Rating summary

Movie		4.5
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		5.0
Overall		5.0

King Kong Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman February 28, 2017

Universal has re-released 'King Kong' to Blu-ray. The set features the same primary disc as released in 2009 (including the VC-1 transfer and DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 lossless soundtrack) but adds a second disc filled with hours upon hours of bonus content previously featured on the old multi-disc DVD set. Grab some coffee and read on.

For a full film review, please click here (for what it's worth, I loved the film much more than Ben; the score above reflects my own).

King Kong Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

For a full video quality review, please click here

King Kong Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

For a full audio quality review, please click here

King Kong Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This Blu-ray re-release of King Kong contains so many supplements that, in the aggregate, they probably dwarf the gigantic creature itself. The bonus disc offers clusters of extras, massive sub-sections, themselves broken down even further into more branches, some of which repeat and are simply organized in a different way under a different heading. It's a daunting task to dig through them, never mind watch them, never mind present them on this page in some sort of organized fashion. It's also too much to offer a traditional blow-by-blow for each individual supplement, particularly the daily diaries (which are titled, generally, in a fairly straightforward manner), so those have been only listed rather than explored in more detail. To be sure, whether watching or reviewing or just trying to find a particular extra, it's a massive undertaking. The upside is that there's probably no other home video release that's this comprehensive. Fans of the film are going to find this the next-best thing to time traveling and being there on the set or in practically every step of the production process. Even for those who didn't much care for this film, this is a treasure trove of behind-the-scenes moviemaking magic that every film fan will find to be of enormous educational and entertainment value alike. The "5.0" supplemental score really doesn't do justice to the massive amount of content contained herein. Even cranking the scale to 11 might not be enough. A DVD copy of the film and a voucher for a UV/iTunes digital copy are included with purchase.

Disc One: Disc one carries over the extras from the original release.

• Audio Commentary: Director/Co-Writer Peter Jackson and Co-Writer/Producer Philippa Boyens.
• Picture in Picture
• The Art Galleries

Disc Two: New-to-Blu-ray content.

