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Kong: Skull Island | 2017 | PG-13 | - 2.7.5
Set in 1973 as the Vietnam War comes to a close: a group of scientists accompanied by a military security force travels to a never-before mapped island surrounded by electrical storms and magnetic interference. The giant animals they find when they arrive have them running for their lives. With Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, Brie Larson, John C. Reilly, John Goodman, Corey Hawkins, John Ortiz, Tian Jing and Toby Kebbell. Directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts. [2:00]
SEX/NUDITY 2 - Scantily clad women (cleavage and bare abdomens are seen) are shown in a club where people smoke and drink alcohol; a woman dances seductively on a short stage and another woman closes a curtain in a small room.
► A woman wears a low-cut tank top through most of the movie (we see cleavage, bare shoulders and the outline of her breasts). A woman wearing a low-cut top that reveals cleavage walks with a sailor through a crowded street. Several men are shown shirtless and we see their bare chests, abdomens and backs in a few scenes. A giant ape's fur covered buttocks are seen in a few scenes. Several men are shown shirtless with patterns painted on their bodies and some wear loincloths.
VIOLENCE/GORE 7 - A man on a boat is snatched and taken into the air by large pterodactyl-like creatures; the man screams as the birds fight over him and one of his arms is pulled off (we see the arm separate). A man holding a camera is eaten by a giant lizard and we see his legs disappear into its mouth (the flashbulb continues to flash as it moves through the creature's belly) and other men shoot at it repeatedly. A man in a jungle looks up and an enormous spider's leg slams down through his mouth, then pulls back up leaving the man to crumple to the ground dead; we see the enormous spider as it grabs another man with a gooey rope and the man cuts himself free, falls to the ground and is covered by the insides of the spider after it is shot repeatedly (the man survives and we see a lot of gore on and around him). A man is grabbed by a giant lizard's long tongue and he is eaten. A giant lizard lunges toward a man and blood sprays onto a radio (we do not see the man being eaten). A giant ape steps on a man (presumably crushing him) and then throws another man into the windshield of a flying helicopter (the windshield cracks) and the man bounces up into the chopper blades (we see a spray of blood).
► A giant lizard chases a woman who hides under giant rib cage bones until the creature is killed. Many helicopters fly around a giant ape and they open fire as the ape flinches and roars; the ape knocks a helicopter to the ground and another spins out of control (we see a body on the ground with some bloody wounds as the ape steps on him and another man who was alive); two helicopters crash together mid-air and explode.
► A man shoots a giant pterodactyl-looking creature and it spurts blue goo. A man sits on a log in a jungle and it moves (we see a giant insect) and the man shoots it repeatedly (it walks way and seems unharmed). A man is thrown into a skull and lays unconscious surrounded by canisters of toxic gas that explode and spew gas on people and creatures around him.
► An uprooted tree is thrown through the air and crashes into a helicopter's window (the chopper spins out of control and crashes to the ground), and a giant hand grabs a helicopter and thrashes it around as a man inside holds on, then loses his grip and falls toward a giant ape's mouth as it roars loudly (we do not see the man being eaten but that is the implication). A giant lizard approaches a man as he flips the pins out of two hand grenades; the lizard thrashes the man into a large rock in the distance and we see an explosion.
► A giant ape is surrounded by explosions and is covered with napalm (we see glowing embers embedded in his fur as he thrashes and falls over); he slaps flaming water that lands on a man who is engulfed in flames. A plane crashes into a beach and a parachutist lands nearby as another plane crashes into the same beach and a second parachutist lands (we see some blood on the faces of the men); the two parachutists shoot at each other, then chase each other through a jungle to a ledge where they fight; one man uses a sword and cuts the other man's hands as he tries to hold the blade (we see blood, hear squishing and the man yells), and one man uses a short knife and presses it toward the other man's throat until the fight is interrupted by a giant ape peering over the ledge and it roars (we see large fangs). A man plays pool in a club and another man tries to keep him from collecting his money; the first man strikes the second man with a pool cue and throws pool balls at another man approaching him with a knife. A man holds a gun on another man. A man hits another man in the head with a gun. Two men and a woman hold guns on several other men with guns (no one shoots).
► A giant ape throws a propeller at a giant lizard and it falls to the ground, the ape wraps the lizard with the propeller chain, the lizard bites the ape in the arm and wraps its tongue around it (it pulls the ape's arm with a woman in his hand into its mouth) and when the ape pulls his arm and hand back out he rips the lizard's tongue and other organs out with a squish. A giant ape and a giant lizard fight with many bites and throws; the ape lands among a huge chain that wraps around his arms and he cannot get free, but when he does a woman shoots the lizard in the head with a flare gun and falls off a high perch into water where she sinks motionless. A giant ape is wrapped by a giant squid's tentacles; he thrashes to free himself, steps on the body of the squid and it spurts ink and then pulls off a few of the tentacles and eats them (we see the tentacles wriggling as they go into his mouth. A giant ape fights with several giant lizards as they snap their large pointy teeth at him and whip him with their tails; the ape crushes them and throws them. A giant lizard eats from a dead giant water buffalo (we see some of the buffalo's organs and the bloody mouth of the lizard).
