Nonureva Really Surprised!

Verity Robins Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

Hattie I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

Cheryl A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

Jackson Booth-Millard I remember seeing this family film at least three times when I was younger, I obviously wouldn't realise back then and I only found out in adulthood that it is a remake of the 1949 film, from director Ron Underwood (Tremors, City Slickers, Pluto Nash). Basically in the African jungle, young Jill Young (Mika Boorem) witnesses her mother Ruth Young (Linda Purl) die, and the same night baby silver back gorilla Joe witnesses his mother killed by poachers, one of whom has his thumb and forefinger bitten off. Twelve years later, eco-minded Professor Gregory 'Gregg' O'Hara (Bill Paxton) is in the same jungle, and stumbles upon the grown up Jill Young (Charlize Theron) and genetically abnormally large Joe the gorilla living relatively peacefully. Gregg is suggesting Joe would be safer from poaching if Jill agrees to come with him with her large friend back to Hollywood, California and live in a refuge with plenty of food and space. Eventually she does agree, and they do go to the United States, and to everyone's amazement Joe does like this safe haven, and the occasional visitors, including fellow eco scientists see his good progress. But then the leader of the poachers Andrei Strasser (Rade Serbedzija) with the missing thumb and finger turns up at the sanctuary and caused the gorilla to get angry and violent, and everyone is mistaken into thinking he cannot cope with his life in L.A. With this in mind preparation are made to have Joe go back to the jungle, but he somehow escapes and ends up following a light he mistakes as a signal from Jill, and when she and Gregg catch up to him they find him, and Strasser, in a carnival. Disaster strikes when the ferris wheel breaks down, and after the villain is killed Joe is the only one who can a little boy trapped near a fire surrounding it. In the end it looks like the child is safe but Joe is dead from the fall, but thankfully he is fine and is taken back to Africa to roam free in a large bit of land with donations coming in for Jill and Gregg. Also starring Peter Firth as Garth, Quiz Show's David Paymer as Harry Ruben, Jerry Maguire's Regina King as Cecily Banks, Robert Wisdom as Kweli, Lost's Naveen Andrews as Pindi and Verne Troyer as Baby Joe. Theron is obviously gorgeous, and Paxton as usual is reliable, the gorilla does steal the show, being both cuddly and sweet, and aggressive and angry, with moments reminiscent of King Kong it is an easy to follow story that will have the kids and the adults near enough hooked, a fun fantasy adventure. It was nominated the Oscar for Best Visual Effects. Worth watching!

vip_ebriega My Take: Fine special effects and decent performances make for a passable remake. A toned-down remake of the 1949 monster movie (not that the original was violent or so) by Disney, MIGHTY JOE YOUNG is enjoyably pleasant nonetheless. There's a lot of enjoyable moments here to entice kids and adults alike. It's fun, without being too loud, too lumbering and too overproduced unlike other summer affair of the time. It could use more, but enough just seems to be enough. There's a good dosage of fine adventure movie elements. There's action, adventure, humor and even romance.The romance is created between two of the lead characters. Bill Paxton as an explorer named Gregg O'Hara and a Charlize Theron as Jill Young, a daughter of a late famous Jane Goodall-inspired scientist. There's chemistry between those two, even if it's not entirely developed. It's also a simple boy-likes-the-girl chemistry, but it works well and I bought it. Ask for the adventure, there are numerous action scenes which takes place both in the jungle in even in the city, which shows a scenes directly derived but not entirely similarly to the scene from KING KONG. The special effects by Rick Baker, who actually started doing apes in a somewhat cheesy outcome during the 70's remake of KING KONG, are fine here in the film. There's a convincing use of blue screen and the typical man-in-a-suit technique that actually is less evident here.Director Ron Underwood (TREMORS) brings a lot of excitement in this familiar territory. The film cannot escape the multitudes of clichés that marred this old genre to the ground. Some things about MIGHTY JOE YOUNG are familiar, as a toned-down kids flick. I've learned the lesson before, there's no one that harshly gets hurt in this film, except the bad guys who must get their just desserts in the end. But the film is lively and enjoyable enough for me to recommend. This is decent family entertainment.Rating: *** out of 5.

Dingataca I haven't seen the original, but this one is certainly a lovely and heartwarming story of friendship and unconditional love.I thought Mighty Joe Young was very well executed. The animation of Joe was realistic and they also gave him a personality that screamed "loveable"! Joe creates a space for himself in everyone's hearts and I think it is the way he has been portrayed, as a heart of gold in a scary exterior, that will endear him to you.A very sweet tale full of highs and lows, twists, turns, laughter and tears. Good for families - kids and adults alike will enjoy it.

John T. Ryan Imitation is indeed the sincerest form of flattery! When someone in Hollywood commits to doing a remake, whether or not it is wholly or moderately successful,or not at all is no matter to one truth, at least. Somebody saw something worthwhile in remaking or at least attempting to do so.When a remake comes down the pike, it's immediately up for instant comparison. How much is it like the original? How are they dissimilar? Has the storyline been kept close to the original, or has it been allowed to wander too far astray? Well all things considered, and being 49 years after the 1st MIGHTY JOE YOUNG, it does appear that just about the right balance was struck. The original overall concept was kept, albeit in a multi-faceted upgrading or 'modernizing', conducted on several fronts. Filming in Color, Dolby Sound, Digital Photography and Computer Generated Special Effects all kicked in to give a "more modern" look to this "more modern" film.All the years couldn't have passed without some tweaking of the basics of the storyline, or at least giving them a little vitamin therapy. As such, the more modern terms and concerns like, "ecology", "endangered or threatened" species designations are introduced into the story and are done so in a low-key, soft sell. Rather than any heavy-handed preaching or finger pointing about "our"(Mankind's)misuse of the natural world;utilizing a veritable encyclopedia of self-righteous, patronizing 'junk science'.One little addition to the original story is found in there is never any explanation offered to explain Joe's "being the biggest one in his class." This new 1998 version not only makes up an explanation, but also makes sense at the same time!The shifting of the back-drop of the Entertainment Industry with the Science Community is a major move, if not exactly not a change. The presence over the years of people like Frank Buck, Martin & Osa Johnson, Ivan T. Sanserson,Marlin Perkins,The Late Steve Irwin(The Crocodile Hunter) and folks like today's Jack Hannah, all are examples of Science crossing over into Show Business.At any rate, the one thing that all King Kong/Mighty Joe Young films have in common is an unflattering caricature of "the Public." Hey, that's us!And in demonstration of the changing scene, we offer the following: In the original MIGHTY JOE YOUNG movie's year of release, 1949, Walt Disney Pictures released thru RKO Radio Pictures. In the year of the MIGHTY JOE YOUNG remake, it is listed as an RKO Production released by Disney's Buena-Vista Distribution Company. The wheel has spun afull!