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There have been three major film adaptations of the original story (along with numerous spin-offs, sequels and cross-overs):
'''* [[King Kong (1933 film)|1933]]''King Kong'' (1933 film)]]: (See the recap [[King Kong (1933 film)/Recap|here]].)
** Followed later that year by ''Son of Kong''.
Followed* later[[King thatKong year by(1976 film)|''Son ofKing Kong''. (1976 film)]]
** [[Sequelitis|A sequel]], ''King Kong Lives'', followed... [[Sequel Gap|ten years later]]. ▼
* [[King Kong (2005 film)|''King Kong'' (2005 film)]]
'''[[King Kong (1976 film)|1976]]''' The story remains pretty much the same, but the characters and situations are changed: instead of a filmmaker seeking an exciting movie locale, an [[Corrupt Corporate Executive|amoral oil executive]] is seeking an uncharted island (hidden by a perpetual fog bank) where he hopes to find an enormous untapped deposit of crude. The requisite blonde, Dwan (Jessica Lange), is encountered at sea, adrift in a lifeboat, the sole survivor of a yacht explosion; and [[The Hero]] is a stowaway anthropologist. The rest of the film plays out more or less as the previous version, albeit with a somewhat more realistic depiction of the natives and with fewer island hazards (the only oversized animals featured are Kong and a snake). The oil exec, upset to learn that the island's crude is unfit for refining, decides to "bring home the big one" in a very literal sense; when the hero brings Dwan back from Kong's clutches, Kong is again captured and brought to New York in a gaudy publicity stunt. Again, Kong misinterprets the intentions of pushy photographers, and the story goes on from there.
This film differs from the 1933 version in another, very important aspect: the relationship between Kong and "his" girl. Fay Wray's Ann was treated as nothing more than a [[Damsel in Distress|kidnapping victim]], a prize for Kong. Dwan, on the other hand, is given several extended scenes--on the island, on the ship back to America, and in New York--actually forming a bizarre sort of bond with the big guy. And when Kong climbs to the top of the (then newly constructed) World Trade Center towers and is attacked by the military, Dwan is right there, trying to be a human shield for him. But to no avail...
▲[[Sequelitis|A sequel]], ''King Kong Lives'', followed... [[Sequel Gap|ten years later]].
'''[[King Kong (2005 film)|2005]]''' [[Peter Jackson]]'s take on ''King Kong'' returns to the story as propounded in 1933: Depression-era filmmaker Carl Denham ([[Jack Black]]), dodging debt collectors, hires an out-of-work Ann Darrow ([[Naomi Watts]]) and quickly leaves on an expedition to find a certain uncharted island...
Jackson's film diverges from the original by providing more of Denham's and Ann's respective back stories. Further, "Jack Driscoll" is changed from the ship's first mate to a playwright, and a narcissistic Hollywood actor is added for comic relief. The natives are ''much'' more brutal than past portrayals. And, as with the 1976 film, a good deal of attention is paid to the unusual "romance" between the girl and the primate, which is strong enough that Ann would rather stay on the island with him than see him captured; and later she refuses to participate in his exhibition in America. She does, though, show up in time to halt his rampage through the city, and from there... well, [[It Was His Sled|you know how this one ends]].
Interestingly, the 2005 version of the film makes a show of Denham filming scenes and dialog lifted from the original 1933 movie.
{{tropelist|The various permutations of ''King Kong'' provide examples of the following tropes:}}
== General ==
* [[Always Save the Girl]]
* [[Animals Lack Attributes]]: Kong has no nipples.
* [[Everything Trying to Kill You]]: Skull Island. So much.
* [[Helicopter Flyswatter]]: Probably the [[Trope Maker]].
<!-- * [[Hulk's Cooldown Hug Corollary]] MOD: Huh? What trope is this supposed to be? -->
* [[Human Sacrifice]]
* [[Intercontinuity Crossover]] with [[Godzilla]]: Kong fought the Monster King in 1962's ''King Kong vs. Godzilla''. See the Godzilla page for more of its history, to avoid a [[Flame War]].
* [[The Remake]]: Most people agree the '76 film was a Remake Decay; the jury is still out on the '05 version.
* [[Screaming Woman]]
* [[Single -Specimen Species]]: How come you don't see more like Kong in his island?
** Explained in the 2005 ''A Natural History of Skull Island''. Kong is the [[Last of His Kind]]. Further, in the 2005 film, we see the bones of others of his kind, further cementing the idea that he is all alone.
* [[Somewhere a Palaeontologist Is Crying]]: Flesh-Eating Apatosaur (aka brontosaur) in the original. Most likely due to [[Rule of Cool]].
{{reflist}}
[[Category:King Kong{{PAGENAME}}]]
[[Category:Epic Movie]]
[[Category:Konami]]
[[Category:FranchiseFranchises]]
[[Category:Film]]
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