King Kong Escapes (1967) Movie Review
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- Опубликовано: 25 сен 2021
- Here's another entry in the unofficial "If you like Godzilla, you'd probably like this" series. Hope you enjoy it!
Special thanks to my supporters on Ko-fi! ko-fi.com/weiselberry 
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Hello! This movie was a staple of Saturday afternoon TV back in the 1970's and I must have seen it at least a dozen times growing up. In addition to being a fun movie, it probably deserves credit for inspiring the mechanical Godzilla, which appeared seven years later. Thanks for the review.
Just found your vids and I really like seeing younger people who appreciate and are knowledgeable of classic monsters!
This film was a TV syndication staple for me back in the day, saw it many times. It has such an unusual feel, I think in part because of the presence of Paul Frees in the dubbing cast. For a little boy raised on the Rankin-Bass animation specials, it is quite a collision of worlds to hear the Burgermeister's voice coming from Dr. Evil! It'll be interested to see how far you go down this Rankin-Bass/Japanese co-production rabbit hole Jerome...The Last Dinosaur and The Bermuda Depths await! Thanks for the review!
Thanks for the great review! The picture of Emo Kong was hilarious!
Please don't apologize for doing the work to provide accurate info for the rest of us nerds. It's why I'm here and why I LOVE your stuff!
Thank you!
Hideo Amamoto(Doctor Huu) was also in Godzilla's Revenge. He played Shiro's Kindly Neighbor who was also a Toymaker.
Akira Takarada also made two James Bond style spy thrillers: 100 Shot, 100 Killed (1965) (also featuring Mie Hama) and Booted Babe, Busted Boss (1968). They're both a lot of fun. In fact Godzilla: Final Wars features an in-joke line referencing Takarada's role in these films.
Now that you mention Paul Frees, it is pretty funny that the villian, Dr. Hu, is voiced by the same actor who voiced Boris Badenov. When I first saw this movie on TV when I was a kid, I really wanted one of those radio-controlled model tanks.
Always liked this movie. Very much enjoyed your review. You must have often gotten an A on your homework, because you always bring the receipts to your Channel.
THIS YOUNG LADY DID A GREAT JOB BREAKING THIS DOWN .... THIS BROUGHT HOME MY CHILDHOOD ...
Hi JW. I'm late to this, but having recently rewatched KKE, I wanted to post a comment. After years of searching, I managed to find a copy of the Japanese version of this film. It's about eight minutes longer than the American edit, most of that taken up with additional dialogue from the human characters, especially Dr. Who and Madame Piranha. The credits sequence is longer, including a screen announcing this as a 35th Anniversary Toho feature. The opening scene, in which Susan is saluted by some members of the crew, is absent. There's very little new Kong or Mechani-Kong footage. As you predicted in your video, Linda Miller and Rhodes Reason are dubbed over in this version, while the other actors speak Japanese. I don't know of a version that has everyone speaking in their native language, although some such fan edit might exist.
Thanks. Keep up the good work!
I had fun with this one. (Also, the details are NEVER boring.)
Very true.
I met Linda Miller at a con this past year and she is very nice. For years she had no idea that this was a popular film (although I'm not sure how that is). Thanks for the info about the King Kong Show. I never bothered to watch it, and had no idea that IT had a "Dr. Who" who looked more like Underdog's Simon Von Sinister.
Yes,that Doctor Who does resemble Simon Bar Sinister.
I saw for the first time this film at a sunday cinema matinee, in 1972. I´ve just watched Original 1933 version months ago in the same year. For me this is a delightful film, I saw the film two more times in 1973 and 1977 until I had at last DVD in 2006 and Blu-ray this year. For the eyes of a child is a marvellous film and for me a cheesy pop film. Thank you for your review.
I love your reviews and have been binge watching them lately. Your style is a breath of fresh air and fun to watch for old movie guys like myself! I also love that you and your mom watch movies together. I used to visit my mom a couple times a week and we would generally watch movies (she had a huge collection of VHS tapes). I really miss those days.
I seem to be watching one of your videos daily. Your videos are a refreshing break from most of what is on RUclips. Watching your videos also reminds me of a lot of the things I thought when I first saw some of the films you review. Nice to be reminded of what it was like to be young and to think young. Most of all, I like how smart your video content is.
Thank you! I'm so glad you're enjoying my videos!
I believe there was also an influence from the then-popular "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea" series -- both feature a futuristic sub and a commander named Nelson.
