While Godzilla makes a living fighting giant monsters, King Kong has also had his share of giant creatures brawls ... which I thought would be fun to shed some light on. So, for this post, I’ll be counting down my top 10 personal favorite King Kong battles, but only the ones in which he fights another giant monster. While he's certainly had some great throw-downs with military vehicles and weapons, they regrettably wont be highlighted on this countdown ... this is for the giants only.
#10 King Kong versus the Giant Snake from the 1976 remake “King Kong”
While we don’t have any exciting Dinosaur encounters in this 70’s remake, it’ll have to compensate with another creature that slithers. It’s yet another goofy action highlight, and it accurses when Kong rescues the girl from a giant snake, which is a cheap looking puppet. While it’s an admittedly silly fight, it does contain some surprisingly violent creature action. Kong’s finishing move of ripping the snakes jaw open is about as bloody awesome as they get, and it’s just enough to make this brawl worthy of recognition on my countdown.
#9 King Kong versus Gorosaurus from “King Kong Escapes”
While he may seem like just another T-Rex on the surface, Gorosaurus was actually a regular player in Japans giant monster series, and would even appear in the 1969 Godzilla movie titled “Destroy all Monsters”. Heck, that movie even features stock footage of Gorosaurus, which is lifted straight from “King Kong Escapes”. The battle between Kong and Gorosaurus is a delightfully cheesy rubber suited monster fight, and its actually kind of a treat to see Kong battle something else from the Godzilla franchise. Gorosaurus’s signature move is a drop-kick, which he repeatedly uses on Kong. There are also some amusing winks to the original “King Kong” movie, like a shot with the Blond girl in a tree branch, while the monsters battle in the background. Also, just like the original T-Rex, Gorosaurus gets his jaw snapped open, but this is a G rated death by comparison, as it features foam coming out the mouth as opposed to blood.
#8 King Kong versus the Giant Octopus from “King Kong vs Godzilla”
This actually marked the very first King Kong movie I ever saw in my lifetime, and thus, this was the very first Kong battle I ever saw. As such Kong’s showdown with the Giant octopus may not seem like anything special on the surface, but it’s always been a memorable highlight for me. The giant Octopus was brought to life through a combination of stop-motion, and a real Octopus. Specking personally, I’ve always loved the concept of Giant Squid monsters, and seeing this thing rising from the depths to attack the island villagers evokes a sense of excitement that’s on par with the Giant Squid from “20 000 Leagues Under the Sea”. The creature effects during this attack would later be an influence for the animators of The Kraken in the 2006 film “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest”. The ensuing battle between Kong and the Octopus is yet another cheesy highlight and sets the tone for what we’ll be getting through the film.
#7 King Kong and Godzilla versus Mechagodzilla from "Godzilla vs Kong"
The only thing more satisfying than seeing Godzilla and King Kong battle is seeing them work together to defeat an even greater enemy. Once the two monsters get their kicks in, the real finale takes shape when an unexpected third party joins the action. It’s revealed that the bad guys set-up Kong’s journey into Hollow Earth as a means to harness an energy source, one that can power their mysterious superweapon … which turns out to be none other then the giant Mechagodzilla ... who's personally my favorite of Godzilla's main rouges.
#6 King Kong versus the Triple T-Rex pack from 2005 “King Kong”
This is one of the more modern Kong Battles, and would probably rank a little higher on most other lists of this sort. Personally, while I certainly find this battle a great spectacle, I also have some reserved issues with it. Echoing back to Kong’s original showdown with the T-Rex, the mighty ape now finds himself brawling with three T-Rex’s at once. The effects and designs of these three T-Rex’s are kind of off-putting, as they just look and feel like cartoon monsters. Also, their need to eat our female lead is hilarious, as it comes to a point where a T-Rex is dangling in the air on some vines, but it’s still determined to get Ann in its mouth, like it’s the only possible meal it could ever get. With all that said, this is obviously still a noteworthy and mostly exciting creature battle from Kong’s motion picture line-up.
#5 King Kong versus Robot Kong from “King Kong Escapes”
To date, Robot Kong is the only original giant antagonist to battle Kong, and he even pre-dates Godzilla’s more famous evil robot counterpart Mechagodzilla by a good six years. Having a giant rival that mired Kong’s appearance was actually a credible idea, and I like how it’s utilized in the film. When Kong sees his robot duplicate for the first time, it sees the thing as one of his own, and even tries to be friends ... which obviously doesn’t work out. Just as the day seems won, Robot Kong appears on the scene, kidnaps the girl and forces Kong into a final battle to the death. While this rubber suited monster brawl isn’t nearly as amusing as Kong’s original battle with Godzilla, it’s still solid campy fun, and I really like the duality of both the new and familiar on display during this climax. We once again have a finale set on a tall tower, with a blond girl taken away by Kong, but this time we also have Kong coming to the girl’s rescue. It’s probably the only Kong sequel to feature a climax with two Kong’s battling over a girl while on top of a tall building.
#4 The East Versus the West from “King Kong vs Godzilla”
I can respect how a fight between two rubber suited monsters can come off as just plain stupid or boring to some viewers, but there is still a charm and appeal to the campy-ness of it that can entertain a certain audience. For me, I know it’s not quality entertainment, but I absolutely love it on the grounds of campy fun, and this final showdown between Godzilla and King Kong is about as goofy, yet as epic as they get.
