When I was young, I used to watch King Kong all the time. I loved the pure escapism and adventure of this classic film. When I was 14, I got the chance to watch the original version of Mighty Joe Young, a film that is sort of like Kong’s little brother. I was taken away by the beautiful stop motion animation, but more than anything, I loved the loving spirit of this gentle film. The true achievement of the 1998 version of Mighty Joe Young is that it captures the same essence of the original. The stunningly beautiful Charlize Theron puts in a dead on portrayal of Jane, Joe’s companion. Director Ron Underwood’s pacing is perfect, making the film not too intense for the young viewers, but exciting enough for fun loving adults to be on the edge of their seats.
The true marvel of Mighty Joe Young is Mr. Joseph Young of Africa himself. Rick Baker has struck again, proving that computer animation has a long way to go before replacing animatronics (although the computer animation in Mighty Joe Young was also uncharacteristically very believable). Baker’s animatronic Joe is always believable and very sympathetic. We have not seen a giant gorilla such a good actor since Wills O’Brien’s and Ray Harryhausen’s work in the original Mighty Joe Young. Congratulations Mighty Joe Young: the best family film of 1998!