Loose Canon: The Jacks of King Kong
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- čas přidán 21. 03. 2017
- Jack Driscoll: Young, handsome, annoying?... and not a gorilla. Let's explore how one of film's oldest franchises third triangle point changes over time.
Twitter: @thelindsayellis
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"This pretentious beardo would cause any vag to calcify into dust." CLASSIC.
I'm genuinely surprised Lindsay used Peta from the Hunger Games and not Raoul from Phantom from the Opera as the comparison to Jack in the love triangle.
I like the Jeff Bridges Jack best
Why?
Cause he GETS IT man...
...he gets it...
Plus... the Dude abides.
Well, that's just, like, your opinion, man.
He's, like, soo woke.
As a man who gets it, I can tell that you get it too, man
Imagine Tim Burton's King Kong... would Johnny Depp play Jack, or Kong?
Both
Hack he'll probably even play Ann too
But when who would Helena Bonham Carter play? Maybe she'll play Denham. Or the T.rex.
Johnny Depp as Jack, Jack Nicholson as Kong, Helena Bonham Carter as Ann. Perfection
@@msbroomstick1 Now all I can think of is Johnny Depp doing that trademark Jack Sparrow scream when Kong shows up, LMAO
In a way, the 1930s Jack is playing the traditional female role, uninvolved in the plot, just there to be a love interest and contrast with a villainous rival. If you swapped sexes between Jack and Ann, and made Kong another woman, it would be a cliche romance plot, the dull good girl and the exciting villainous woman.
"...in the remakes of the Hunger Games 30 or 40 years from now"
Ha! That's fucking optimistic. We'll be lucky if they don't reboot that series in the next 10 years.
I predict The Hunger Games will have as much staying power as the Andy Hardy franchise.
natsoray Seriously m8... did you have to ruin my day? :(
@@SamAronow What on earth is Andy Hardy?
@@evanmcmanus7802 Exactly!
(but since you ask: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Hardy)
There are some franchises I can see being made into movies I take my grandkids to. Hunger Games is kinda shaky on that; not impossible, not likely. It was A Thing, but not quite the culture-shaking thing that Disney's Snow White or Rowling's Harry Potter were.
Well that's like your opinion Kong
13-year-old me had the biggest crush on 2005 Jack
SAME HERE, my first crush
Had? I still kinda do...
I had a crush on the unhinged cabin boy kid...welp I was pretty Gothic even when I was 12.
Same. Still do too
And i still do
"A confused relationship to this chucklef&*k" is my favorite thing ever.
I think in many ways the Jack in the original movie is a sort of rehearsal for Kong. He starts off as a rather hard, brutal character who, (inadvertently, at least) slaps Ann across the face, is barely apologetic -- but then starts to be won over by her. In essence, Ann's relationship to Jack on board the ship foreshadows what's going to follow with Kong. Denham, in fact, lays this out in a conversation with Jack about Ann. "What, me fall for any girl?" to which Denham replies, "I"ve never known it to fail. Some big hard-boiled egg gets a look a pretty face and bang - he cracks up and goes sappy."
That's what happens to Jack. He's a tough character who is, in effect, civilized by his love of Ann. The difference, of course is that , being human, Jack is able to change and that Ann can return his love. Of course, Kong is different. He can love Ann but she's not going to return his love -- and Kong can't change. That's what makes him a tragic figure -- and his is a doomed love.
So in the original, Jack serves a purpose (as a mirror to Kong and to Ann's love) that he really doesn't serve in the later versions of Kong.
I don't think they really knew what to do with Jack in Jackson's version. They kept reiterating this notion of "If you feel it, say it" -- meaning that Jack loved Ann but wouldn't say it. But even at the end, he never said it -- but the point is, Jack's a writer -- words are his business. If they were going to pursue this notion, it really should have been the other way around. Saying it should have been easy -- it should have been, if you mean it -- show it. But for Jack is a man of words, not action, while Kong is a being who can only show his feeling by acting. And presumably, at the end, Jack should have found a way to show his feelings through some sort of action.
But they didn't really pursue this idea and they really didn't know what to do with Jack in relation to Kong so he ended up as as sort of dangling character that didn't really represent anything.
And the second Kong isn't worth talking about.
So, what exactly made Jack fall for Ann in the original? When Ann states that he hated women, he replies ,"yeah, but you're not women". What made her different? Was it because she didn't have an attitude? Was pretty?
