King Kong Escapes (1967) Differences

Today Lets look at the differences between the Japanese and American Cuts of Toho's second King Kong film.
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[@PaperFinz]

So This video was reuploaded for 2 reasons. 1, The Voice Over Audio was way to loud, and 2 There was an overlooked mistake towards the end of the video concerning the actress Linda Miller. Sorry about the trouble, I hope you enjoy the video! :)

[@Emmanuel-ms8pr]

It’s alright and also keep up the good work 👍👍👍👍

[@King2000.]

It's ok 👍

[@shiggydiggy8308]

Howabout the Dino Delaurentis Kong films. I might be remembering wrong, but I believe the 2nd one was a hit in Japan due to script changes and re editing

[@louisborselio8608]

Where's the part where Linda Miller's voice was over dubbed?

[@Trapper11]

Fun fact: met Linda Miller today, 10/15/23 and she is tremendous. Extremely friendly, and someone you should meet at a convention some day.

[@BubbaUltra]

I find it weird how this is called "King Kong's Counterattack" when this isn't a sequel to King Kong vs Godzilla, unless it's meant to be a prequel.

[@bhodili-3396]

I'm sure the Title sounded Cool in Japanese. That's probably why they went with it.

[@Joshtubeofficial]

I always think king kongs escape is a prequel to king kong vs Godzilla

[@1or2there]

So pre-countr atak then (bad joke) . . .

[@alifuller1658]

both are the same but king Kong fight a machine of himself 🦍👊

[@Ehrenzilla2024]

Maybe they originally planned to make a sequel to "Godzilla vs. The Sea Monsters" when it was going to be a Kong movie instead of a Godzilla movie.

[@halfdraco7765]

"Nelson has been cancelled" guys, what do we think he got cancelled for?

[@Phinal_Flash]

I'm surprised that Madame Piranha and Dr. Who's death scenes aren't censored. They're two of the most gruesome death scenes I've ever seen in a Toho film.

[@JohnPannozzi]

Weird fact, Mechani-Kong was called Mechani-Kong in the English-language version of the 1966 King Kong cartoon, but was named Robot Kong in its Japanese dub. Bizarrely, the reverse is true of King Kong Escapes.

[@goldman77700]

I love weird random trivia like this. Thank you.

[@grapeshot]

And I've said it once and I'll say it a million times again we don't get enough of Gorosaurus.

[@queenglamazona8789]

Loved Gorosaurus, Especially in Destroy All Monsters when he turned things around by knocking King Ghidorah off his feet with his Kangaroo Kick. He was the Real Hero of that Movie.

[@docsavage-8616]

The Gorosaurus Suit also appeared on the Japanese Series Go! Godman. It was the Enemy Monster of the Week who fights our Hero Godman-A very Ultraman-Like Character-Who can grow Kaiju Size. Sadly, The Suit was falling apart when this was shot, So Gorosaurus looks very Malnourished in this episode.

[@bhodili-3396]

Is there any connection to Gorosaurus and the T-Rex in the Last Dinosaur? They look so much alike.

[@docsavage-8616]

Toho did the Special Effects for that Movie. That's the only connection that I know of.

[@iancruz6617]

It's basically king Kong arch enemy in other media of king Kong. That entire scene in king Kong escape is a cheap recreation of 1933 a blind girl scared watch in horror Inna tree while king Kong fights a t Rex and does his jawbreaker attack then attacks fights a serpent because assume ppl think king Kong fights a serpent in the 1933 also does a whip kill on it like the 1933. Also the fact king Kong was supposed to show up in destroy all monster but licensed was about to expired so they only come close to having king Kong and his arch enemy in early posters for that film two I believe existed

[@collosusrex-2985]

King Kong Escapes was like a mixture of James Bond and a Toho Kaiju Epic. It was a lot of fun.

[@bhodili-3396]

Good Description. Doctor Huu would've made a Perfect Villain in a Bond film.

[@tigermask3831]

Definitely a film from the 60,s. You can tell right away just from watching it. It has a lot of Tropes from that Era.

