mighty joe young ( pg ) . ( walt disney pictures/rko/buena vista international ) director : ron underwood stars : bill paxton , charlize theron , rade serbedzija , peter firth , david paymer , regina king , naveen andrews , lawrence pressman , linda purl . the original mighty joe young , produced in 1949 , was politely regarded as something of a distant cousin to king kong . this entertaining and environmentally friendly $49 million disney remake softens the action to make the movie more palatable for family audiences , while retaining something of a deliberately old fashioned flavour . for those interested in useless trivia , the original mighty joe young is the only movie to have been directed by a legally blind person . director ernest b schoedsack lost his sight during w . w . ii , and could only see blurred movement . an assistant director told him what was happening on the set . taking advantage of more sophisticated technology , director ron underwood ( tremors , etc ) also improves upon the original , even though it ultimately ends up being something of a lukewarm cross between gorillas in the mist and king kong . oscar winning effects designer rick baker ( incidentally , the man inside the gorilla suit in john guillerman's 1976 remake of king kong ) has created a life-like and realistic gorilla who interacts beautifully with his human co-stars . joe , the 20 foot gorilla , is portrayed here as quite loveable , and ensures that audience sympathy is with him all the way . the climax , in which joe rescues a young boy trapped on a blazing ferris wheel , is awash in mawkish sentimentality , and threatens to unbalance the movie . jill young ( charlize theron , from the devil's advocate , etc ) has grown up as a wild child of the jungle . she and the gorilla joe share a life shaped by tragedy . twelve years earlier they both lost their mothers to the villainous poacher strasser ( rade serbedzija , from the saint , etc ) . ever since , jill has protected joe from the dangers represented by man , hiding him away from the rapidly encroaching modern world . one day he is discovered by gregg o'hara ( bill paxton , from titanic , etc ) , a scientist who traps animals for a nature conservatory in los angeles . o'hara eventually convinces jill that the safest place for joe is in the preserve , where he will be protected from poachers . joe initially reacts badly to being displaced from his jungle home , but soon settles down as jill watches over him . all goes well , and joe becomes the conservatory's biggest attraction . then strasser returns to resolve unfinished business . joe escapes strasser's clutches , and runs amok through the streets of la , climbing over familiar landmarks such as mann's chinese theatre and the hollywood sign . there is plenty of action as joe is pursued through the streets and sewers of la by helicopters . these sequences are more genuinely exciting that the recent godzilla , in which much of the action was murkily shot . the computer generated special effects are superb , although they do not detract from the more human elements of the story . younger audiences may find themselves a little bored with the developing romance between o'hara and jill , and the pace is a little slow until joe escapes into la . characterisation is pretty one dimensional , although the performances overcome many of the limitations of the formulaic and predictable script . an always likeable and solid actor , paxton brings plenty of charm and sincerity to his role here . special effects creator ray harryhausen , who designed the oscar winning stop motion effects for the original , and actress terry moore , who starred in the 1949 version , both contribute brief cameos here . this modern reworking of mighty joe young is quite an exciting and entertaining adventure , ideal family viewing for the holiday season . 
