Nothing wrong with the idea of a sequel, especially bringing in another ape. Really Kong should have fought the ape, but they decided to go romance... Maybe even that could have worked. I didn't mind the artificial heart - that's fine.
But this doesn't work.
For one there's no sense of adventure. Brian Kerwin discovers Lady Kong in Borneo and captures her - that's dealt with in about five minutes. The rest of the time the Kongs are stuck somewhere in the USA (I assume North Carolina, where this film was shot). They escape, then Lady is recaptured, then they escape again. The rampage is limited. Much of it is played for laughs: stepping on a sports car to the angst of a teen who doesn't know how he'll tell his parents, going past a golf course and being wacked on the head, another teen drives a motorbike between the ape's legs. The army shoot at it.
More damaging, there's no sense of character. The leads, Linda Hamilton and Brian Kerwin could be cut out of the movie entirely. They have no relationship with the Kongs - none. It's a shocking misjdugement. Hamilton helps put in the artificial heart, it's true, but other scientists do that too. Kerwin discovers Lady Kong in Borneo but that's dealt with in five minutes, as a I said. The first half they have this bantering relationship then she offers up her sleeping bag and bam they're a couple. No more conflict. No difference of opinion. Compare Jeff Bridges and Jessica Lange - he was an ecologist, she wanted to be famous, they came at different angles. And he really liked Kong and Kong loved Lange - it was moving. Now Kong doesn't seem to care.
The villain, John Ashton, is just bad because he's military. That's it - he goes to kill the ape because he doesn't like him, which I get. In the 1976 version Charles Grodin wanted to exploit Kong for money.
Wouldn't it have been easy to give the villain a better motivation? To have the apes have a relationship with Hamilton and Kerwin? Like Kong shouldn't have been unconscious for ten years - if he'd been alive and Hamilton was his keeper and they had this strong bond. And if Lady Kong loved Kerwin. That would have made sense.
There are occasionally effective bits. When rednecks come against Kong and he tears into them is very satisfactory. Linda Hamilton and Brian Kerwin are pretty. You get a glimpse of Hamilton's boob - okay, I get it, I'm stretching for good things to say. The effects are fine. John Ashton hams it up. I like the score.
But it has a dumb story and is full of silly decisions.
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