Roll-M: Mighty Joe Young |
Mighty Joe Young (starring Bill Paxton, Charlize Theron, Rade Serbedzija, Naveen Andrews, Regina King; written by Lawrence M. Konner and Mark Rosenthal; directed by Ron Underwood; rated PG).
Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but remakes of movies usually don’t surpass their predecessors. For example, this month has brought a Technicolor version of Hitchcock’s Psycho, complete with shiny red buckets o’ blood.* Now we have the remake of the 1949 "classic" beauty-and-the beast film Mighty Joe Young (which itself was a knock-off of King Kong). Is it an improvement? That’s hard to say. It’s been updated, and the special effects are fantastic, thanks to modern digital computer technology (without a doubt you will be convinced this is a real 15-foot-high ape).
But do wonderful special effects add up to an equally wonderful movie? Not really. The story concerns a baby gorilla (Joe) and a young girl, both of whose mothers are killed by evil poachers in Africa. Before dying, the child’s mother entrusts her young daughter to protect Joe. Twelve years later, she’s all grown up and happily swinging through the jungle with Mighty Joe, now a 2,000 ton gentle giant with the intelligence of a five-year-old human. Enter Bill Paxton as a zoologist, who has big plans for Joe and his friend. Take ’em to LA, where they’ll be safe from poachers, and put the big lug on exhibit. Naturally, things run amok. Joe goes berserk when he hears the jangling metal keys of the poachers (reminiscent of ET). There’s a tense chase scene through the "jungles" of Tinseltown, culminating in a climactic child-rescue scene, a near-death experience (think ET – again), and the obligatory happy ending.
While this highly derivative movie is laden with cliches and trite storytelling, it is worthwhile if only to marvel at the incredible blending of digital effects with puppetry as well as monkey-suited, Rick Baker-directed actors. It’s impossible to tell which is which – which is as it should be! Also, keep your eye on Charlize Theron (and it’s almost impossible not to). This beauty (recently seen in The Devil’s Advocate) is destined for major stardom. Paxton, too, turns in a fine performance as the well-meaning but goofy zoologist.
Kids will no doubt enjoy this film, but it may be too intense for younger children, as there are some rather violent moments. Normally, I think the rating board is pretty much on the mark (as opposed to Arizona Republic critic Bob Fenster, who consistently has his own version of what the proper rating of most films should be), but this time I tend to disagree with the MPAA – I think Might Joe Young might have been better suited to a PG-13 rating.
Two and a half owls.
*Probably karo syrup and red dye. In the original, Hitch used chocolate syrup for ersatz blood in his black and white classic; it was just the right consistency.