Lord of the Gorilla

The 1933 movie King Kong is coming back to life thanks to the Oscar-winning director of Lord of the Rings Peter Jackson, who has emotional ties to the film.

"It's great to be able to get the film made," Jackson said to reporters from his New Zealand studio. "It's a film, which I've loved ever since I was a child. It really inspired me to want to become a film-maker."

While this film does not have any hobbits or elves in it, there will be one familiar voice. Andy Serkis, who was the model and voice of the computer-generated "Gollum," will return to voice the gorilla. Count on many special effects in this film. After all, it is Jackson and his team who created the world for Frodo and won Oscars for their work.

Filming will start next week in Jackson's hometown of Wellington, New Zealand and has an all-star cast including Naomi Watts, Jack Black and Adrien Brody. The time period will remain the same as will the characters, but they will have to be updated to fit audiences of today.

But don't expect to see any filming done in New York City, where the movie takes place. It will all be done on a back lot in Wellington, and the gorilla, the star of the movie, will be completely computerized.

The original cost $672,000, whereas this remake will be made for $110 million. Everything about this modernization will be bigger, better and in color. Filming starts this week and is set to be released in 2005.