Good point.
I seen this movie when I was 16 on a huge screen in 1968. I was stuck on Linda Miller at the time. I have always loved this kind of movie.
So cool! I'm friends with Linda Miller. Called her up for Christmas. So if you ever need to pick my brain about all things Godziller/ Toho/ or Phantom, feel free. I'm a walking encyclopedia.
When I was a kid, I watched King Kong from 2005 and 1976, until they released a new one for 2017, after I started being a teenager, I had never watched the classic from 33, because it was a black and white movie, but curiosity spoke louder , and I watched the classic movie, after a while, I found out that the movie had a sequel, which is The Son of Kong. And after a while, I discovered the King Kong Escapes movie trailer, as I couldn't find it anywhere on RUclips, I ended up finding the movie on Facebook, and I loved King Kong Escapes.
KKE is a fun live action cartoon, which makes sense, coming from Rankin/Bass. Linda Miller is just adorable in that nurse uniform!
I think you did a great job. I found the background information very interesting. I liked this movie.
Thanks!
I always found KING KONG ESCAPES a lot of fun. It has an endearing, juvenile charm, and the vibrant 1960s color comes off particularly well
on Blu-ray.
Thanks for this cool King Kong movie review! 🙆♀️
I actually have spoken with Linda Miller through Facebook on a few occasions. She is honestly a very kind sweet person.
I read that for a long time it was a mystery what had happened to her, and no one knew anything about her life before or after appearing in just a couple movies. Then years later someone "found" her, and she's since been enthusiastically welcomed at conventions and things. :)
Great review, you made me want to watch this one again!
Great review as always. Just based on the photos, I can't help noticing how much this movie bears a visual resemblance to The Thunderbirds, also from the 60s and my most favourite show from my youth (not too long ago).
I was able to watch it today; it's great how you've hijacked so many of my Sundays by taking me on these wonderful journeys into different movie worlds. I definitely had fun with Kong Escapes, but I did get the feeling it was in some ways made for expediency and that there was a much better movie somewhere in there if the writing had been tighter, especially that confusing 'Bond movie' section. I liked when they said "Kong is always gentle with her," and I thought back to the scene when he swatted way too hard at Susan when she was in the water--always gentle, Kong's hairy butt! The 'apprehensive' soundtrack music always sounded to me like Pac-Man, and every time it came on I started visualizing Pac-Man cutscenes. I've visited Tokyo Tower in Japan so it was nice to go back there (in model form) for the ultimate fight scene, I'm pretty sure those really were Tokyo Tower exterior stairways that they filmed on. I also appreciated the part when Madame X was offering the hero a chance at a leading role in her plan, and he actually listened to her offer, instead of just rejecting it outright because he's the good guy. I always think heroes should be craftier and let on that they're considering it, whether true or not. And I also wonder if this movie was funded in part by the United Nations as some sort of positive-light publicity campaign, since everyone was always so respectful of anything and anyone related to the UN? It was a different time when people still had hope for a benevolent world government, I suppose. Overall I had fun with it, & thanks for your upload!
"Now for the monkey!" LOL
I don't know why but that cracked me up!
Same here! 😂
Also, don't know how long you've had that Godzilla plush but just noticed it!
Another great review. Glad you’re still into these and still reviewing them.
Enjoyed all the background information tremendously. Thanks for all that extra research! Looks like a fun movie and it may be my next interlibrary loan request. Great job, as always!
I like that your research acknowledges actors that usually go unrecognized. Thanks to you, I watched "The Manster" for the first time, ever. It was the colorized version and, much to my surprise, it was better than I expected. All these years I thought, radioactive hamster bites a guy. It's really about a dysfunctional scientist that has family issues. I appreciate the reviews and background info on King Kong escapes. This is the creepiest Kong I think I've ever seen. I saw this movie once, I think it was just before the bicentennial.
Haha, "radioactive hamster bites a guy"! I'm glad you decided to check out The Manster after all. :)
02:00-The low-key violence. One thing that still shocks me is when the bad guys threaten to freeze the pretty girl's face on the wall!
The details are NOT boring! I knew about the Kong cartoon and Dr Who, but I did not know about the James Bond connection! (The more you know...)
Frankly, I'm just glad you are reviewing something else that is up my alley-but you always do a wide variety of genres (well, monster and period films)
No, no, no! You need never worry about boring! Anything you discuss instantly becomes fascinating because it is you discussing it.
