There are so many monsters in Kong: Skull Island! Director Jordan Vogt-Roberts (who I knew in my youth and who I interviewed for this very publication) has created a monster ecosystem for Skull Island that’s immersive, magical, and kind of silly. But it’s difficult to tell if Kong: Skull Island wants to be cool, campy, or horrifying—it succeeds at all those things, but never melds them together. Instead it sort of drags itself back and forth in a tone-shift tug-of-war. As predicted (by me), John C. Reilly steals every scene he’s in (because he fucking rules—he Dr. Steve Brules). And while the rest of Skull Island’s cast is also lovable, it’s one thing to accept a giant monkey with a baseball bat and another to believe Tom "Mr. Diction" Hiddleston would be useful in a jungle. Also see “Beauty and Terror: Director Jordan Vogt-Roberts on Monsters, Vietnam, and Kong: Skull Island,” Film, March 8. by Suzette Smith