I'm just curious.
@@cadethumann8605 I think that to understand it, you really have to look beyond "character analysis" and try to understand what Jack, what Ann, what Kong, and what Carl Denham embody within the story (and yes, of course, I don't think that the filmmakers at the time went through this analysis, but these ideas are pretty much baked into the story that they were telling).
This is, at its heart, a story about the conflict between the civilized and the savage/natural world.
On the one hand, you have Kong, who is the ultimate embodiment of that savage/natural world.
On the other, we have Carl Denham, who embodies the male aspect of civilization who, when he confronts nature -- what does he bring -- a camera and a gun. It is, in a sense, the tragic of the male/civilizing force that when it comes into contact with nature -- it ultimately destroys it.
The Masculine civilizing force - Carl Denham, destroys through violence.
The feminine civilizing force - Ann Darrow, destroys through conversion -- that is, it civilizes the natural/savage.
You go all the way back to Gilgamesh -- to the "wild man" Enkidu who was raised with animals and lived like an animal -- how was ultimately tamed? By bringing him into contact with a human woman.
In that way, Jack Driscoll, who we see as this sort of tough, ultra-masculine guy -- he is also "tamed" by Ann -- why? Because she embodies this ultimate "civilizing" influence of femininity.
And in the same way that she "tames" Jack, she also "tames" Kong -- he also falls in love with her -- but as the opening motto (made up, of course) tells us -- the genuine savage beast can't truly be tamed -- in the end, he can only became "as one dead."
In trying to reach for Ann, for what she embodies, Kong is destroyed -- in a sense this is a parable for the destruction of the savage/natural at the hands of civilization.
Don't know if that answers your question -- but lots of words, anyway.
NMS
@@prodprod Perhaps you're right. But still, I don't get why Jack implied that Ann was different from other women. If Ann was the femine force that civilized brutish masculinity, what were other women like for Jack? Was he implying they were nasty? Or did he just have no experience with women at all (that could explain why he eases up when around Ann)?
Don't get me mistaken, I'm interested in learning about masculine/feminine dynamics (provided if they aren't rigid and fixed as there's lots of overlap). I just wonder about the subtle details like how they are worded.
@@cadethumann8605 So maybe the answer to this question lies in the first meeting between Jack and Ann -- Jack on deck, growling at the deck hands -- and as he swings his arm -- "Forward, you farm hand!" he accidentally cuffs Ann in the face -- but she doesn't cry, she doesn't complain -- she doesn't react in a "girlish" way -- except when she misunderstands when he tells her that she should stay below -- "What? For the whole voyage?" Because Ann (in a sense, like Carl Denham) has this deep desire to explore the world beyond the familiar -- when Denham offers her the opportunity -- "It's money and fame and adventure..." she grabs at it.
So part of what makes defines Ann's femininity is that she has desire to reach beyond traditional boundaries -- something that most of us (and guys like Jack) think of as defining most women -- but Ann isn't "most women" -- so when she challenges him -- I haven't been one bit of trouble, have I? -- the most he can say is -- just being around is trouble. But really, trouble for whom? Well, for him -- because she challenges his idea of what a woman is.
Anyway, just something to think about.
And part of what bothered me (among many things, in Jackson's remake) is the way in which it mocks the original interplay between Jack and Ann -- because it's not unsophisticated. None of those characters are. None of those relationships are.
We make the mistake of thinking, because the dialogue is old-fashioned and the character "types" are unfamiliar, that the original Kong is unsophisticated. It definitely isn't.
It is a very sophisticated piece of story-telling.
@@prodprod Hmm...Interesting interpretation. So, the reason Jack takes an interest in Ann is her yearning for adventure and not being fazed by his aggressive demeanor (physical and verbal). Still, realistically speaking, I would consider his experiences with women to be limited but I can suspend my disbelief somewhat.
If anything, the part I make fun of the most is the one bit in the scene before Kong breaks out where Carl Denam says, "if it wasn't for Ann, we wouldn't have gotten Kong". I know he's trying to play her up as the hero, but I was like, "You failed to keep her safe from capture! As a result, she was kidnapped, constantly nearly died, had her modesty damaged, and no doubt suffered emotional trauma! And that's on top of getting your men killed! You don't get to downplay the suffering that occurred!". Of course, I wasn't too serious, and I know Carl is not meant to be a 100% benevolent dude. I was just saying there are bigger points of potential contention.