Full disclosure: I am not of fan of the monster movie genre. And yet, here I am! 😊
Very interesting background info regarding rights to characters etc... very fascinating.
I have this on dvd in a Kong collection that includes the original 1933 film (both b&w and colourized) and the old Vs Godzilla film too, but I haven't watched this for several years.
I remember it being corny but good fun, definitely re-watchable. The fx haven't aged well but like you mention it's an old film with budget constraints.
My young son loves these old Kong films as much as the new Kong and Godzilla films.
Fx matter not to him and he can just lose himself in what's happening on screen.
Nice video as always.
Aside from "Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster" (the title used when I saw it in the theatre), this was the Kaiju movie I have the most memories of, among all of those movies I saw at the theatre years ago on Saturday afternoons. Haven't seen it since, though. The main memory I have is near the end when (as I remember it, anyway!) a heavy table slides into the bad guy's gut, pinning him against a wall. He spits up some blood, and dies :) I'll have to watch it again to see if that's the way it actually played out!
Another kaiju review! I've been anticipating another entry in this series :) I just watched War of the Gargantuas, can't wait to hear wait you think about that one and Frankenstein Conquers the World!
Wow, some how I have missed this movie. Im shocked, because I've seen all Godzilla or Kong movies I thought, but excited because I get to check it out. It's awesome seeing someone else enjoy these movies.
Always enjoy the kaiju videos!
Thanks! They're some of the most enjoyable videos to make! :D
I saw this one when I was a kid and the local super station would have Monster Week during the summer, every afternoon. I always grouped this one in with all the other Toho productions and in my youthful mind just assumed that it was all one big monster universe. I agree a lot of its parts aren't quite so well done but the whole is very much better than the sum of the parts and is still charming and very entertaining as is with most of the early Toho films. They do make for a wonderful child hood. Cheers.
I remember Monster Week on the 4#0 movie on WABC.
Loved the background history of this film . Always liked this Kong movie. One of the first I saw as a kid and it remains a fond favorite. Great review!
No don't wrap it up... I love movie info. Especially the behind-the-scenes information. As a film major and enthusiast thoroughly enjoy listening to people deep dive into movies. Especially when they're equally enthusiastic and knowledgeable. I could listen to you talk about movies for hours.
Aw, thanks! It's helpful to know people are open to an occasional background-info detour.
@@JeromeWeiselberry I'm not just open to background info, I actually require it for full enjoyment. There was a Japanese film series on PBS many years ago that my dad and I watched. On his lunch hour, he'd read up on the film scheduled for that evening at the library near his workplace and then share the info with me at dinnertime. I think you ferret out even more background info than he did. It's much appreciated.
Oh wow, I saw this not long ago on Comet TV.
Great review, JW...👍
Doctor Who and King Kong in the same movie? Wow.
Hi Jerome! I remember watching that movie as a kid it’s been a long time! Thanks for reviewing this film! God bless
Aww, while it's always good to have an owl, I do appreciate the cute grinning Godzilla over the right shoulder. You were right to do an in-depth study, Rome, because as fun as this is, it's probably more interesting to analyze than simply watch. Rhodes Reason had a steady and sometimes cheesy career. As a fan of original Star Trek I of course recall him as a gladiator in Trek's "Roman Empire planet" episode. Our heroes assume that he worships the sun, but Uhura explains that he worships the Son, namely the Son of God. He also did two Time Tunnel episodes, one as Colonel Travis in "The Alamo" and then as the Biblical Joshua in "The Walls of Jericho." (If I recall, Joshua's trumpet got an assist from a tornado.) I have to give this flick points for style if only for Mie Hama's wardrobe, and I consider Dr. Hu (as I politely think of him) to be a Halloween costume in the "cheap and obscure" category. I recall the cries of "Dig, Kong, dig!" and even as a kid I wondered why they just didn't buy a giant excavator from Krupp. Rankin-Bass ... yep, that explains a lot. Thank you for doing this, it is greatly appreciated, and owl be seeing you.
11:20 actually, it has been pointed out that this Kong looks just like Homer Simpson
I wish I had seen this movie.Then I could add my 2 cents.Hopefully one day.I'll tell em that Weiselberry sent me.I'm more of a scholar of King Kong Lives 1986.And loves.This is the Love Affair of Kong films.Where the King finally gets to fall for a woman his own size.As for boring us with information.Film lovers,love,love,love factoids.The more the merrier.This review rules.Thank you.