[@christiandenault7606]

Also, in the scene where the dying native tells Nelson that Kong was kidnapped, the Japanese version is slightly longer with the native's actual dialogue being heard, whereas in the English dub, it was replaced by some voiceover guy mumbling random gibberish, lol. 😂

[@Inframan-6767]

One of my Favorite Movies. Loved Japanese King Kong.

[@bhodili-3396]

Me too. Kong survives and doesn't get Shot by World War One Era Airplanes, or gets killed by the Military. A Happy Ending for Once.

[@tigermask3831]

@@bhodili-3396 Monsterverse Kong survived as well.

[@andrewjefferson5097]

Dr. Hu made a comeback in the recent excellent comic Godzilla Rivals vs King Ghidorah

[@mikehunt4986]

7:20 I love that shot of a confused Mie Hama lol

[@docsavage-8616]

It was like she was waiting for the Director to Yell Cut !

[@tigermask3831]

Maybe Inoshiro Honda was distracted by Mie Hama's Beauty. Can't really blame him.

[@goldman77700]

@@tigermask3831 He wouldn't be first on Toho Godzilla film to be distracted by a female actress. Haha!

[@1or2there]

I feel the idea was posibly suggstng she was havng 2nd thots abt her positn . . .

[@ShinGoji1987Official]

Great work! I really didn't care much for this film when I first saw it as a teen but it really grew on me over the years. Akira's music is fantastic, the battles are fun and the human characters are charming especially the lovely Linda Miller, shame her voice was re-dubbed even in the English version though. I would definitely pick up a proper us Sub version release regardless of the slight differences

[@michaelbruns449]

Director Ishiro Honda and special effects Eiji Tsuburaya and music composer Akira Ifukube made many awesome classic films together and a little more or less like twenty of them.

[@Emmanuel-ms8pr]

I just definitely hope that the Japanese version of this film will be released

[@sevren4362]

Japan got an official 4K release of the original King Kong vs Godzilla so there’s always hope

[@King2000.]

It would be nice to see mechani kong be in another movie someday.

[@docsavage-8616]

He was almost in one of the films during the Heisei Era. Toho wanted to do a Remake of King Kong vs Godzilla, and when they couldn't get the Rights, They tried to make Godzilla vs Mecha-Kong instead. They even Wrote a Script for It, But It fell apart for some reason.

[@Deephouse_Gent66]

I was happy when I finally obtained a subtitled version for the sea serpent battle. I'd read about it in many kaiju magazines but had never seen it until I obtained the subtitled copy in the early 2000s. It adds absolutely nothing to the plot, but for hardcore kaiju fans, it's an enjoyable sequence to digest.

[@tigermask3831]

Didn't know there was a longer version of King Kong Escapes.

[@twmonty62]

FYI, having met Linda Miller at a comic con last year, she absolutely hates her English dubbed voiceover. But loved the Japanese version which used her screams.

[@DLRX]

I read that recently too, I would've preferred her real voice for the dub instead of the same lady who dubbed Mie Hama's Madame Piranha.

[@chadgorosaurus4898]

Damn no gorosaurus scenes were cut. That's how you know it's too perfect of a debut.

[@ronnieburton1312]

Dr. Who was dubbed by the very talented Paul Frees, who also worked on RODAN, GIGANTIS, THE FIRE MONSTER, and THE H-MAN. He also did the voice of Boris Badenov in the Bullwinkle cartoons. In the scene of the press conference at the UN building, the actual voices of Al Cramer and Andrew Hughes can be heard.

[@michaellehmbeck8671]

Thank you Paper Finz for fixing and reuploading.

[@docsavage-8616]

This was the Second Toho Kong Film(Right after King Kong vs Godzilla). Ebirah, Horror of the Deep was also Originally Conceived as another Sequel to Toho's Kong, But for some reason they didn't want to pay the Licensing Fees to retain the Rights, So they Substituted Godzilla as the Lead Monster instead.