• 2006 Introductions By Peter Jackson (480i, 6:02): The Director introduces the supplemental package included on this disc though he is clearly referencing an older release of the film.
• Recreating the Eighth Wonder: The Making of King Kong (480i): An eight-part feature.
• The Origins of King Kong (16:38): Director Peter Jackson reminences about his childhood movie experience watching King Kong, learning the art of special effects and stop motion camera work, and how his childhood desire to remake King Kong eventually led him to make this film. It also looks at the changes made to both the story and the special effects from the 1996 version that never got finalized.
• Pre-Production Part 1: The Return of Kong (26:42): Discussions include the challenges of developing King Kong right as The Return of the King was wrapping up and the difficulties invovled in planning a film of this magnitude within a limited time frame. The piece also looks at filming the Empire State Building and preplanning the movie's finale, meeting with Fay Wray about the Ann Darrow character, and creating the numerous miniatures, artwork, and animations necessary to plan the film.
• Pre-Production Part 2: Countdown to Filming (15:36): This section covers the actors preparing for their roles: Naomi Watts learning to dance, Jack Black learning how to use the vintage camera, the ship's crew learning how to work on a ship, Andy Serkis learning how to cook, and the cast training to shoot the weapons used in the film.
• The Venture Journey (22:05): A look at filming the scenes aboard the Venture including the various ships used in the scenes, how the working model was located and modfied, and how various scenes were filmed.
• Return to Skull Island (30:04): A look at the creation of Skull Island, including the challenges involved in creating partial sets with blue screens, building the jungle inside and extending the jungle sets with miniatures, designing the natives without mimicking any one culture and training the actors to depict them, creating the dinosaurs and other creatures, and creating digital doubles of the actors.
• New York, New Zealand (25:55): A look at recreating parts of New York in New Zealand and designing it to appear as it did in the 1930s. This piece showcases the ways digital extensions were added to the physical sets, determining which buildings to recreate, creating a digital version of New York, and filming the aerial shots for the film's finale.
• Bringing Kong to Life Part 1: Design and Research (21:32): A closer look at the King Kong character, including its back story and the design elements that would come to define the iconic character: facial design, scars, hair, body shape, and movements. This supplement also shows how Andy Serkis studied gorrillas for his role as King Kong.
• Bringing Kong to Life Part 2: Animation (26:21): A look at how Andy Serkis became King Kong with the aid of motion capture technology and vocal alterations. It shows various scenes-in-progress with Andy Serkis as Kong so that the other cast members could better visualize the creature. It also examines the motion capture process that actually created King Kong and the animation process that converted that data into the character seen in the film.
• Production Diaries (480i): Behind-the-scenes content filmed for the film's website, captured during the shoot. They are arranged by both date and location so viewers can choose which way they prefer to watch.
• 2005 Introduction by Peter Jackson (5:34): Jackson mentions the "DVD" several times and discusses why the diaries where filmed and why he chose to include them on disc after they were originally aired online. He further shares how the diaries progressed in tone, length, and quality.
• Production Diaries by Date (3:50:18 total runtime):
• September 2004:
• Production Day 1: Peter's Welcome 04 September 2004.
• Production Day 4: The Diner Set 09 September 2004.
• Production Day 6: Rough Seas On Land 13 September 2004.
• Production Day 7: Filming Inside The Venture 14 September 2004.
• Production Day 8: Denham's Camera 15 September 2004.
• Production Day 10: Plane Spotting 17 September 2004.
• Production Day 12: Storms on the the Venture 21 September 2004.
• Production Day 14: Animal Droppings 23 September 2004.
• Production Day 16: Dump Tanks 27 September 2004.
• Production Day 18: Dump Tanks Part 2 29 September 2004.
• October 2004:
• Production Day 20: Skull Island Preview 01 October 2004.
• Production Day 22: Lumpy's Galley Tour 04 October 2004.
• Production Day 25: Clapper Boards 08 October 2004.
• Production Day 27: Previsualization 12 October 2004.
• Production Day 31: Skull Island Rocks 19 October 2004.
• Production Day 33: Skull Island Shoot 20 October 2004.
• Production Day 36: Gandalf the Spy 26 October 2004.
• November 2004:
• Production Day 40: The Swamp Set 01 November 2004.
• Production Day 42: Peter's Kong Collection 03 November 2004.
• Production Day 46: Is Jack Black 5'4"? 09 November 2004.
• Production Day 48: Creating Skull Island 11 November 2004.
• Production Day 51: Location Logistics 16 November 2004.
• Production Day 53: International Press Junket 18 November 2004.
• Production Day 58: The On-Set Art Department 26 November 2004.
• The Missing Production Diary.
• December 2004:
• Production Day 62: Cameras 02 December 2004.
• Production Day 66: Journey of a Roll of Film 07 December 2004.
• Production Day 68: Creating New York in New Zealand 09 December 2004.
• A Day at the Zoo 14 December 2004: Note: this particular supplement never aired on the film's website.
• Production Day 70: Shooting at the Civic Theatre 14 December 2004.
• Production Day 73: Concept Art 17 December 2004.
• Production Day 76: Happy Holidays! 22 December 2004.
• January 2005:
• Production Hiatus: New Year's Message from Peter 19 January 2005.
• Production Day 77: Shooting Begins in New York 24 January 2005.
• Production Day 82: New York Extras 31 January 2005.
• February 2005:
• Production Day 85: Vintage Vehicles 03 February 2005.
• Production Day 87: New York Set Dressing 07 February 2005.
• Production Day 90: Sewers and Steam 10 February 2005.
• Production Day 92: Lighting Continuity February 2005.
• Production Day 95: Times Square Becomes Herald Square 17 February 2005.
• Production Day 97: Adrien the Stunt Driver 21 February 2005.
• Production Day 100: A Day in the Life of Peter February 2005.
• March 2005:
• Production Day 103: Skull Island Miniatures 01 March 2005.
• Production Day 105: Naomi in Kong's Hand 03 March 2005.
• Production Day 108: Hair and Makeup 07 March 2005.
• Production Day 110: Global Partner Summit 09 March 2005.
• Production Day 113: Second Unit 14 March 2005.
• Production Day 115: Sound Recording 16 March 2005.
• Production Day 118: Helldriver Airplanes 21 March 2005.
• Production Day 120: Filming Winds Down 23 March 2005.
• April 2005:
• Production Day 123: The Kong Sequels 01 April 2005.
• Production Day 125: Costume Design 03 April 2005.
• Production Day 127: Unit Photography 05 April 2005.
• Production Day 129: Andy's Revenge on the DVD Team 06 April 2005.
• Production Day 130: Peter Calls in Help 07 April 2005.
• Production Day 131: The Last Day 08 April 2005.