I've always loved this movie and don't mind the dubbing at all! I've seen Godzilla movies with subtitles and unless they were letter boxed, it was a major nuisance to try to follow the action and read the subtitles, especially if the text was a similar color as the background! What's even worse is when the subtitles don't accurately translate the Japanese but engage in all sorts of "reinterpretations"!
Great review! I haven't seen this one but i would definitely check it out!!! Also, I really enjoyed the extra detail of how this film came to be, very entertaining!!!
Wasn’t a huge fan of this movie either. But my nephews LOVED it when they were younger so I have fond memories of it, which is why I keep the DVD around. Lol.
I rewatched the 2005 version recently, and I really enjoyed it! The original Kong movie is still the best, though, in my opinion. ☺
Loved all the details .That Preacher Hair and outfit would have made Dr Who a great TV Evangelist
Personally, I think Dr. Who is cool, pleasantly over the top.
I agree with you. King Kong vs Godzilla isn't one I'm overly fond of either. And I definitely think this Kong is an improvement over the previous.
At least this Kong wasn't an Alcoholic.
I really loved this movie! I always wondered what Dr Who did on his off-hours-now I know! Hehe!
You should try and come to G-Fest in Chicago this year - you'll have a blast! Also...bring money...hah. I just forwarded your review to Miss Linda Miller!
not the best movie, but I do enjoy it. Another great, fun review!
I saw this film years ago and didn't remember or realise it was a Toho production, I was young so perhaps at the time I didn't know what Toho was, my brother found me a copy to watch because he knew I liked King Kong and it was one I hadn't seen, I remember wanting a toy robot Kong after and that's about it, I need to see it again. I agree, the suit is better in this than the one used in King Kong vs Godzilla. When Kong's lips go all wobbly he looks like a baby after his/her dummy has been removed, I believe its referred to as a pacifier in the USA, perhaps that's been Kong's issue all along, baba just wants his dodo lol. thank you for another fun and educational review:)
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~ Thank you Ms Weiselberry ~
Haha, yes, it's a pacifier over here, or a binky if you want to be informal. :D
Binky wins, it sounds adorable, it's much nicer than dummy, it also sounds a bit like it should be on a toy shelf next to a furby.
~ Thank you Ms Weiselberry ~
Yes!!! I’ve been waiting for this!!!
Great review! I've always had a soft spot for this one. Love emo Kong!
How do you keep track of everything that you watch/get recommended? Is there a giant, unmanageable excel spreadsheet behind the scenes? IMDB or Letterboxd? Also, if you don't mind sharing, what is your general approach to discovering new films? I'm always delighted when a title I've never heard of pops up in your videos (and it's pretty often).
Yes, there are giant spreadsheets. :D I've actually been maintaining lists of the books I read and the movies I watch since a few years before I started the channel. I like keeping track. Recommendations I get from viewers (split by category: film, book, and misc.) are in a separate spreadsheet, along with lists of classic films I'd like to talk about sometime, kaiju movies, and things like that.
(I did come across a Letterboxd list that someone made of all the movies I've mentioned seeing. It's not a complete list of every movie I've seen in my life, but it's quite comprehensive for the last seven years. I have no idea who made it, but they were thorough!)
As for how I find things to watch, well, I take note of recommendations from IMDb and Amazon, pick up random finds while doing research about other movies, check what comes on TCM, and so on. I've accumulated quite a few watchlists. It's a bit daunting, but the good news I should never run out of new things to see and share with you all.
You may also be interested in this video I made a couple years ago, if you haven't seen it already: ruclips.net/video/m5y89p5V3Lw/видео.html
Rhodes Reason appearred on Star Trek ( Bread and Circuses) as a Roman gladiator/ "sun" worshipper who dies- ending twist-the "son" he worshipped was Jesus !
You have a sharp eye and ear.
Well thank you for another review, but I think what we all want to see you review and hear your thoughts on (at least I do) is Flash Gordon (1980).
It's always been one of my guilty pleasures. I'd also recommend "Latitude Zero", with Joseph Cotten, and "the Green Slime", with Robert Horton ("Wagon Train") & Luciana Paluzzi ("Thunderball"). Richard Jaekel's in both.
I've seen The Green Slime but only recently heard about Latitude Zero. I immediately added it to my need-to-find list.