[@tigermask3831]

There's a lot of weird stuff in that movie about Godzilla's Character that seems out of place. For one thing-They use Electricity to bring Godzilla(Which made Kong Stronger) back to life. And he seems to have an Infatuation with the film's Heroine(played by Kumi Mizuno) and even protects her a couple of times, Which seems Out of Character for him. If this really started out as a Kong Sequel, I can see how some of the Story Elements still carried over into the finished film.

[@teedup8995]

It would have been interesting to have both Mothra and Kong in the same movie. 🤔

[@Gappasaurus]

Left a comment on the previous version, but too sleepy to remember what it was, so will just say “Good Job” 🙂

[@PaperFinz]

Hi Gappasaurus! This was your comment from the older upload. "I’m consistently astounded by your comparison videos, Finz. No matter how much I love these movies, going over them with such a fine-tooth comb (and no doubt repeatedly ) would push my meager attention span waaaay past its limits 😅 So bravo once again! And i have to agree that the margin of superiority of one of these films over the other is minor in this case, but i am glad i was able to track down a subbed version regardless, if for no other reason than collection completeness 😎👍" Thank you for enjoying my work!

[@Gappasaurus]

@@PaperFinz Lol, yup that’s the one 😄 And you are quite welcome, thank _you_ for all the effort you put into your videos! 😁👍

[@Robert-d3j1b]

I have to say,I watched all the Japanese versions of these movies but the charm for me is watching the American versions,brings me back to lazy Saturdays of my childhood and watching with a sense of wonder

[@christianmanka3884]

I have such a soft spot for this movie. I really love it.

[@GojiGuru]

Never understood why everyone says this Kong suit is better than the one from KKvsG. IMO they’re both ugly, but the one in KKvsG is interesting. The one in KKE looks like a muppet. 🫣

[@IncredibleFulk1]

It doesn’t look like a muppet. It looks like Donkey Kong.

[@bhodili-3396]

I think they tried to make the Second Suit look a bit more like the King Kong from the 1930's, Especially the Face.

[@iancruz6617]

The colors looks more popping in the American version. While the Japanese version is usual gets the dull white vibe filter look

[@bigboi5545]

NGL this is one of the few Toho kaiju films where I prefer the American version. I think certain additions such as Susan's introduction scene and the faster pace genuinely improve the film, and the cartoony dubbing adds a lot to the campy nature of it. I think the Japanese version is a bit guilty of playing things too straight, if that makes any sense.

[@docsavage-8616]

The Japanese Version is definitely longer, not better.

[@bigboi5545]

@@docsavage-8616 precisely

[@iancruz6617]

Consider they made a cartoon episode longer version out of this

[@trevorstockwell8290]

I would like for them to bring mecha Kong in the legendary universe

[@OfficialRJCervantes]

This.

[@joeysullivanTM]

... no I'm sorry but no

[@legiontheatregroup]

I also would love to see Mechanikong return IF he looked close to this design. I seem to be in the minority but I was not a fan of what Legendary did to MechaGodzilla. To me their update looked more like a Transformers toy than an evolution of the TOHO character.

[@BRAINFOXINFINITE]

@@legiontheatregroup I liked the big claw hands and how he kinda looked like he was made out of cargo ships and trains, but the energy stuff and fast movement went way overboard for me. Would've been more fitting and cooler IMO if they left all the plasma punching out and made him more weighty.

[@bhodili-3396]

A Monsterverse Version of Mecha-Kong might be Interesting.

[@aaronstanley4641]

A little fun fact Kong was meant to be in Destroy All Monsters i don't know if he was going to fight Ghidorah but apparently he was going to be in the movie.🦍

[@Sargebri]

The version that was shown on the USA Network cuts out Who's death scene due to the fact that it was somewhat gory with blood flowing out of Who's mouth.

[@bhodili-3396]

Very Scary for a Kid's Movie.

[@JaxenRossisback]

@@bhodili-3396Damn the MPAA.

[@DanTheMan2150AD]

I always prefer watching films in the language they were made for originally. King Kong Escapes I saw subbed first and while I agree on certain aspects you highlighted about the US cut that greatly improve the picture, I don’t think the subs suffer from “dialogue problems” as we don’t have an official translation and are just going off of rough fan translations at the moment. Also for further fun on differences, the film was further cut down for the Toho Champion Festival which left its running time at just under 60 minutes!