As for the 2005 Kong, I mostly have no comment about your points. I honestly prefer to skip to where they get to the island. There's lots of cool stuff in the movie IMO, but I get your complaints. Although, Jack in the 2005 Kong game may be more to your liking as he is more intense and determined (it helps that he is the main player character, which aids in making one intimate with what he's going through).
I think it would've made more sense for you to call Jack "the Raoul" (from Phantom) rather than "the Peeta". But then again, I wasn't the one who put hours of research into this very specific topic
Peeta? is the a reference I don't know? , I though she was referencing PETA.
Peeta, like the kinda-sorta love interest from Hunger Games.
I don't know enough about the series to know if he's ACTUALLY a love interest, I just know there's a point where he's a fake one.
Hmm, I'm not sure if Raoul would have meant quite the same thing. In (most adaptations of) Phantom, Christine is genuinely interested in Raoul. Their romance is presented as true love, or at the very least as a deep attraction.
But in Hunger Games, while Katniss and Peeta _do_ end up together, it's not presented as _romance,_ per se. It's more a matter of convenience than anything else. They don't really love each other in a traditional sense, but they're the only two people who really understand what the other has been through. On top of that they're both young and attractive, and they don't _hate_ each other, so hey, why not hook up?
I might be off-base, but I think that's the comparison Lindsay was drawing.
Also an apt comparison, although I'd say the Phantom changes more from adaptation to adaptation than Raoul does (unlike Kong).
Hunger games. The Jacob, if that sounds more familiar.
I like the 2005 best. I can see them being friends and Ann gave him a new spark for his writing.
Jeff Bridges' Jack = Mansplainin' Jack
Jacksplaining.
but don't you see?
He gets it, man.
He gets it.
The term “love triangle” bothers me to no end.
A triangle is three points connected by lines. In 99% of love triangles, there are three points but only two lines. The men are not interested in each other AT ALL, or at the very least not like that (I’m looking at you, Chasing Amy and Penny Dreadful).
It’s a love FORK, though the phrase just doesn’t roll off the tongue as effectively.
Thank you!!! That's what I've been saying for years. But whenever I bring it up with my coworkers they look at me like I'm weird! Can you believe it?!
Cishets don't know how shapes work lol
A "Love V" then?
Love Triange
It's missing a line
Get it?
I hate myself
All triangles are love triangles when you love triangles.
-Pythagoras
After all the shit that we found out about Adrian Brody being blacklisted by Harvey Weinstein, I'd love to see that article and see if the person who wrote it had something to do with Weinstein's production company...
I actually got my own hot take on the 'Jacks' idea after watching this that wasn't really in the video. The 'Jacks' seem to be reflective of what men were 'supposed' to be in their time, and ironically enough by being so overtly emblematic, they show the flaws inherent to those ideals:
1) Jack (Kong '33): A musclebound sailor, working-class, rough and tough and doesn't get 'dames' but learns to like them individually. A "man's man". This archetype didn't go away for a long while, and in certain lazy writing circles has never really gone away.
There are better ways to write tough or 'difficult' male characters, and it's even possible to write a male character who is sexist without that entire element of your movie coming across as sexist, if you add enough dimension. But this ain't it, Jack. Not the most offensive jerk in the world, but not great, probably written by boys for boys.
2) Jack (70s Kong): This one is actually the most annoying to me. I love Jeff Bridges, but I've seen this movie, and it's like his character was unintentionally made to be the most punchable dude ever. He's entitled, he's arrogant, he's constantly ranting about the environment in a way that is clearly more about him trying to show how smart he is to everyone. Basically he's the stereotype of every guy in their first year of graduate school at an Ivy League who thinks that they do the world an honor by sharing their opinions loudly with everyone. He's Twitter, basically. He's Twitter before Twitter. Barf.
This attitude was common in the 70s, due to the preceding Vietnam War era and protests. But while that was an actual war, the attitudes that came after were mainly just about trying to "shake up" anything they could. For some issues like anti-racism and women's lib, it was justified, but with others it got real preachy real fast. Hence this dude.
Today we'd make this guy the annoying villain in a sci-fi movie, and he'd probably be rewritten as a modern allegory for an incel. But in his time and in this film, he was the "everyman" and no less toxic a role model. Different shoe, same squeak.
