Comparative Analysis of The Original and The Adaptation Versions of King Kong

In 1933, an original film titled King Kong helped paved and shaped the way the film score industry is today. Max Steiner, who made the film score for the original King Kong, introduced a non-diegetic score that complimented and strengthened the narrative while also establishing the methods and fundamentals that have continually paved film scoring. Both films hold their own impacts and their own respects, however, both were introduced during two drastic times for sound films. Therefore, I will compare and contrast the two and see how both scores fit the films.

The 1933 original King Kong and the 2005 adaptation are staple films scores of their era. The original came out during the early Golden Age of films, when sound film was barely gaining any traction. Filmmakers around that time struggled with the fundamentals so many films would contain only one or two diegetic cues between the titles. Fast forward to 2005, and we enter the age of big budget, blockbuster films with astonishing cinematography, technology, and special effects that help captivate the audience. The 2005 adaptation came after other famous big budget, blockbuster films lead by Peter Jackson himself. Films such as his own epic Lord of the Rings trilogy.

The two scores from the two films started off with some controversy. For the 2005 remake, Howard Stone was initially hired to compose the score but was later replaced by James Newton Howard due to differing creative directions for the score. On the other hand, Steiner’s original film struggled with budget issues. The animation department ended up spending most of the film’s budget that it ultimately left no budget for the film’s score. Luckily, famous producer, Merian Cooper, would help fund the rest of the score and with his help, the results ended with great success while also creating a film with a non-diegetic film score.

Both composers are able to utilize their respective technologies to create such beautiful orchestras. Howards’s symphony orchestra contained bass, bassoon, celli, cello, flute, guitar, harp, horn, keyboard, oboe, percussion, trombone, trumpet, tuba, viola, violin, all while also containing over 100 other musicians.

As I stated before, both the original and the adaptation are staple film scores of their time. Both of the composers wrote beautiful, leitmotif-based film scores. The original utilized early methods of opera and theatre to create a whole new dimension other than visual, which was never done before. The adaptation followed the trend of big budget, epic blockbuster, films scores to help captivate audiences during their cinematic experiences. Steiner implemented the fear factor to his audiences despite the controversial animations, while Howard’s score included emotional depth and alterations to the convincing animation. Max Steiner would often describe his King Kong original as a picture made for music and it proclaimed the start of his fame. With over 70 years apart from both films, both composers were able to create a unique interpretation of the same story by utilizing the methods and fundamentals while supporting the requirements needed.