[@chuckhush916]

I love this movie!

[@yajy4501]

I always thought most people liked to watch them in the original language. I’ve always preferred that because of how annoying the dubbed versions of children’s voices are and how much better the acting is.

[@Emmanuel-ms8pr]

Keep up the good work on your differences videos 👍👍👍👍

[@dorisbernstein4603]

there's no dialogue contradiction in the original Japanese. it's Madame Piranha's men who pick up the trio and bring them to Dr. Who. similarly, Piranha's "confused" look is their trying to figure out what to do next to ditch the incompetent Who

[@louisborselio8608]

Paul Frees voicing Dr Hu is the big advantage for the American version.

[@docsavage-8616]

Boris Badenov from Rocky & Bullwinkle.

[@louisborselio8608]

@@docsavage-8616 Burgermeister Meisterburger from Santa Claus is Comin;to Town. Second voice of K.A.R.R. from Knight Rider.

[@tigermask3831]

Also the voice of The Thing in Hanna Barbera's Fantastic Four. "Its Clobberin' Time !"

[@louisborselio8608]

@@tigermask3831 The man was a very busy voice artist.

[@Emmanuel-ms8pr]

On 9:25 this part when the tanks are set up it’s stockfootage from King Kong vs Godzilla 1962 including this part on 10:43 is also stockfootage from the same film( King Kong vs Godzilla 1962)

[@Sargebri]

I think they also use stock footage from War of the Gargantuas as well.

[@collosusrex-2985]

I think War of the Gargantuas was made after this.

[@tigermask3831]

@@collosusrex-2985 No, War of the Gargantuas was made a year before King Kong Escapes.

[@gamecube8885]

Look, I don't mean to be annoying, I say this out of love and curious. Please make a comparison video of the Japanese & American Version of Mothra 1961 ('62 in the US).

[@OfficialRJCervantes]

I second this.

[@JohnnyT002]

I remember when this movie was released in the Theaters.

[@Marx2234]

Hold up only new movie are in the movie theaters no old movies

[@KidAlmighty30]

excellent

[@capsizebrian]

Really appreciate how comprehensive this is. I have not seen this in years and everything looks so crisp in your examples. I will always remember the score from watching as a kid and also that cool hovercraft that I wish there was a model of. Subtitles bother me because they are often put over the film, even these extra wide Toho cut. I wish the subtitls were put on the black letterboxing bars rather then obscuring visual detail. What is the best current version of the film avail?

[@orinanime]

It took me a few minutes to notice... But is that David Wise's Donkey Kong Country music I hear in the background??! Awesome

[@nathanielschwartz425]

YAY!!!! I’m the 100th person to like the video!!!! 😊💯

[@bhodili-3396]

I'm sure the longer Version of King Kong Escapes will be of interest to Toho Completists. I'm perfectly fine with the American Dubbed Version of this Movie as it already exists. Wouldn't change a thing, really.

[@ITCamefromthePage]

I think the final battle gets a bit haphazard in the US cut as it just goes way to quickly, so I enjoy the extra elements to pad it out in the Japanese cut. Good video!

[@capsizebrian]

me too. Showing the detail they did on that full live action set and having the actors be put through their paces in their supposed peril.

[@meldreamsdocometrue]

Fun fact: Comcast now owns the rights of Universal, which now has the rights to King Kong's Counterattack

[@stevemckinnon698]

It's not mentioned in this video, but I'd swear that Madame Piranha is voiced by Linda Miller, who's also playing Susan. They sound so much alike to me.

[@queenglamazona8789]

Hard to believe Mie Hama's Character Madam X was Originally Called Madam Pirahna. 😄

[@collosusrex-2985]

They made it very vague as to which Country she was working for. My guess it was Communist China.

[@bhodili-3396]

They're both Silly Names.

[@tigermask3831]

They should have called her Mata Harri.

