Mighty Joe Young (1949)

Mighty Joe Young (Dir: Ernest B Schoedsack, 1949).

16 years after scoring a massive hit with fantasy epic King Kong (Merian C Cooper & Ernest B Schoedsack, 1933), RKO Radio Pictures resurrected the mega-ape genre with Mighty Joe Young. Returning are Kong producers and directors Ernest B Schoedsack and Merian C Cooper and star Robert Armstrong. But this is no sequel to King Kong and its follow-up Son of Kong (Ernest B Schoedsack, 1933). Rather, Mighty Joe Young is something of a cousin of Kong or, if you will, a spiritual sequel. It certainly does a better joy of replicating the spectacle of the original movie than Son of Kong. 

Joe is a massive gorilla (not as big as Kong, but still pretty hefty) raised by young Jill Young (Terry Moore) in his African home since a baby. Persuaded by showman Max O’Hara (Robert Armstrong) and his buddy Gregg (Ben Johnson) to accompany them to the US, Max employs Jill and Joe as star attraction at his California nightclub. As is often the case with exhibiting giant gorillas (or, indeed, dinosaurs), things do not go to plan. Otherwise gentle Joe is taunted by drunks to the point where he wrecks the joint. With Joe subsequently imprisoned, Jill, Gregg and Max plot a daring rescue attempt to free the gorilla and return him to Africa. 

Of the human cast, Terry Moore and Ben Johnson make for attractive leads, Moore is particularly touching in her scenes with Joe. Robert Armstrong is effective in a similar role to that of King Kong with a welcome comic sidekick in Frank McHugh. The quality cast undoubtedly adds to the enjoyment of Mighty Joe Young, but let’s be honest, none of us are really here for the actors. 

Shot in black and white with dramatic use of colour filters, Mighty Joe Young is a visual treat. King Kong’s Willis O’Brien and assistant Ray Harryhausen handle the outstanding special effects which elaborate upon the techniques perfected in Kong. Joe is brought to life by beautiful stop motion animation and the interaction between him and his human counterparts is astonishing! A scene where Joe wrestles live action/animated lions is particularly impressive as is the dramatic climax in which Joe rescues children from a burning orphanage. 

While it did not have the same impact as the original King Kong, Mighty Joe Young is an impressive movie in its own right with much to recommend it. It is undoubtedly more sentimental than Kong but it is still a thoroughly entertaining feature; well paced, with plenty of humour amidst the thrills and some of the most spectacular visual effects committed to celluloid. Fans of King Kong not familiar with Mighty Joe Young would do well to check out this fantasy classic!