Disney, mining the film vaults like every other studio these days, brings yet another holiday action/kids film with this remake of the classic gorilla picture. Before I go any further,
I have to say that I am not a fan of what Disney has done lately. I think that their fare is simply too safe, too forumula, too calculated. "Mighty Joe Young" is maybe a bit sappy at a couple points, but
there is a dark tone to the film that gave it an energetic edge that most kids films lack. The film stars Charlize Theron as Jill Young, an orphaned girl who takes care of a similarly orphaned ape named Joe.
The scene where both are orphaned due to evil hunters is somewhat disturbing for smaller children, and, to be honest, it even bugged me a bit.
The film forwards to years later, where Jill is still living in the wilds, taking care of a larger-than-life Joe, an ape that has grown to the size of the trees around him.
In to the forest comes Gregg O'Hara(the always fun Bill Paxton from "Twister"), a zoologist who's hired a band of locals to help him to take samples from the local wildlife for study. It's then that
he and his crew run smack into Joe, out for a walk in the forest. In a spectacular scene, O'Hara gives chase while Joe runs across the plains. Joe is essentially a special effect here, but it is incredible how life-like the character
looks as it runs, while the camera pans 360 degrees around it. It's incredible how far the technology has come since "Congo" in 1995; here, the giant ape Joe looks incredibly real, aside from the human-like things he does.
The performances by the two lead actors are quite good, especially Paxton, who can even bring life to roles like the one he played in "Twister." Once the three(Joe,Jill,Greg) arrive in California, things begin to go wrong. Joe isn't happy in his
new environment, a conservatory in the California hills. It is here that the picture felt a bit slow as nothing much happens except for conversations about how to deal with Joe or how the conservatory can make money off of him. There's just not much of interest
going on through the mid section; the script drags and there could easily be quite a bit that could have been cut. Soon, though, the hunters that left both Joe and Jill orphans realizes that they're the new attraction in America, and they set off for revenge on Joe, who took two fingers from the main
poacher,Strasser, who is a stock, cliched villian. Thankfully, Joe escapes for the final act, which results in a chase throughout the streets of Los Angeles, that, I have to admit, had me entertained. It all ends up in a fairly spectacular ferris wheel climax scene where a child is stuck on a burning ferris wheel.
There is a lot about "Mighty Joe Young" that works; the performances of the lead actors, the excellent technical and special effects work; but the movie drags a little too much during it's mid-section for comfort. Also, I think the film might scare the younger children. Overall, though, "Mighty Joe Young" is sort of
a welcome escape from the usual safe Disney fare.
