Mighty Joe Young

The Motion Picture "Mighty Joe Young" has proved more to be a learning experience this day than I knew. I'am of the opinion that the special features offered by the DVD assisted this reviewer in knowing the film better than anything I might of known even of some time ago. I'am in my late sixties with the original viewing of "Mighty Joe Young" occuring perhaps in the late 1950's.I'am thinking of Million Dollar Movie that had the thematic song from "Gone With The Wind".That is how we viewed many films then and perhaps as things were once when something was shown it was something of a chore to see it again.Then,you could rent the actual reel to reel for some movies however like I said it would be a chore.I can recall a Merle Oberon film which my mother cared for and we did just that, we rented the reel to reel with the projector. This does not in any way diminish the appeal this particular motion picture has but it was much of the discussion as it concerns the contribution of Special Effects person in Ray Harryhausen that was most interesting. "Mighty Joe Young" is a very likable film however not everyone seems to know just how these films are made.It seems that Joe Young started out in 4 different sizes, two sizes were of the 41/2 inches, and two were 21/2 inches.The cost to the film makers was nearly $2,000.00(1948-1949 dollars). These were terminator look a-likes whose mechanical ability is what you see when Joe Young is on the screen.The editing could often said to have a hard time as Joe Young was made to fit the scene, Joe Young it can be said appeared to have a hard time fitting in.I think that is a very legitimate gripe that the editing appears to be a bit rough.Joe Young seems much larger at times yet when he does certain activities it is most certainly hard to figure. Ray Harryhausen said that,with this particular project he wanted to give Joe Young something of a personality. Indeed it is most probably this very interesting discussion on giving Joe Young a personality that may very well provided for much of why Joe Young is such a likable film.Joe Young is something of a hero as are the personalities of Greg (Ben Johnson) and yes even Max Ohara (Robert Armstrong). I felt that the initial scene filmed when O'hara is in Africa was very good.The attempt to lassoe Joe Young was good to very well done. See... no one was killed ,there was no blood and the cowboys showed that they to got up for a challenge. The opening scene when Joe Young is on stage is worth saying something about. "Beautiful Dreamer" played by Jill Young (Terry Moore) at the piano is a very good scene in fact it is a beautiful and as well terrifying scene. written by Stephen Forster(1826-1864) The song is addressed to a "Beautiful Dreamer" who does not know or is not aware at all of the cares of this world and it is thought that this sentimental parlor song that the "Beautiful Dreamer" may very well be dead.The appeal in the songs second stanza when addressing the "wild lorelei" is of a fading spirit which is "queen of his heart".This even today is sung by many as the songs enchanting ability seems not to have faded with time.A very excellent recording made some time ago can be had from the recordings of Bing Crosby(Bing Crosby was voted most admired man in 1943 as the voice of our troops overseas was heard here at home) however "The Irish Tenors" on their album "Ireland" have a most lovely recording of "Beautiful Dreamer".I have listened to both recordings and both should not be ignored. The tug of rope scene is another show stopper as the wrestlers were in fact just those persons.The introduction of Primo Carnera is for real as Primo Carnera was very much both a Heavy Weight Boxing Champion and a Wrestling Great.His prize fighting career was something like 88 Wins and 14 losses with 72 of those 88 wins being by knockout. He also wrestled, as a wrestler he compiled something like a 141 Wins against 1 Loss and 1 Tie.The tug of rope scene is excellent, Primo Carnera was just as he appeared. The scene of the orphanage is one of those scenes that might be said to have stood the test of time, it is in fact memorable.I can only suggest to whomever might read this that this film is very likeable, it is very enjoyable to think about, and can on occassion stay with you in heart and mind. Well worth a recommendation.