My favorite moment is actually at the very start of the fight, in which Kong is dropped in the mighty lizards path, he slides down the mountain slope like a kid on a bob-sled, and crashes right into Godzilla, which sends him rolling backward like a bolder. I really love seeing their distinct fighting styles on display, like Kong throwing boulders, which Godzilla reflects with his tail. The two actors in the monster suits pull off some credible stunts, although there are some amusing moments in which the two look like their trying to hug each other to death. There’s a sudden piece of stop motion added in for Godzilla to perform a drop-kick, which is great.
Then there’s a hilarious establishing shot with both monsters fighting off in the distance, and it looks like a kid playing with his toy action figures. There’re also some brutal moments, like Kong getting his face smashed into a rock, and Godzilla getting a tree shoved down his throat. Now, Godzilla has the advantage that he can breathe fire, so the writers had to come up with new things for Kong to do in order to stand a chance. Thus, in this film, King Kong gains strength through lightning bolts, and can store the electricity in his fists. It’s a bit outlandish for a giant gorilla, but I’ll except it. Of course, the most iconic image of the whole fight is seeing the two monsters demolish a Pagoda that’s caught in-between them. It’s just a goofy, campy monster brawl, but it’s as classic as they get.
#3 King Kong versus the Alfa Skull Crawler from “Kong: Skull Island”
The Skull Crawlers are some of the most lethal and unique creatures to appear in the Kong franchise, and their giant alfa is a worthy foe for the mighty ape. The final showdown between Kong and the lead Skull Crawler is really fun to watch, and features all the cool stuff a giant monster fight has to offer. There’s an awesome un-edited shot following Kong as he fights the creature, while the camera orbits the action, which got me hyped. Also, seeing Kong launch a rusted boat propeller into the monsters back was great. It’s also a lengthy battle, and it concludes with the most epic creature death of the whole franchise. Kong puts his entire fist in the creature’s mouth, and rips his tongue right out. This might just be the most genuinely exciting and fun Kong vs monster fight of the whole series … but that doesn’t quite make it an event like the next two.
#2 King Kong versus the T-Rex from the original 1933 “King Kong”
Back in 1925, there was a silent picture titled “The Lost World”, which featured stop motion Dinosaurs that were created by one Willis O’ Brien. The creature effects in that film were extraordinary accomplishments, but it’s here in “King Kong” where Willis O’ Brien's creature effects really shine. Just like Kong, all the Dinosaurs featured in the film are stop-motion, and every encounter with them is down-right thrilling. My favorite scene of all is Kong’s battle with the T-Rex. This was the first truly classic monster battle ever captured on film, and it still holds up as an exciting sequence, with a memorable finishing movie of Kong breaking its jaw. It may seem tame today, but back in 1933, this battle was on par with the excitement of watching the Hulk battle Thor. Now, ever sense the very first Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton was found and assembled, it’s had a distinguished reputation as one of the most famous carnivores of all time. So, to see the legendary T-Rex back in his prime of fame, get bested by this giant ape, it really helped put the spot light on Kong as a force to be reckoned with.
Before I reveal my Number one Favorite Kong battle, here are some quick Honorable Mentions that just couldn't make it.
Baby Kong vs the Giant Cave Bear from “Son of Kong”
King Kong versus The Plesiosaur from the 1933 “King Kong”
Kong vs the Sea Serpent from “King Kong Escapes”
Kong vs the Flying Serpents from "Godzilla vs Kong"
Kong vs the Other Giant Octopus from "Kong: Skull Island"
#1 The Titans Rematch of the Century from “Godzilla vs Kong”
Godzilla was my biggest idled childhood monster, with King Kong being a respectable favorite, and for the longest time, I always wanted to see the two most famous movie titans clash in a modern blockbuster. I certainly have fondness reserved for the goofy 1960’s “King Kong vs Godzilla”, and yet … ever sense I was about seven years old, I always dreamt of seeing Godzilla and King Kong, with bigger budget special effects, and the best action that contemporary blockbusters could offer. Well, my childhood dream finally came true in 2021 with “Godzilla vs Kong”.
Naturally, the film more than satisfied my expectations. Just like in the original, there's a lot of personality on display between the two, which makes them feel more alive, and I love that Godzilla and Kong get in each other’s faces, as a means to intimidate one another. While the original film built-up to one big brawl between the two, this movie breaks-up their clashes over the course of the film, which is very welcome, and keeps the momentum going. Thankfully, this movie wasn’t afraid to feature the monsters battling in the bright day time, which is a huge improvement over the previous films, which set their battles in dark, murky and relentlessly rainy settings. King Kong ad Godzilla’s first match is out in the ocean, both above and below the water line, which is a welcome change-up. Their second battle is at night in the neon-lit Hong Kong, which is kind of a call back to “Pacific Rim”, but it still looked great, and I really liked the addition of Kong using his own make-shift weapon against Godzilla. It was definitely a long awaited rematch, and it lived-up to my expectations as my favorite King Kong battle.
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