Peter Jackson and King Kong

I have seen two Peter Jackson movies and I am steadily growing a dislike for his work. I saw the first Lord of the Rings movie and I, unlike apparently everyone else in the world, did not look forward to watching the rest of the series. I thought the story and cinematography were excellent. But I thought the plotline was lethargic and some themes were too repetitive.

I just saw King Kong and I can say the same things about it. The movie started out promising, but it was too long. Now I don't want to ruin the movie for anyone, so I'll just explain some film ideas and explain in broad terms how King Kong failed. (I'll try not to give anything away.)

First, what most people are talking about: the movie is too long. Now there is nothing inately wrong with a 3 hour movie and in fact there are a bunch of good 3 hour movies (Lawrence of Arabia comes to mind). The problem is that it could easily be shorter, considering how long some scenes are and how many times you see a similar reaction or occurence. Jackson tries to add too many elements to the movie and in the process leaves holes in the story. If he explained everything the movie could easily be 4 or 5 hours long.

Second, and this might give something away, but I don't need to see Kong's "tender side" over and over again. I get it, the gorilla is kind when not attacked. And every "tender moment" doesn't need to be interrupted by gun shots or other kinds of attacks.

Third, and this a "rule" that all of hollywood has been breaking for awhile: just because you can do something (with special effects, etc.) it doesn't mean you SHOULD do it. I don't think I'm ruining anything when I say, there is much more special effects than the Gorilla and T-Rex that you see in the preview. And that's not exactly a good thing.

Anyways, I guess when you get down to it, I think Jackson needs a better editor. I understand that most Lord of the Ring fans appreciate the trilogy because it is fairly true to the books. But King Kong has no basis for such an extensive rendering. It seemed like he was given free reign, after (and during) the success of the Rings trilogy and now King Kong is monstrous (pun intended) production.