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This could also be titled, "A tale of four giant monkey movies", since MJY and KK were both given remakes in recent years (for this review, I'll ignore the unfortunate 1976 KK remake). The plots for each is, by now, pretty much familiar to most people, although MJY has been overshadowed by KK. This is a pity. Growing up, I always loved this film. I liked the original KK, too, but always thought it took itself just a little too seriously. Also, as a child, I really didn't like that Kong was killed at the end. Kids don't really appreciate tragedy.MJY has the heart and humor that KK lacked. Some would complain about maudlin sentimentality, and it does require a certain innocence to appreciate it. I was fortunate enough to first see it at an age when I still had that innocence. I'm not ashamed to admit that I can still see it that way after all these years. Disney remade MJY in 1998, but some of the innocence and charm were lost in translation. The '98 version was a very forgettable film and an unworthy successor to the original.Comparisons to KK as well as the '98 remake are inevitable though, so let's address them (WARNING: some spoilers ahead)...KK is pretty much a straightforward action film with interludes of unconvincing romance. The acting in KK is really quite awful. (Although Robert Armstrong plays pretty much the same part in MJY that he played in KK, he does it better in MJY.) But then, all of the human actors in KK are pretty wooden, and not helped all that well by the script. (Peter Jackson's KK remake is excellent, crippled only by the poor choice of Jack Black to play the Carl Denham character.)By comparison, MJY also blends action and romance, but adds some notes of humor and sentiment. All of these have held up well over the years. One of the big differences between the original and the '98 remake is that the original seems more genuine in context. The original is really good storytelling, but the remake seems built on the same plot framework, but designed to appeal to focus group audiences. The acting in MJY is still inferior to the remake, but that's not enough to detract from the charm of the story. Peter Jackson obviously had some of the same feelings about the two that I did since he added some moments of lightness and sentiment to his KK remake that the original lacked.KK's great weakness is that its "moral" is hopelessly naive from a modern perspective. "Beauty killed the beast" is not only corny, it ignores that what really killed Kong was human greed and meddling with the natural world. Both KK remakes have picked up on this. By contrast, MJY is a "fish out of water" movie where both Joe and Jill are seduced by a society they're too innocent to understand. As great storytelling, you root for them to be able to go home, and the story obliges in the end. Unlike KK, the moral of MJY is every bit as relevant today as the day it was made.One weakness of the MJY plot is that Joe is, essentially, Jill's pet. Although this enhances the charm of the story, it detracts from its message about nature. No, Joe isn't a house pet, but he's still clearly domesticated. That Kong is just as clearly a wild animal enhances the sense of dread in KK's action sequences. KK turns that relationship on its ear, the making Ann Darrow character Kong's pet. One major difference between the original KK and Peter Jackson's remake is that the original suggested that the relationship between Kong and Ann was sexual on some level. The remake depicted Kong as a lonely creature and his pet human as a welcome companion.I have to make one final observation, unrelated to reviews of any of these films... I find it fascinating to see the effect that these giant monkey movies had on the careers of their female leads. Without KK, no one today would be likely to remember Fay Wray. Alone among these actresses, Terry Moore was most likely to have been remembered, but more for her relationship with Howard Hughes than her work in MJY. The '76 KK remake launched the career of Jessica Lange just as the MJY remake launched the career of Charlize Theron. It will be interesting to see how Naomi Watts' career progresses after the latest KK remake.

This 1949 movie was an attempt to duplicate the success of 'King Kong', and while it did not become the iconic movie that 'Kong' did, it still impresses today... The story is a simple one: Nightclub owner and showman (played by Kong actor Robert Armstrong), discovers giant Ape Joe Young is the pet of a young girl in Africa. He brings them both to Hollywood as the ultimate floorshow for his clubs, but when the Ape runs amok after being given alcohol it is decreed that he is a danger to the public and is to be shot..... The effects are , of course, the main attraction in the film, and they do not disappoint. Effects pioneer Ray Harryhausen, who would later go on to do the 'Sinbad' films and 'Jason and The Argonauts', delivers his usual superb artistry to the movie, imbuing the Ape with a sympathetic character. The Nightclub scene where Joe goes berserk is particularly striking, mixing live action actors and animals with model work that was way ahead of its time. The film will delight viewers of all ages and has aged well, despite the advanced effects work of today's movies. The extras on this region 1 disc are good too, with a commentary by Harryhausen himself, a Theatrical trailer and 2 interesting featurettes. Harryhausen has rightly become revered amongst both moviemakers and audiences for his pioneering effects work and it is good that he is now being recognised for his superb work. Release such as this , which have his involvement and commentary are therefore well worth adding to the collection of anyone with an interest in sci-fi/fantasy or movie history in general. So why no region 2 release?.....

Delivered on time for Christmas, this is just as described (US region 1). My only gripe is the price, but my wife had been wanting this DVD for ages, so I purchased it.

Harryhausen took care of 90% of the animation, therefore this is unmissable.

Perfect

In my opinion as good as if not better than King Kong.