• Production Diaries by Location (3:38:19 total runtime):
• S.S. Venture
• S.S. Venture Exterior
• Production Day 1: Peter's Welcome 04 September 2004.
• Production Day 6: Rough Seas On Land 13 September 2004.
• Production Day 8: Denham's Camera 15 September 2004.
• Production Day 10: Plane Spotting 17 September 2004.
• Production Day 12: Storms on the the Venture 21 September 2004.
• Production Day 16: Dump Tanks 27 September 2004.
• Production Day 18: Dump Tanks Part 2 29 September 2004.
• Production Day 20: Skull Island Preview 01 October 2004.
• Production Day 27: Previsualization 12 October 2004.
• S.S. Venture Interior:
• Production Day 7: Filming Inside The Venture 14 September 2004.
• Production Day 14: Animal Droppings 23 September 2004.
• Production Day 22: Lumpy's Galley Tour 05 October 2004.
• Production Day 25: Clapper Boards 08 October 2004.
• Skull Island:
• Ruined Valley:
• Production Day 31: Skull Island Rocks 19 October 2004.
• Production Day 33: Skull Island Shoot 20 October 2004.
• Production Day 36: Gandalf the Spy 26 October 2004.
• The Swamp:
• Production Day 40: The Swamp Set 01 November 2004.
• Production Day 42: Peter's Kong Collection 03 November 2004.
• Production Day 46: Is Jack Black 5'4"? 09 November 2004.
• The Jungle:
• Production Day 48: Creating Skull Island 11 November 2004.
• The Wall:
• Production Day 51: Location Logistics 16 November 2004.
• Production Day 53: International Press Junket 18 November 2004.
• Production Day 58: The On-Set Art Department 26 November 2004.
• The Cove:
• Production Day 62: Cameras 02 December 2004.
• New York:
• New York Diner:
• Production Day 4: The Diner Set 09 September 2004.
• Vaudeville Theater:
• Production Day 66: Journey of a Roll of Film 07 December 2004.
• Production Day 68: Creating New York in New Zealand 09 December 2004.
• Broadway Theater:
• Production Day 70: Shooting at the Civic Theatre 14 December 2004.
• Production Day 73: Concept Art 17 December 2004.
• Production Day 76: Happy Holidays! 22 December 2004.
• New York Streets:
• Production Hiatus: New Year's Message from Peter 19 January 2005.
• Production Day 77: Shooting Begins in New York 24 January 2005.
• Production Day 82: New York Extras 31 January 2005.
• Production Day 85: Vintage Vehicles 03 February 2005.
• Production Day 87: New York Set Dressing 07 February 2005.
• Production Day 90: Sewers and Steam 10 February 2005.
• Production Day 92: Lighting Continuity February 2005.
• Production Day 95: Times Square Becomes Herald Square 17 February 2005.
• Production Day 97: Adrien the Stunt Driver 21 February 2005.
• Final Six Weeks of Production:
• Production Day 100: A Day in the Life of Peter February 2005.
• Production Day 103: Skull Island Miniatures 01 March 2005.
• Production Day 105: Naomi in Kong's Hand 03 March 2005.
• Production Day 108: Hair and Makeup 07 March 2005.
• Production Day 110: Global Partner Summit 09 March 2005.
• Production Day 113: Second Unit 14 March 2005.
• Production Day 115: Sound Recording 16 March 2005.
• Production Day 118: Helldriver Airplanes 21 March 2005.
• Production Day 120: Filming Winds Down 23 March 2005.
• Production Day 123: The Kong Sequels 01 April 2005.
• Production Day 125: Costume Design 03 April 2005.
• Production Day 127: Unit Photography 05 April 2005.
• Production Day 129: Andy's Revenge on the DVD Team 06 April 2005.
• Production Day 130: Peter Calls in Help 07 April 2005.
• Production Day 131: The Last Day 08 April 2005.
• Post Production Diaries (480i): Behind-the-scenes content filmed for the film's website, captured during the shoot. They are arranged by both date and location so viewers can choose which way they prefer to watch.
• Post Production Diaries by Date (2:32:47 total runtime):
• April 2005:
• 33 Weeks To Go: Welcome to Post Production 29 April 2005.
• May 2005:
• 32 Weeks To Go: The Miniature Venture 06 May 2005.