[@Soundofsilence-j4d]

I THOUGHT SAME KING KONG ESCAPSE AND WAR OF GARGANTUAS BOTH HAD BETTER TENSE EDITING THEN ORGINALS. GREAT REVIEW

[@KasumiKenshirou]

Mechanikong is literally just a shortened form of "mechanical Kong". How would that be confusing to American audiences of the time?

[@fembotheather3785]

I found a Japanese version on ebay and I'm okay with that. I also bought the official US version.

[@notmokiplamo]

Nelson has been cancelled.

[@daseal1479]

Could we get a Differences video on Varan sometime? I'm amazed there isn't one on KZbin already with how many Tokusatsu and Toho-centric content creators there are on the platform.

[@jamesonstalanthasyu]

I keep looking for a Tardis somewhere. Was it also removed from the US version? :)

[@bhodili-3396]

Can you imagine an actual Crossover between the Doctor and the Tohoverse? Maybe King Kong could fight the Lochness Monster which in Doctor Who was depicted as a Servant to a Race of Aliens called the Zygons.

[@tigermask3831]

@@bhodili-3396 If Godzilla ever visited Britain, maybe he could fight Gorgo?

[@iwasanangryyoungman]

Ha ha ha ha. Just because the bad guy's name is Doctor (Hu) Who, you just had to expect a TARDIS

[@eugenegodzilla946]

King Kong

[@deathsceane]

I think what really helped the dub was that it had some more experienced voice actors. Sure they had the streotypical asian accent on the Japansese characters, but I've honestly heard worse.

[@KasumiKenshirou]

I think the two male leads are voiced by their on screen actors. (At least Rhodes Reason is.)

[@docsavage-8616]

They actually got another guy for Akira Takarada. His English wasn't really that good.

[@Inframan-6767]

If you really want to hear what Akira Takarada sounded like, Check out the Movie Latitude Zero.

[@deathsceane]

@@docsavage-8616 @inframan6767 thank you for your recommendation, but I think you missed the point of me complimenting the dub. I'm sure Takarada was a fine actor just by looking at his body language, but my attention was on the quality of the dub voices.

[@kevinr.3542]

I feel like this video was special tailored specifically for me because just 2 days before its release I received in the mail from Amazon a used copy of both King Kong Escapes and King Kong Vs Godzilla. Neither were available for streaming so I tracked them down. And yes the DVDs are lackluster in the sense that they just have the English versions with no extras. But these movies are crazy. One thing I can't stand in the English version of King Kong vs Godzilla is the scenes with the islanders. The tribal "chanting" that is played on a loop in the background is so bad. It sounds like people trying to sound like they're speaking a tribal language. there's this one female voice that keeps doing this one awful vocalization that sounds so stupid I cringe every time. but that's why I watch these movies, they're bad and they're good. Great video by the way!

[@docsavage-8616]

What kills King Kong vs Godzilla for me in the American Version are those Boring Scenes with the Newscasters. They're So Exceedingly Dull.

[@kevinr.3542]

@@docsavage-8616 those scense do always suck. incredibly dull and pointless

[@collosusrex-2985]

I like the Paleontologist who is Interviewed in one Scene and then he picks up a Children's Book to Illustrate his talking points about Dinosaurs-Hilarious. The Newscaster Sequences actually work against the film because they're So Serious, While the rest of King Kong vs Godzilla has a lot of Lighthearted Moments.

[@queenglamazona8789]

@@collosusrex-2985 The Creature From the Black Lagoon Music is what ruins King Kong vs Godzilla for me. Wish They had kept the Original Japanese Score.

[@tigermask3831]

The Scenes with the Newscasters are there mainly for exposition. You're right they are dull, even though they have a little unintentional humor. Like when the Palientoligist is explaining that Godzilla has a Brain the Size of a Pea.

[@iancruz6617]

This movie confuses me it felt like a James bond and king Kong crossover then I look it up this was when the James bond hype happen and tried to put some James bond mixed to it.

[@goldman77700]

Remove Madame Piranha and still got that vibe. Nelson's actor looks like dead ringer for a young Sean Connery. I doubt that was a coincidence.