I actually really like this movie... It ain't my favorite or anything, but it's a good time.
A fun review. I liked that you put in the details, it filled in many gaps. Flashy clothes for women was typical of the era. I wonder how the spy from ? is addressed in the Japanese laguage version?
I haven't seen this one , but based on your comments , I want to seek it out and watch it . As always , thank you for your thorough review !
I'm eagerly awaiting your video of what you saw in September . At year end , do you create a video of your top 10 favourites that you have seen throughout the year ? If not , that would be interesting .
I haven't done that, mainly because I'm not good at making up my mind for top (#) lists. I did almost make one for 2020, though, so who knows? :)
@@JeromeWeiselberry Yes , top 10 lists tend to be fluid . Your choices move up and down depending on what day it is , and what mood you're in .
Exactly. :)
@@JeromeWeiselberry Nevertheless , it's a fun exercise . I tend to approach it by looking over the list of likely candidates , and then ask myself : which 10 would I take with me if I had to go away for a couple of months ? Anyway , it will be interesting to see if you decide to take the plunge .
Love your videos
Thanks!
Boring shmoring- I LOVE the deep dive background details, especially regarding the conceptual stages of these films. Great review!
I enjoy the thorough review and was not bored in the least, but of course, I like this movie. Not much you didn't cover. I thought that Linda Miller's love interest was supposed to be Takarada. Especially with the scene where they are being frozen. And the captain was just a fatherly figure - Mie Hama's love interest. I am one of those people that think that King Kong vs. Godzilla is one of the best G films; however, the Kong suit here is an improvement, but still not great. Maybe they should have made the Bumble the villain - would have been great. I also disagree in that I wish there was an original non-dubbed cut of this movie available. Also for the two Nick Adams Japanese movies. I don't think it would be that distracting. But sadly, I don't think that would ever happen. They did it differently in the Showa Gamera movies when they had some people with American backgrounds in the movies - they spoke Japanese. They wanted to include an American character so they could hopefully appeal to American audiences. In vs. Jiger, the American got the part just because he could speak Japanese, even though it was his first movie. I like Linda Miller here and think that she could have been good in other stuff. She only did a couple other small parts in these movies.
Nice review- I barely remember this one. It’s a shame we never saw a Robo- Kong VS Mechagodzilla.battle.
I always thought Mechagodzilla was stronger. His array of beams alone makes him more formidable (in my opinion)
@@SJHFoto Agree!
Thank you this video and particularly the historical tidbits. Now I know Japanese Kong has connections to Rudolph the Reindeer and James Bond. I'm definitely playing those trivia nuggets this Christmas!
MechaniKong looks better than Japanese Kong, there I said it and I'm not taking it back. Japanese Kong always looked weird to me.
I've never been a big fan of the Japanese Kong movies. Fun yes but so many more kaiju movies I'd prefer to watch.
It's not one of my favorites...
But I love Gorosaurus and MechaniKong. And I love the Rankin-Bass King Kong cartoon.
I like this film if only for Mechani-Kong.
I have this one on DVD but I ha ent seen it in years. I remember liking it but I also remember the movie being a tad weird 😁 but not a bad watch
The vs godzilla was designed after the Japanese macaque
Thoroughly enjoyed the (extremely) extensive background detail. I saw many of these movies (including this one) in a theater on original release, but, truthfully, never knew why certain ones were made and/or turned out the way they did. Like this one!
This is a really mad/madcap film, as wild as those cartoons that were an integral part of this film's genesis! Who knew? Well, I do, now!
Thanks for all the work you put into this review (and, of course, all the others!!)
I want a Kong vs Bumble movie.
Jerome, are you a fan of Carole Lombard? Have you reviewed any of her movies?
I've seen several of her movies, but I've probably only mentioned a couple of them. I know My Man Godfrey has come up before, and I did a mini review of Now and Forever after I saw it last year, where she stars opposite Shirley Temple and Gary Cooper.
ruclips.net/video/8OyU715BfQY/видео.htmlsi=SbMOxmxvrVI9_2Rz
Another interview.
I don't know why they made another king Kong instead of using the same Kong that fought Godzilla but who knows. Also mechani Kong is pretty cool but Mechagodzilla is way better and it's nice to see Gorosaurus make an appearance
I'm guessing the original Kong suit simply got too beat up to reuse and they started again from scratch.
The suit is so bad in this one..