King Kong (1976 Film) - Plot

Plot

In the 1970s, Fred Wilson (Charles Grodin), an executive of the Petrox Oil Company, forms an expedition based on infrared imagery which reveals a previously undiscovered Indian Ocean island hidden by a permanent cloud bank. Wilson believes the island has a huge deposit of oil. Jack Prescott (Jeff Bridges), a primate paleontologist, sneaks onto the expedition's vessel and attempts to warn the team against traveling to the island, citing an ominous final message about "the roar of the greatest beast" from previous doomed explorers. Wilson orders Prescott locked up, claiming that he is really a spy from a rival corporation. The ship happens upon a life raft which carries the beautiful and unconscious Dwan (Jessica Lange). In the meantime, Wilson conducts a thorough background check on Prescott and realizes he is telling the truth about not being involved with another oil company. He appoints Prescott the expedition's "official photographer" and requests that he be present when Dwan revives. Upon waking, Dwan tells Prescott that she is an aspiring actress who was aboard a director's yacht which suddenly exploded. During the rest of the ship's voyage, Prescott and Dwan become attracted to each other.

Upon arriving at the island, the team discovers a primitive tribe of natives who live within the confines of a gigantic wall, built to protect them from a mysterious god known as Kong. The team finds that while there is a large deposit of oil, it is of such low quality that it is unusable. Later that night, the natives kidnap Dwan, drug her, and offer her as a sacrifice to Kong. A monumental ape grabs Dwan from the altar and departs back into the jungle.

Although an awesome and terrifying sight, the soft-hearted Kong quickly becomes tamed by Dwan, whose rambling monologue calms and fascinates the monstrous beast. Kong takes Dwan back to a waterfall. He washes her, and uses great gusts of his warm breath to dry her.

In the meantime, Prescott, and First Mate Carnahan (Ed Lauter) lead a rescue mission to save Dwan. The rescue party encounters Kong while crossing a log bridge, and Kong rolls the huge log, sending Carnahan and the rest of the sailors falling to their deaths. Prescott and Boan are the only ones to survive. Kong takes Dwan to his lair. A giant snake appears and attacks the pair, and while Kong dispatches the snake, Prescott escapes with Dwan. Kong chases the pair back to the native village, only to fall into a pit trap and be overcome with chloroform.

Without any of the promised new oil, Wilson decides to transport Kong to America as a promotional gimmick for his company. When they finally reach New York City, Kong is put on display in a beauty and the beast farce, bound in chains with a large crown on his head. When Kong sees a group of reporters pushing and shoving Dwan for interviews, the ape breaks free of his bonds. The giant roars at the crowd and everyone screams and begins running away in a panic. The little people can't escape fast enough as Kong starts walking through the crowd. With each step, his foot flattens several 'lucky contest winners'. Wilson gets knocked down by the crowd and finds himself laying at Kongs feet. Kong roars and raises his giant foot over the helpless little man and as Wilson screams, we see Kongs foot come down completely flat, crushing Wilson like a bug. The ape also destroys an elevated train in his search for Dwan. Prescott and Dwan flee across the Queensboro Bridge to Manhattan while Kong pursues them. They take refuge in an abandoned Manhattan bar. Prescott notices a similarity between the Manhattan skyline (notably the World Trade Center Twin Towers) and the mountainous terrain of Kong's island. He runs downstairs to call the military and tells them to let Kong climb to the top of the World Trade Center where he can be safely captured. Meanwhile, Kong discovers Dwan through the window of the bar and grabs her. He then begins to make his way to the World Trade Center, with Jack and the military in hot pursuit.

In the climax, Kong climbs the South Tower of the World Trade Center. After being attacked by men with flamethrowers while standing on the roof, Kong flees by leaping across to the North Tower. He rips pieces of equipment from the roof and throws them at the men. One of the objects, a tank filled with flammable material, explodes, killing the men. Later, Kong is shot repeatedly by military helicopters while Dwan pleads for them to stop. The fatally injured Kong falls from the roof to the World Trade Center plaza, where he dies from his injuries. An enormous crowd gathers around the ape while Dwan is bombarded by a sea of photographers. The crowd is so large that Dwan can't even get close to Jack. She stands still and is photographed relentlessly by reporters while Kong lies dead in a pool of blood and broken concrete.