[@jackhamilton9604]

@@goldman77700 Nelson's actor was actually 4 months older than Connery

[@Embargoman]

As to say Universal need to get the rights for Godzilla as to add another Jurassic World Movie with Godzilla on it.

[@tigermask3831]

Godzilla vs Jurassic World? I'd watch that. Also It's interesting that Toho came up with the idea of Scientists being Stationed on an Island that was populated with Prehistoric Creatures in Destroy All Monsters, Many Decades before Jurassic Park was ever made.

[@blackRXrider]

But what happened to Dr Who's TARDIS?

[@KasumiKenshirou]

Based on what I've read, the BBC Dr. Who wouldn't be known in America until the late 1970s. From what I've heard from fans of the show, they'd rather have this guy made canon rather than the last few seasons of the show.

[@Inframan-6767]

Actually Peter Cushing appeared in Two Movies in the 60's-Doctor Who & The Daleks, and Daleks Invasion Earth-2150 A.D.. So The Doctor already had a Foothold on the American Market at this Time.

[@docsavage-8616]

Dell Comics did an Adaptation of Doctor Who & the Daleks at the Time.This was The Doctor's Debut in that Medium.

[@stantheman4443]

Internet Archive

[@mohdimansaifullizan6193]

Godzilla Japanese to American King Kong American to Japanese Choose a side Gojira or Kong

[@P_99TheCool]

King Kong's Countrerattack color by EASTMANCOLOR King Kong Escapes color by TECHNICOLOR

[@jcampos002]

9:00 So cancel culture has struck again, eh?

[@rgarza2429]

Sub > Dub imo

[@ajclements4627]

I honestly would rather watch subbed content, the English voice actors in these older films are quite annoying in my opinion.

[@joeysullivanTM]

Or just don't make sense at all

[@mikehunt4986]

I am the complete opposite. When it comes to the Showa films give me dubbed over subbed any day. I grew up with these movies when they used to air on TV in the early 80s and I love these voice actors.

[@KasumiKenshirou]

Rhodes Reason did his own voice in the English dub, so the dub for this one isn't so bad. Edit: Actually, I do remember the woman's voice being quite annoying in the English dub. Apparently the on screen actress doesn't voice her character in either the Japanese or American versions.

[@mikehunt4986]

@@KasumiKenshirou You are correct. Linda Miller's actual voice was not used in either. I don't even think she knows why!

[@queenglamazona8789]

Too Bad for Linda Miller. The Voice Actress in this Movie makes her sound like a Little Girl( It's Pretty Hilarious). At times She sounds like Shirley Temple.

[@marklogan3813]

It's TOHO THOUGH

[@randombelugaman]

YO

[@grapeshot]

Yeah this is the very cross-eyed King Kong. Also that plot of the Japanese female spy who can't decide whether she's on the good side or the bad side and of course she must fall in love with the first white guy she sees. That's mandatory🤦🏿‍♂️

[@mikehunt4986]

Well she couldn't fall in love with the Japanese guy because he was too busy with the white girl. Not everything is racial smfh

[@queenglamazona8789]

Fun Fact-Mei Hama was also in the James Bond Movie-You Only Live Twice.

[@Inframan-6767]

Mie Hama was also in King Kong vs Godzilla, and so was Akiko Wakayabashi, Both Actresses were in You Only Live Twice. Perhaps they had the Same Agent?

[@docsavage-8616]

And Hideyo Amamoto played the Villainous Doctor Hoo. He'd previously appeared in several Toho Films, and he also had Roles in Ghidrah-The Three Headed Monster and Godzilla vs the Sea Monster. But most of you might remember him Best as the Kindly Toymaker in Godzilla's Revenge.

[@mikehunt4986]

@@queenglamazona8789 Another fun fact: Akiko Wakabayashi from Ghidrah the Three-Headed Monster was also in You Only Live Twice!

[@alifuller1658]

the Japanese version of king Kong one is real ugly like got damn 🤣😝

[@MintTea2005]

YEAH BABY WE’RE BACK

[@iwasanangryyoungman]

Dr Who? Good thing the BBC's solicitors didn't slap Toho with a copyright infringement case