3. Jack (PJ Kong '05): While I don't miss the two previous unlikable Jacks, I will say an issue with this one is that he may be all good for representation - non-traditionally masculine or handsome and all - but he really doesn't have much of a strong character or impact on the plot. Not that the movie should be The Jack Driscoll Show, but he doesn't really give an impression of being memorable in any way. The film telegraphs blatantly that he is supposed to be a man of depth, but does not write him as a character with complexity.
If you want to read this as an unintentional allegory for writing men today in a 'PC' climate, it's the idea that studios or movies think that the safest way to write a male character is to make him weak or vulnerable in some very basic way, have him randomly virtue-signal his basic betty opinions that jive with today's modern views on women, and get a hot girlfriend in the end because of them. It is the safest way, but it's also the most boring way, and it's condescending to men as well as women and tells both of them to really only aspire to the bare minimum.
Not that Adrian Brody is the worst thing in the world in this, and I think the mediocrity boils down to just not focusing on his character and said development enough rather than any overt messaging. But still, the subtext isn't great, and forgive me if I want a little more from the men I see in film than only being able to shimmy under the first rung on the 'women are people too' limbo bar.
So yeah, nobody talks enough about how men might actually suck at writing men, and how these 'ideals' of men reflected in Jack range from classically wrongheaded to arrogant hipster to bare-minimum effort in all three cases. So what's my ideal Jack? Well, everyone has their own. Mine might not even count for this whole conversation about men because it's probably a woman. But hey, at least we can only go up (or queer) from here.
Jack isn't the problem in 2005's King Kong. The problem is that Peter Jackson took 100 years getting to the island on that friggin' ship.
Well now I wanna know what your thoughts on Peeta are. Lindsay? a mini essay?
Hes a man that makes bread, whose name means bread, who is about as annoying as a yeast infection.
And now we have Skull Island without a romantic triangle. It's more like a sympathy triangle.
and not much one one either since the "Jack" sympathizes with Kong too. The main tension is with a Colonel Kurtz expy instead, a rather original twist.
How awkward and forced was that scene in the fog with Brie Larson's character, right? That part of the movie seemed to build not to a plot climax for her, but to a callback to Ann's physical position in Kong's hand.
Mega Zeta iconography without meaning. Ann and brie larsons character are different and represent different things. Having brie larson in kongs hand...instead of the actual ann is stupid
There's a BIT of the whole connection-the sympathetic new age 70s lady with the suffering tragic kid hero, but not in the same way that the 2005 characters (people with really crappy experiences, lonely, craving any sort of attention finding a strong friendship) or even the 1976 characters connect (vaguely sexual giant teddy)
#lesslovetrianglesmoresympathytriangles
4:43- So like, why didn't they just write it so Jack was brought on board to speak with the natives? Or, make him an anthropologist that studies native languages for a living if the Primate Paleontologist thing isn't going to matter.
Exactly! I'm an anthro major, and I took primatology and paleontology as classes IN anthropology!
That's really the least of the problems with that movie's script, which is maybe its worst part (and that's saying something).
But if the island has never been discovered before (is that still so in the 76 version? Sry, I haven't watched it), then how is he going to know the natives' language? o.O
I'm late to this party, but this video really made me notice how 2018's Broadway musical of King Kong decided to just leave Jack out altogether, and how that played to their version of the story.
Great episode Lindsay. Although, I always thought the 2005 Kong was more of a "Boy-and-his-dog" story than beauty and the beast. Like you said, both are lonely and form an indescribable bond, sure Ann had some bonding moments with Jack, but it wasn't the same.I think everyone at least at one point in time has had someone like that.
I'm sure plenty of people have suggested these, but I just want to say that, a.) I love this series, and b.) I'd reccomend Sherlock Holmes, William Shakespeare (depictions of Shakespeare the person, not adaptations of his plays), and/or Dracula.
Hey I just wanted to say I love your videos! I think you're so funny and I can't wait to see what you make next time 👍
Am I the only one who thinks the Jack from the 1933 version kind of sounds and emotes like Harrison Ford? Just a little bit?
I've noticed that too. It's not exact, but it's there.
Well the Indiana Jones films were heavily influenced by 1930's pulp Cinema soooo...
