Main Cast: Robert Armstrong, Helen Mack, Frank Reicher, John Marston, Victor Wong
Release Year: 1933
Country: US
Run Time: 70 minutes
MPAA Rating: NR
Plot
Hoping to immediately cash in on its blockbuster hit King Kong (1933). RKO Radio commissioned producers Willis O'Brien and Ernest B. Schoedsack to hastily slap together a sequel. Son of Kong begins where King Kong left off, with foolhardy entrepreneur Carl Denham (Robert Armstrong) facing hundreds of thousands dollars in lawsuits from the damages inflicted by the mighty Kong on the city of New York (remember?) Denham's partner Captain Englehorn (Frank Reicher) suggests that they escape to Malaya, where they make the acquaintance of Hilda (Helen Mack), the daughter of drink-besotted circus-owner Peterson (Clarence Wilson). When her father is killed in a fire caused by Norwegian sea captain Helstrom (John Marston), Hilda is comforted by Denham, who has taken a liking to the unfortunate girl. It turns out that Helstrom was the sailor who sold Denham the map to Skull Island, where King Kong once ruled unchecked. Hoping to escape prosecution for the fatal fire, Hellstrom claims that there's a fabulous treasure buried somewhere on Skull Island and offers to lead Denham and Englehorn back to the Pacific flyspeck. With no place else to go, Hilda stows away on Englehorn's boat and joins the expedition. After an unpleasant confrontation with the natives whom Kong trampled and chewed up in the earlier film, Denham and Hilda explore another part of the Island -- and there they find Little Kong, a 12-foot-high white gorilla who is as lovable as his "old man" was nasty. As the treacherous Hellstrom meets his doom elsewhere on the island, cute Little Kong protects his new friends Denham and Hilda from a variety of marauding dinosaurs, ultimately sacrificing his own life to save the human hero and heroine from a native war party. Largely played for laughs (at one point Little Kong makes an "Oy vey" gesture, as the soundtrack plays a snatch of a Jewish dance!), Son of Kong is nowhere near the classic stature of its illustrious predecessor. On the other hand, the stop-motion photography is quite impressive, at times even better than the animation seen in the original King Kong. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
Review
Not exactly a chip off the old block, The Son of Kong pales in comparison to his "Papa," but if taken on its own terms, Son is a lightly entertaining little film. The fact that Son of Kong (both the film and the character) can best be described as "cute" is telling in and of itself. The original was exciting, thrilling, gripping, involving; "cute" would describe perhaps two or three moments, and wouldn't make the Top 50 list of adjectives to describe it. Still, "cute" is not necessarily damning, and it must be said that Son is cute in a way that some future monster films -- Destroy All Monsters! comes immediately to mind -- could only hope to be. There's genuine charm in Son, and there's also a fair share of adventure and excitement. The screenplay is rather pedestrian, but it does provide for some winning moments; similarly, Ernest B. Schoedsack's direction is mostly efficient, although it too has its moments. Even working with a very limited budget, the special effects team delivers some very fine work, and the cast is more than adequate. Son of Kong himself is a winning little dickens, and he makes the film one of the most family-friendly of monster flicks. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide
Lee Kohlmar - Mickey; Ed Brady - Max Helstrum; Steve Clemente - Witch King [uncredited]; Noble Johnson - Native Chief; James B. Leong - Chinese Trader; Constantine Romanoff - Bell; Gertrude Short - Girl Reporter; Gertrude Sutton - Servant Girl; Harry Tenbrook - Tommy; Kathrin Clare Ward - Mrs. Hudson; Clarence H. Wilson - Peterson; Dutch Hendrian - Dutch; Frank O'Connor - Process Server
Credit
Alfred Herman - Art Director, Van Nest Polglase - Art Director, Walter Plunkett - Costume Designer, Ernest B. Schoedsack - Director, Ted Cheesman - Editor, Max Steiner - Composer (Music Score), Eddie Linden - Cinematographer, Vernon Walker - Cinematographer, J.O. Taylor - Cinematographer, Archie Marshek - Producer, Thomas K. Little - Set Designer, Carroll L. Shepphird - Special Effects, Willis O'Brien - Special Effects, E.B. Gibson - Special Effects, Marcel Delgado - Special Effects, Fred Reese - Special Effects, Mario Larrinaga - Special Effects, Byron L. Crabbe - Special Effects, W.G. White - Special Effects, Ruth Rose - Screenwriter
