Mighty Joe Young

7/27/19491h 34m

Theatrical Release (US)

~ Merian Cooper's amazing adventure in the unusual! ~

Overview:

A young woman, Jill Young, grew up on her father's ranch in Africa, raising a large gorilla named Joe from an infant. Years later, she brings him to Hollywood to become a star.

Director:

Ernest B. Schoedsack

Status:

Released

Language:

English

Buget:

$1,800,000.00

Revenue:

$1,950,000.00

Key words:

africa
gorilla
wrestler
decoy
black and white
ape
exotic pet
team roping
giant ape
king kong

Cast

Terry Moore

~ as ~

Jill Young

Ben Johnson

~ as ~

Gregg Johnson

Robert Armstrong

~ as ~

Max O'Hara

Frank McHugh

~ as ~

Windy

Douglas Fowley

~ as ~

Jones

Denis Greene

~ as ~

Crawford

Paul Guilfoyle

~ as ~

Smith

Nestor Paiva

~ as ~

Brown

Regis Toomey

~ as ~

John Young

Lora Lee Michel

~ as ~

Jill (as a child)

View full cast & crew

Reviews (1)

John Chard
Written 10 year(s) ago
8
Listen you guys, cut out the rough stuff or I'll feed you to the lions.

Unfairly chastised in some quarters for being a kiddie friendly King Kong, Mighty Joe Young is as charming as an Autumnal day. Many of the team from King Kong reteam to make this film, and undoubtedly it's pretty much the same plotting only with a different resolution.

However, the effects work is still magical, harking back to a time when geniuses like Willis O'Brien and Ray Harryhausen sweated buckets to make the magic move on the screen. Mighty Joe, the huge Gorilla of the title, is beautifully realised, full of expressions and emotions, he even has time for some sense of humour traits.

Action is never far away, with models and sets destroyed with brute force, while plenty of beings get flung about to emphasise the madness of it all. Narratively like Kong there's still themes of greed and ignorance, the tampering with Mother Nature a big mistake, which all leads to a thrilling finale that in turn leads to something to savour.

Kiddie Kong? Who cares! A wonderful film of skill and guile, of charm and brains. Go Joe Go! 8/10