I consider _'KING KONG' (2005)_ to be the _'true story'_ that _'KING KONG' (1933)_ was based upon. Characters were switched around to protect the guilty and stuff. Another way to look at it is that when writers took on each project, in 1975 and 2005, they wanted to make the script _'their own'_. The easiest way to manage that feat was by changing Jack around a bit. Because yes, the story between The Girl and The Monster was going to be set in stone anyway. Otherwise, the screen credit for the screenplay might as well have gone to the original writer from 1933.
The best way of putting Lindsay did in her main Kong video-Jackson loves the movie too much and wants to fix its flaws, while the DeLaurentis Kong seems to hate it and wants to remake into a 70s film.
Gosh, whenever you you start making this wild speculations and you start giggling at the absurdity of what you're saying, it really brings joy to my heart. :)
The dude gets it
what dude
Ed Moritz
_"Big Lebowski"_ reference.
@@strangeclaims The dude abides
Why does Jeff Bridges look like he wants to do a keg stand with Kong?
"Wow...Fuck you."
I need a clip of this so I can dish it out in times of need.
It is interesting how divergent one character was portrayed. I think most creators of each film did not know what to do with Jack. Maybe he was considered to be an uneeded plot device or each version became the cultural archetype on manhood through each decade.
I haven't seen any of the King Kong movies and I gotta be honest, I have never heard of this Jack character existing before.
All Dude wanted was his monkey back (gotta feed the monkey). It really tied the jungle together.
At this point why not combine Jack Driscoll and Carl Denham? He could still be the human sort-of love interest but he'd also have a reason to be in the third act which Brody's Jack clearly didn't have.
I find it interesting how if anything the Carls get split up into heroes and villains
You forgot the Captain. Jackson's version split Jack into 3 characters. Coincidentally it had 3 times the run time too. And to get good environmentalist characters you gotta go to Japan. Their giant monster movies are full of em. I pray to the mother goddess Mothra to smash those who would destroy the earth!
Now THERE'S some real environmentalism
The environmentalist character in Jaws was fine, partially because he was a pragmatic willing to kill the fish.
I remember seeing King Kong at the cinema as an 8 year old in the 70's and I remember enjoying it a lot. Re-watching it 40 years later I can't imagine my 8 year old brain actually being able to sit through the first half without being bored fucking stiff
"Hollywood is against masculinity!" "All the female heroines act masculine to be strong!" Two arguments I am SO sick of hearing. Why do are so many people so obsessive over their "masculinity" or "femininity," and why does it upset them so much to know that not everyone of their gender is exactly like themselves?
My guess is these individuals secretly feel inadequate and are hiding behind gender rolls to build themselves up. ("So that guy's smarter and more sensitive then I am? Well he's not a REAL MAN!" "That girl can relate to the guys in ways I can't....but only because she's a man with tits, while I am a real woman!")
Those ideas of masculinity and femininity are what define genders. You can't have a gender without codifying behaviours as masculine or feminine. Take away those ideas, and it becomes impossible for anyone to perform a gender role.
When people forget that different societies have different definitions of what counts as masculine or feminine, and start believing that their own society's ideas of gender are somehow intrinsically connected to biological sex in a rigidly defined way, they become less tolerant of anyone deviating from the social gender role that correlates to their perceived biological sex, and react with hostility towards people that would otherwise force them to realise that their ideas about nature are somewhat counter-factual.
@Pingo And male characters often earn the respect of women and the readers by proving they can be sensitive, and aren't just meatheads. The idea is that the character is surprising someone by breaking their genders' stereotypes.
@Pingo truth you speak
@@colehartel7206 That's not true, though. Gender exists independent of gender roles in the form of subconscious sex and identity. This claim stems from a confusion of terms.
@@lizzychrome7630
Unfortunately, meatheads are often the happiest people in this world, while they simultaneously make everyone else miserable, intentionally or not.
Didn't the 2005 version of jack survive a much more dangerous island and go trough much more danger than the other two ? How was he less "manly" than the other two?
"BECAUSE HE'S A WRITER AND NOT A SAILOR AND HE'S ADRIAN BRODY AND NOT MR MACHO SQUAREJAW REEEEEE!" Yeah, trying to define masculinity is pretty ridiculous
I completely forgot about America's late 2000s Adrien Brody phase. "New Predator film? Let's get Adrian Brody as the hero?!?!"
You should do a mini-episode on Kong: Skull Island!
So basically in all versions of King Kong, the Monster is the more interesting than the Human Characters
Who are the actors shown at 6:45? Most/all of them look familiar, but I can't place them (which is the joke, yes, but it still bothers me).
