Quartile rating: 6.5/10 · 1 rating
As a child living in Africa, Jill Young saw her mother killed while protecting wild gorillas from poachers led by Andrei Strasser. Now an adult, Jill cares for an orphaned gorilla named Joe -- who, due to a genetic anomaly, is 15 feet tall. When Gregg O'Hara arrives from California and sees the animal, he convinces Jill that Joe would be safest at his wildlife refuge. But Strasser follows them to the U.S., intent on capturing Joe for himself.
Mighty Joe Young is a competent but unremarkable family adventure remake. The plot is formulaic and predictable, hitting every expected beat from the villain's pursuit to the climactic rescue. Acting is serviceable but bland, with Charlize Theron and Bill Paxton delivering workmanlike performances without much depth. Cinematography is the film's relative strength, with some appealing location work in Africa and reasonably impressive practical and CGI effects for Joe himself that hold up decently. Novelty suffers given it's a remake of a 1949 film following in the shadow of King Kong and similar giant-creature narratives, offering little fresh perspective. The ending delivers the expected crowd-pleasing resolution with enough spectacle to satisfy family audiences without surprising anyone.