► A man with a bloody face stands on an island and is surrounded by flames as he locks eyes with a giant ape. Many explosive devices are dropped on the surface of an island and we see animals running in fear. Police chase a woman through a crowded street and they bump into people. A man flicks a lit cigarette onto the ground and it explodes from fumes of some sort. We hear airplane alarms blaring as we see a man swirling through the air. A giant water buffalo moans and whimpers after being trapped under a downed helicopter; a woman attempts to free the buffalo and an ape lifts the chopper and then looks at the woman and snorts before walking away. A giant ape pulls an unconscious woman out of water and lays her on land where she coughs up water and seems recovered.
► Several helicopters fly into large storm clouds and passengers hold on as the vehicles are tossed around by turbulence; the flight instruments malfunction as lightning bolts flash and a man talks about Icarus flying too close to the sun. We see several images depicting warfare and weapons including bombs, soldiers dead and wounded on battlefields (we see some bloody wounds). A transport ship approaches an island and is surrounded by huge storm clouds with flashing lightning.
► We see a large pit filled with giant skulls and bones of giant apes. Many men are shown with bloody wounds after an attack and crash landings on an island; we see a motionless man strapped into a helicopter shell and his face seems to be charred. Several men bury dead soldiers after an attack (we see mounds of dirt and their helmets on the ground). A giant ape is shown with a bloody wound on his arm and he flinches when he touches it. A giant ape is shown with healed scratches on his chest. A man cuts himself with a knife when trying to open a can (we do not see blood).
► Several men and women come upon a structure in a jungle and as they approach it, people painted to blend into their surroundings move toward them with spears pointed at them; the first people hold guns at the other people until a man comes out of the structure and speaks to them all. We see a tall wall with huge spikes on the outside that are covered with blood. A giant water buffalo moves in water as several men and women walk by; one man points a gun at it and it snorts and turns away. A man tells several people, "If you like your hands don't touch anything." A man tells another man, "I'm gonna stab you by the end of the night."
► A man talks about his father leaving home to fight the Nazis and that he died in action. A man talks about malaria and other things that would kill you in a jungle environment. There are a few conversations about whether we lost or abandoned a war. There is a conversation about photographs being able to shape opinions. We hear that seven men are confirmed KIA. A man talks about an alternate ending of a children's story that his mother told him; he says that a mouse killed a lion with a thorn that it removed from the lion's paw. A man talks about people having no crime, no personal property and that they don't talk much. We see paintings on large stones that depict giant creatures that threaten people. A man talks about giant lizards that killed another man. A man says, "Sometimes life just punches you in the balls."
► A woman touches a giant ape's face and he appears to cry. A giant lizard vomits up a human skull with some green goo. A man opens and eats gooey food from a can.
LANGUAGE 5 - At least 1 F-word and 2 possible F-words and derivatives, 8 scatological terms, 5 anatomical terms, 17 mild obscenities, name-calling (nuts, crazy, dumb [anatomical term deleted], crackpot, stupid big lizard, things, bastards, ugly), 1 religious profanity (GD), 8 religious exclamations (e.g. Oh God, Kong Is God, Holy [scatological term deleted], Oh My God, I Swear To God, Thank God).
SUBSTANCE USE - People drink alcoholic beverages in a club scene, military men are seen with cans and bottles of beer on tables while they play cards (we do not see anyone drink), and a man talks about the beauty of a beer and a hot dog. Two men smoke small pipes in a club scene (not clear whether it is tobacco or a drug), and a man smokes a cigarette.
DISCUSSION TOPICS - Warfare, weaponry, uncharted lands, fear, exploration, the unknown, Vietnam War, World War II, space exploration, anti-war protests, President Nixon, legends, Bermuda Triangle, myth, science, fairy tales, imaginary monsters, hollow Earth, SAS, mercenaries, courage, common sense, Cold War, Tang, Spam, ancient species, Icarus, shaping opinions.
MESSAGE - Killing things that we do not understand can have severe repercussions.
CAVEATS
Be aware that while we do our best to avoid spoilers it is impossible to disguise all details and some may reveal crucial plot elements.
We've gone through several editorial changes since we started covering films in 1992 and older reviews are not as complete & accurate as recent ones; we plan to revisit and correct older reviews as resources and time permits.
Our ratings and reviews are based on the theatrically-released versions of films; on video there are often Unrated, Special, Director's Cut or Extended versions, (usually accurately labelled but sometimes mislabeled) released that contain additional content, which we did not review.
Saturday Night - 4.4.10
Piece by Piece - 1.2.3
Joker: Folie à Deux - 7.7.10
Monster Summer - 1.4.3
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