I think King Kong is like other movies (looking at you, The Notebook) where the heroine has to choose between two different types of men. Jack represents the sort of man society (i.e., mom, dad, best friend, etc) tell the heroine she should like. Kong represents the kind of man she "shouldn't" like. Initially Ann (being a good girl) favors Jack and resists (even screams at) Kong because she has been told he is the bad boy and should be rejected. But as she gets to know him, she starts to realize society's values might be wrong for her, that Kong has many qualities that simply are more attractive to her than Jack's, and now we have the main conflict. The ending is sad because ultimately Ann loses, Kong loses, but society wins.Society eliminates Kong (the bad boy/competition for Jack), and Ann ends up with the a man/prize she doesn't really want. So while we can make fun of how Jack is represented by earlier generations of movie makers, all we're really making fun of is how earlier generations of men and women decided what masculinity should look like. At least that's what I see when I watch King Kong.
Great work!
This was good. I hadn't even thought about analyzing those three incarnations of that character.
LOOOOOL I think this might be your best!
Awesome analysis, as usual.
Thank you Lindsay, "Chucklef**k" is now in my lexicon, and I am better for it
It took you until two years ago to acquire the term "chucklefuck"?? Well shit, in that case, allow me to offer you the term "asshat" just on the off chance you havent acquired that term either.
I think it's a little bit funny how Lindsay censors herself at 4:35 and 5:34, but let's loose a full "Fuck You" at 5:05. Really says how she feels about that adaptation of the character.
"The worst beard ever award" ----Avengers Endgame: "Hold my beard er, beer"
Such an interesting video :)
Could we get a Kong movie that just, like, doesn't have a Jack? I hear Skull Island is _almost_ that, but I think the story would be better served just narrowing the narrative down to Ann and Kong alone.
Skull Island throws
the traditional Kong narrative out the window completely. That movie is more about how this group of people deal with the monsters of skull island rather than the beauty and the beast story...and that's kinda for the better since kong is over 100 feet tall in that film.
Cinebeast Wrong. Loki and a bitch taking pictures. That is the new couple.
Larson still plays a bitch taking pictures, though...
she also doesn't have much character beside.. man i hate the war.. here let me take a picture.. One of the problem critic have with the films is that she lost in the shuffle and for a lead she lacks an arch. Now with that said is there anything wrong with her character? Nope you could had done the same thing with a male character even use the same line and wouldn't change anything. So in that regard is progress. We have a female character that no one ask if they need to hold her back or help her out. Not even why she doing in the ship cause women don't belong stuff.
The main issue she does not do anything to make her stand out beyond just another person waiting to live or die on the island
The romance in Skull Island really doesn't exist. Kong rescues the photographer's life a few times, but there's no tender moments or carry-offs. The closest thing you get to the traditional love triangle is when Brie Larson and Tom Hiddleston meet Kong at night and befriend him, and there's really no tension there. "We like you, buddy", he saves their lives from the Skullcrawler at the end,, pretty much it
just give Jeff Bridges's Jack character a Twitter account and you found your self the perfect character for any upcoming 2019 Kong movie.
You don't even have to change the look or anything, it's ready to go.
I have never heard such visceral hatred of Jack Prescott (Jeff Bridges). LOOOOL Really and truly. But I actually find the symbolism surrounding the Jacks in general uncomfortable. If they are meant to be a reflection of what Ann needs in her life, then are the King Kong movies saying that she's better off with an emotionally distant male that doesn't really need her? Or is the message for her to find love in her work rather than in a person which, knowing mainstream films, is unlikely? If Ann Darrow is fundamentally lonely and Kong is the one that emotionally and in some cases sexually, connects with her, which she needs, and Jack is the antithesis to that...is it better for her that she isn't paid the attention she needs? What is the message here?
I think it might be emblematic of a sort of "escape to the wilds" vibe that's been present in literature for centuries. (At the very least to Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream)
Kong represents the wilds, the woods, the lands where man's law holds not. And that represents to the Anns a freedom. (at least the 70's and '05.) 05 Ann is trapped in work she doesn't find fulfilling, her creative and emotional range compressed by the roles she acquires. The root of her sense of loneliness is an inability to express herself. Kong allows her that expression, those genuine emotions.
