate and causes no destruction as he is careful how & where he walks around. Of course this might be boring to anyone who loves chaos like that but it would be against of what the point of theme of the film is all about
The huge Statue takes off to Tokyo. the land that was formally known as Edo. Now in a 1934 article in the Kinema Junpo spoke of scenes that The Giant Buddha Statue strides over a train, rests his head on a three-story building and traveling around on a magical cloud
He makes Geisha Girls dance on his palm which this is radical
Last but not least he even and visits Heaven and Hell and this would have been in color which keep in made this is 1934, this predates Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937 This would have been one of the most grandest & revolutionary moments ever seen in a movie
Oh man, like the 1933 Japanese King Kong, I would have loved to see that, such a great story with such wild stuff To bad there had to be senseless wars for money & power because of that this will never ever be seen again Here's some of the only surviving images of this wonderful masterpiece
As a special side note since I'm talking about 1934, the Son of Kong was released in Japan and was Titled The Revenge of Kong which I have already covered this film in major fashion here within this great topic of Mine
Also, when I covered the 1933 American King Kong films I noted how the Brontosaurus was used in a similar manor as the Loch Ness Monster sightings that very same year in 1933 Here's an old Sketch of one of the original & first sightings
Also here's a news article from 1934, this is really quite remarkable
Last edited by BrandonDaCollector on Thu Jun 06, 2024 6:55 am, edited 1 time in total.
The Past isn't a Wilderness of Horrors - We Grow Old Because We Stop Playing - DTA - If it's been done in a movie, then most likely it's already been done in Real Life - ALWAYS Watch the Skies - Question Everything, FTW! = Me + Various <-->