Independent Films, Film Profiles

The Son of Kong

Son of Kong is a 1933 adventure movie and a sequel to the successful film King Kong.The story picks up about a month after the dramatic finale of the previous film and follows the further adventures of filmmaker Carl Denham (again played by Robert Armstrong), now implicated in numerous lawsuits following the destruction wrought by Kong. Denham leaves New York with the captain of the "Venture", Captain Englehorn, who is certain it is just a matter of time before he is similarly served. Their efforts to make money shipping cargo around the Orient are less than successful. In the Dutch port of Dakang, they run into Nils Helstrom, the former Norwegian skipper who sold Denham the map to Skull Island, who tells them there is a treasure on the island. Blinded by their financial situation, they believe him and agree to return. In fact, he is lying so they will take him to another jurisdiction, as he has just caused a man's death. Shortly after they put out to sea, a beautiful stowaway girl named Hilda (Helen Mack) is found on board. She had been part of a traveling show run by her recently deceased father, Helstrom's victim. They arrive at Skull Island where they meet, befriend, and are ultimately saved by Kong's easygoing albino son Kiko (a name used in production but never spoken in the film; he is referred to only as "Little Kong" and, by Denham, "Baby"). The son of Kong is portrayed as considerably smaller than his famous father, but is still twice the size of a man. Despite the fact that Helstrom made his story up on the spot out of desperation, a treasure is found. Eventually, Kiko dies saving Carl Denham, as does every other creature on Skull Island, when an earthquake strikes the island and it sinks into the ocean.