Similarly, the 70's Ann experiences a freedom of carnal activity, of arousal without fear of societal or interpersonal backlash. The 70's were a time of great change in sexual politics in America, with the idea of strong women undermining the masculinity of the men in their relationships being bandied about frequently. Kong represents in that way the colossus of masculinity, impregnable to assault.
However, the recurring theme of the "escape to the wilds" is that it's never a permanent escape. One must inevitably return to society, hopefully empowered and enriched by the lessons acquired in the wilds. In that regard, the Jacks can represent the idea of finding those who DO understand you, as they made the same escape to the wilds as you. Sure, they may have learned different lessons, experienced things differently, but they were THERE. Of all the people in the world, they're the one you can be honest with about your time there.
I think that actually speaks to the idea of the Jack-Ann divide in the 05 version post-island but pre-Kong-escape: they've both attempted to return to the world WITHOUT adopting the lessons, and neither has found contentment. It's only with the death of Kong that they can presumably fully integrate the lessons of Skull Island.
Just my two cents.
@@AllWIllFall2Me I always knew smart people watched Lindsey Ellis! Really interesting reply, were you an English major?
@@ttthecat Theatre, actually. English majors at my college focused (and this is going to sound weird) too much on writing, and I have too much love of...performative action, I suppose the phrase would be, to be solely a writer.
I was originally Pre-Law, but switched. I did "minor" in Philosophy and took a lot of critical analysis courses in both philosophy and Theatre.
@Glenna Smith Oh you can admit it, he won't mind!
Awwww YEAH!!! LETS THROW LINDSAY BACK IN THE ALGORITHM FOR THIS KONG RELEASE!!!!!!!
Will you make an addendum including Skull Island?
with all the professions he had over the years he really is a jack of all trades
Oh boy, I remember this article too from when the film came out.
What is the article called?
@@Fire_Score_Maximum it's been forever. I'll have to do some digging.
this one is my favourite
Clever surprise. Dig your canon!
I miss these so much! If Lindsay ever goes back to making youtube content I hope she continues this series. Would love to see an episode on Walt Disney
Lindsay is no longer putting any videos on CZcams, but she is still making videos! You can now find all her new videos on Nebula: nebula.tv/lindsayellis
--Lindsay's assistant
@@LindsayEllisVids Cool! Thanks
Things change over time like you said i dont wanna the same jack in every kong movie to change jack and anns relationship is nice to see. I think the most unfolding part of the relationship is in 1976 version.
"Like all toddlers" FUCKING ROASTED FINISH HIM
when i watched the jackson version, it seemed to me like a recreation of something much more real. to my mind, and i'm fully accountable for this statement- the 1933 version seemed like a real journey that went wrong. i did enjoy the jacson version very much though.
Omg I knew a guy that had all the faults of all these guys wrapped into one.
I'm curious what you think of the new Kong movie! Obviously it's taken a step away from the traditional Kong plot, and I've heard a lot of really contrasting opinions about it. I was heavily impressed with its cinematography, which led me to enjoy pretty much all of the movie vapidly in the theater, but I've heard a good amount of people complain about the plot or characters.
amberbydreamsart DOP: Larry Fong. Same guy who did 300, Watchmen and BvS. Which are regarded as most visually stunning CBM's of all time.
I'd say it's the most favorably reviewed movie that nearly put me to sleep in the theater. Many, many characters without much story to them, the plot seemed to have no direction whatsoever and the tone whipped all over the place.
@@MegaZeta ) what I felt about Rogue One.
Peeta + Gale = yeast tornado.
Thank you for not bleeping the f-bomb that one time. :) If you're going to swear, swear. Censor bleeps are just a pet peeve I guess, but I really appreciated the one unrestrained "fuck". (I know this video is over a year old, but I just found the channel.)
It's amazing how that beard manages to make jeff bridges not sexy
why the re uploads?
just curious. makes for a good excuse to watch them all again :D
the used to be on the channel awesome channel but now as her contract has ended they have been moved to her own channel.
Jack in the first movie seems to present more a parallel to Kong than an opposite. Even for a '30s hero, he's (as you note) a moody, immature child. He's treated as rustic, even naive. The difference between Kong and Jack is that Jack can survive being tamed.
Adrien Brody took his shirt off in Kong the were and that didn't disappoint.