• 31 Weeks To Go: Kong Performance Capture 13 May 2005.
• 30 Weeks To Go: Creating Sound Effects 20 May 2005.
• 29 Weeks To Go: A Visit to the Editorial Department 27 May 2005.
• June 2005:
• 28 Weeks To Go: Peter Answers Your Questions Part 1 03 June 2005.
• 27 Weeks To Go: The Miniatures Second Unit 10 June 2005.
• 26 Weeks To Go: Building a Miniature 17 June 2005.
• 25 Weeks To Go: WETA Digital Overview 24 June 2005.
• July 2005:
• 24 Weeks To Go: Creating the Teaser Trailer 01 July 2005.
• 23 Weeks To Go: Sound Design 08 July 2005.
• 22 Weeks To Go: Shooting Additional Elements 15 July 2005.
• 21 Weeks To Go: Preparing for Pick-Up Shooting 22 July 2005.
• 20 Weeks To Go: Pick-Ups: The Cast Returns 29 July 2005.
• August 2005:
• Pick-Ups: The Venture Extras 01 August 2005.
• 19 Weeks To Go: Pick-Ups: Continuity 05 August 2005.
• Pick-Ups: The Wrap 09 August 2005.
• 18 Weeks To Go: Alternative Dialogue Recording 12 August 2005.
• 17 Weeks To Go: The Miniatures 19 August 2005.
• 16 Weeks To Go: The Unsung Heroes of Rotoscoping 26 August 2005.
• September 2005:
• 15 Weeks To Go: Foley Recording 02 September 2005.
• 14 Weeks To Go: Digital Doubles 09 September 2005.
• 12 Weeks To Go: Digital Color Grading 23 September 2005.
• 11 Weeks To Go: Bringing Kong to Life: Motion Editing 30 September 2005.
• October 2005:
• 10 Weeks To Go: Bringing Kong to Life: Animation 07 October 2005.
• 9 Weeks To Go: Filming the Miniatures 14 October 2005.
• 8 Weeks To Go: Kong Visits New Zealand 21 October 2005.
• 7 Weeks To Go: Mixing Dialogue, Music, and Effects 28 October 2005.
• November 2005:
• 6 Weeks To Go: The Mixing Board 04 November 2005.
• 5 Weeks To Go: The Music of Kong Part 1 11 November 2005.
• 4 Weeks To Go: The Music of Kong Part 2 18 November 2005.
• 3 Weeks To Go: Delivering the Film 25 November 2005.
• December 2005:
• 2 Weeks To Go: Peter Answers Your Questions Part 2 02 December 2005.
• 1 Week To Go: The World Premiere 09 December 2005.
• King Kong Opens: The New Zealand Premiere 14 December 2005.
• Post Production Diaries by Department (2:32:47 total runtime):
• Post Production:
• 33 Weeks To Go: Welcome to Post Production 29 April 2005.
• 29 Weeks To Go: A Visit to the Editorial Department 27 May 2005.
• 24 Weeks To Go: Creating the Teaser Trailer 01 July 2005.
• 12 Weeks To Go: Digital Color Grading 23 September 2005.
• 3 Weeks To Go: Delivering the Film 25 November 2005.
• Pick-Ups:
• 21 Weeks To Go: Preparing for Pick-Up Shooting 22 July 2005.
• 20 Weeks To Go: Pick-Ups: The Cast Returns 29 July 2005.
• Pick-Ups: The Venture Extras 01 August 2005.
• 19 Weeks To Go: Pick-Ups: Continuity 05 August 2005.
• Pick-Ups: The Wrap 09 August 2005.
• Miniatures:
• 32 Weeks To Go: The Miniature Venture 06 May 2005.
• 27 Weeks To Go: The Miniatures Second Unit 10 June 2005.
• 26 Weeks To Go: Building a Miniature 17 June 2005.
• 17 Weeks To Go: The Miniatures 19 August 2005.
• 9 Weeks To Go: Filming the Miniatures 14 October 2005.
• Visual Effects:
• 31 Weeks To Go: Kong Performance Capture 13 May 2005.
• 25 Weeks To Go: WETA Digital Overview 24 June 2005.
• 22 Weeks To Go: Shooting Additional Elements 15 July 2005.
• 16 Weeks To Go: The Unsung Heroes of Rotoscoping 26 August 2005.
• 14 Weeks To Go: Digital Doubles 09 September 2005.
• 11 Weeks To Go: Bringing Kong to Life: Motion Editing 30 September 2005.
• 10 Weeks To Go: Bringing Kong to Life: Animation 07 October 2005.
• Sound:
• 30 Weeks To Go: Creating Sound Effects 20 May 2005.
• 23 Weeks To Go: Sound Design 08 July 2005.
• 18 Weeks To Go: Alternative Dialogue Recording 12 August 2005.
• 15 Weeks To Go: Foley Recording 02 September 2005.
• 7 Weeks To Go: Mixing Dialogue, Music, and Effects 28 October 2005.
• 6 Weeks To Go: The Mixing Board 04 November 2005.
• Music:
• 5 Weeks To Go: The Music of Kong Part 1 11 November 2005.
• 4 Weeks To Go: The Music of Kong Part 2 18 November 2005.
• Peter Jackson:
• 28 Weeks To Go: Peter Answers Your Questions Part 1 03 June 2005.
• 8 Weeks To Go: Kong Visits New Zealand 21 October 2005.
• 2 Weeks To Go: Peter Answers Your Questions Part 2 02 December 2005.
• Premieres:
• 1 Week To Go: The World Premiere 09 December 2005.
• King Kong Opens: The New Zealand Premiere 14 December 2005.
• Deleted Scenes (480i, 44:27 total runtime with introductions, 37:41 without): With optional Peter Jackson Introductions per scene and a general Jackson introduction to the deleted scenes package (2:28). Includes Preston Shows Ann Her Cabin, How A Man Dies, Jack Has Doubts About Ann, Ann Chooses An Outfit, Hayes Confronts Englehorn, Preston Finds the Map, Dancing A Jig, The Rest of the 'Venture' Voyage, Lumpy And His Cabbage, 'Scream For Your Life, Ann!', The 'Venture' Escapes (Original Version), Hayes' Story, A Sailor's Bad Luck, Original Insect Pit Opening, Kong Chases Jack's Cab, and Kong Versus the Army.
• The Eighth Blunder of the World (480i, 18:51): A Gag Reel.
• The Making of a Shot: The T-Rex Fight (480i, 16:29): Peter Jackson discusses the T-Rex fight scene: how it was developed and how it was filmed.
• Skull Island: A Natural History (480i, 17:03): A mockumentary looking at the fantasical animals from Skull Island, how the island developed, and how it was all recreated for the film.
• Kong's New York, 1938 (480i, 28:26): A look at how New York was recreated to realistically depict 1938, including background information on the impact of the Great Depression on New York, vaudeville's impact on theater, the New York Harbor and the variety of cultures present in the area, the busy streets of the time, the entertainment options, and the skyscrapers of the time. The piece offers archival footage and scenes from the film for comparsion.
• A Night in Vaudeville (480i, 12:05): Vintage vaudeville footage, auditions, and behind-the-scenes footage from the film's opening montage scene.
• King Kong Homage (480i, 9:54): Classic King Kong scenes compared and/or contrasted to Peter Jackson's version with occassional commentary from Peter Jackson.
• Pre-Visualization Anmatics (480i): Crude animated versions of various special effect scenes, available with and without music. Included are Arrival at Skull Island (4:21), Bronto Stampede (6:35), T-Rex Fight (9:53), Empire State Buidling Battle 'Pre-Viz' Only (9:29), and Empire State Building 'Pre-Viz' With Final Film Comparsion (9:30).
• Conceptual Design Video Galleries (480i, 41:24 total runtime): Rough sketches, artwork, storyboards and miniatures for various scenes in the film. Included are The 1996 'King Kong', The 'Venture', Skull Island, New York, and Kong.
• "The Present" (480i, 9:26): A brief making-of about the humorous birthday film the cast put together for Peter Jackson during the shoot. The short film itself is also included.
• WETA Collectibles (480i, 5:17): This piece showcases the collectibles created for the film (in various stages of development) and some of the film's miniatures as well.
• Trailers (480i): Includes Teaser Trailer (2:32), Theatrical Trailer (2:57), and Cinemedia Trailer (2:42).

King Kong Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

This re-release of King Kong is fantastic. The video and audio presentations hold up all these years later and the new-to-Blu-ray extra content is enormous, a massive undertaking to watch, let alone review. All that said, it's essentially just a repackage that blends the old DVD and the old Blu-ray, so those who already own both have no reason to upgrade. It's a shame that Universal didn't up the ante and include a UHD release -- the film would undoubtedly look stellar in 4K and sound even better with an Atmos/DTS:X soundtrack (probably the latter with Universal) -- but this is nevertheless an amazing release that offers a great movie, high end technical presentations, and tons of extras. Highly recommended.