Monster Island News: King Kong Escapes

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"King Kong vs. Godzilla" and "King Kong Escapes" On Blu-ray April 1

by Armand Vaquer

Above, King Kong vs. Godzilla. Photo by Toho Co., Ltd.

Blu-ray.com is reporting that King Kong vs. Godzilla and King Kong Escapes will be released on Blu-ray disc on April 1 by Universal Pictures.

It appears that both will be "bare-bones" discs and will only contain the U.S. releases. No price information has been provided.

The U.S. version of King Kong vs. Godzilla was the first Godzilla movie I saw in a theater when it was first released back in June 1963.

As I have both movies on DVD, I will probably pass on these, but if either are not already in your video library, you many want to pick them up.

The Ten Best Giant Ape Movies

Though he may have been but an animated model given life through primitive special effects, King Kong, with his doomed loved for the beautiful blonde, has become one of the most beloved of all movie characters, revived in remakes, sequels and knock-offs. But Kong wasn’t the only massive simian to grace the silver screen. Here’s a look at the ten best giant ape movies.

HONORABLE MENTION: A*P*E

The ad campaign for the 1976 Korean film A*P*E warned “Not to be confused with KING KONG”. A captive giant ape, after escapes from a freighter and sets his destructive sights on Seoul, Korea where he falls for an American actress (Joanna Kerns ) filming a movie there. A*P*E was originally filmed in 3-D so there are countless shots of a man in a moth-eaten ape suit throwing Styrofoam boulders at the camera. He also engages in a pitiful skirmish with an obviously dead shark, flips to the bird to his attackers, and in one scene, sports high-top tennis shoes. The same stock destruction footage is repeated in A*P*E, one of the most dismal, if unintentionally funny monster movies of all.

10. KING KONG LIVES

Dino De Laurentiis waited ten years to produce a sequel to his poorly received but modestly successful King Kong remake and brought back director John Guillermin to helm King Kong Lives in 1986. The Jarvik Heart, a medical device making headlines at the time, became the springboard for the story which took place just after Kong’s fall from the World trade Center. He needs a blood transfusion to prevent his body from rejecting his mechanical ticker so a busty Lady Kong is transported from Skull Island to donate. The big guy falls hard for her and the hairy pair bound off into the mountains to make a Kong baby a team of hunters on their tail. The unbelievably goofy premise is played absolutely straight in King Kong Lives. Highlights include an absurd heart-transplant scene (by a team of doctors lead by Linda Hamilton) featuring surgical tools the size of trucks, and a battle with a pair of floppy rubber alligators. This sequel nobody asked for to the remake nobody liked was less offensive, faster-paced, and more fun than its predecessor.

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Mecha King Kong Figure - Open Mouth Variant - By Raymundo

Written By: Ken Hulsey
Source: Big Bad Toy Store

Mecha King Kong, or Mechani-Kong, as he is known in Japan, is a robotic copy of the original King Kong that appeared in the 1967 movie "King Kong Escapes"!

Raymundo has produced a very limited number (250 in all) of these "Mecha Gorilla" figures and the Big Bad Toy Store is the only place to get them.

As most collectors of Japanese monster toys already know, the last time that a figure based on the Toho version of Kong was produced was way back in the early 1990s by Bandai, so you may want to snatch this one up while you can.

Order Yours From The Big Bad Toy Store Today For Only $59.99!

Mecha King Kong Bio (From Wiki):

Mechani-Kong was both designed and built by the international criminal, Dr. Who, to mine the radioactive Element X from the Arctic underground, but the robotic ape failed his creator, the radiation of Element X damaging his controls. However, Dr. Who came up with another plan to abduct the real King Kong and using Mechani-Kong, hypnotize Kong to mine Element X instead. However, the combination of Kong’s mind and the cries of Nurse Susan Watson, who Kong had a liking for, were able to overcome the hypnotism and Kong escaped to Tokyo, with both Mechani-Kong and Dr. Who in hot pursuit.

In Tokyo, King Kong and Mechani-Kong battled up the side of Tokyo Tower, both monsters getting their shots in on one another. In the end, an attack back on Dr. Who's ship crippled Mechani-Kong’s controls and turned the tide of battle in Kong's favor. The crippled Mechani-Kong then fell from the tower, crashing into the street below and shattering into several pieces.

Giant Monster Round-up - King Kong Escapes To Chicago And A Retro Monster Promotes Power Line Safety

Written By: Ken Hulsey
Sources: Avery Guerra / Marketing Mag (Canada)

I didn't think that either of these two bits would stand very well on their own, so I decided to combine them.

Avery Guerra just shot me an e-mail about a special screening of "King Kong Escapes" at the Portage Theater in Chicago this Saturday. The film will be part of a mini-festival being presented by Time Tunnel Toys that also includes "The Monolith Monsters", "War of the Colossal Beast" and "Van Helsing: The London Assignment."

If memory serves....I think that last one is actually a cartoon.

Anyway, "King Kong Escapes" will be shown at 4:00, but there will be a vintage toy show, and sale, that starts at 2. Admission will be $10 for adults and $5 for the kiddos.

That price is for all the films, not each, in case you were wondering.