Hopefully a better written Peeta with all the underling qualities that makes him Peeta and loveable. He is too great of a character to exist solely for the sake of being Katniss's romantic partner. Though I love that series, that is my only hang--up.
beautiful
Yup, some profound truths here. Too bad most people aren't expecting the art on the level necessary to take in the movie. I'm noticing a parallel problem in BookTube as well as the cinephiles here on CZcams.
The title for this video is like a degree away from being demonetizable
Wish I knew how to make GIFs; I need one of Lindsay's "Wow! Fuck you!"
Pita will be played by an actual pita that shits ice cream out
Wait so... King Kong, Ann (as in Queen Ann) and Jack? I'm not the only one who sees the poker parallels, right?
Ann's of King Kong?
FUCK now I'm worried I'm Jeff Bridges Jack.
haven't watched this yet but running on the title here if this isn't commentary on footage of mr. kong cranking his gorilla hog I will be sorely disappointed
I Heart Huckabees has a good depiction of an environmentalist!
Bad Beard but glorious hair!
Michael Bay's King Kong sounds like a trash-terpiece waiting to happen
There’s something about the name Michael and unfathomable amounts of stupidity.
First time I see Jeff Bridges in young. ^^" and already looked like the Dude.
The fact that Anna is more sympathetic to Kong in 2005 versione, doesn't necessarly imply that it is a better movie. In 1933 version, before dieing Kong turns a gentle and passionate glance to Ann that only spectators can see. None of the caracters understand that Kong could have feelings (in its way). So its gentle glance establishes an intimate connection betwin Kong and the pubblic who is the one to understand Kong's real gentle nature. That makes of Kong a sort of romantic character (similar to Quasimodo in Notre Dame de Paris), whose deep tragedy is to remain misunderstood by the folk around it who will keep seeing it as a brutal beast.
I have this movie on Blu Ray DVD. But it's not the remastered in color and extended version. No pit scene. I got ripped off!
Considering the downplayed Kong-woman dynamic in Skull Island, I'm kinda glad there's not really a Jack character. I guess Tom Hiddleston would be the closest fit, but he's not a romantic character really, and he's just a generic competent manly guy who sympathizes with Kong because orphans. The Jacks have never been a strong point for Kong movies-what can I say when my favorite male lead for a King Kong movie is Akira Takarada in King Kong Escapes, which is a kids film so the romance is pretty downplayed.
By the way? Primate paleontology would be contained to Paleoanthropology or Mammal Paleontology-see, there's not much primate fossils to go on to justify an entire wing cause primates tend to be small and live away from places that preserve fossils decently. In fact, one of the most famous extinct primates, the largest ape, actually, is just known from a few mandibles and a couple dozen teeth. In my university, Primate Paleontology was ONE part of two classes in Anthropology.
I guess that would make his "Getting" the natives make sense since it's put under anthropology and you have to take a lot of cultural anthropology just for hours and even do some social work depending on the school.
God, the 76 movie hurts
I haven't seen the movie yet, because it looks, well, boring, but according to IMDB, Toby Kebbell plays a character named Jack and also Kong. Sounds like some kind of symbolism there.
Oh yeah; Samuel L Jackson's right hand man who gets eaten by a Skull Crawler. If it's symbolism, it's...interesting
The character of Jack Driscoll in King Kong (2005) is a badass realistic representation of a sensitive smart man. He is a little bit reserved and shy, but a true gentleman! It is a fact that anybody can find out by playing Peter Jackson's King Kong: The Official Game Of The Movie. As a conclusion, Jack Driscoll is a survivor, a manly man who love women. By the way, Lindsay, you are very beautiful lady. Your analytical talk is fascinating. I am always so captivated by your bright red lips. 💪🏻😎💋
Like a Cassandra? Um, I'm not familiar with that term, anybody know what that means?
Reference to Cassandra of Troy, cursed to see and predict the future, but also cursed in that no one would believe her.
Ah, okay. Thanks.
A good analogy would be Jeff Goldblum in both Jurassic Park and Independence Day.
I'm kinda hoping we won't need PETA anymore by 2117.
Every man Jack. (Neil Gaiman fans will get this reference.)
they are all a jack of their trades
lol "chucklefuck" I love it
Well, I had fun with Skull Island
Huh. Turns out i DIDN'T know Jack.
The Dude abides
You don't see a lot of hate for the Bridges out there. It's refreshing.
This is probably his worst film. And yes, I'm counting RIPD
i think i love this girl