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Wintry silver screen preview: King Kong and The New World

Whatever celebrations mark your winter vacation, the zombie-march to see the most expensive and hyped holiday blockbusters might be fairly ubiquitous. Peter Jackson's King Kong and Terrence Malick's The New World appear to be the most bloated—and intriguing—attractions. A run down:

If you cross-breed Jurassic Park, its delinquent sequel, The Lord of the Rings, and the classic film about an ornery gorilla, then you’ll have some idea of the absurdity of Jackson's King Kong remake, which runs over three hours and has cost Universal some $204 million. The film stars Naomi Watts as David Gest to King Kong's Liza Minelli, along with Adrian Brody in a continuum of his post-Pianist slide, and Jack Black as the crackpot filmmaker who leads his sorry band of actors onto a lost island that will be the perfect movie set, until ghoulish natives, dinosaurs, and a huge CGI monkey ruin things. This charade all eventually leads back to 1930s New York and to the antenna-less top of the Empire State Building. The trailer promises the King beating up a T-Rex. Happy Yule. Dec. 14.

Terrence Malick—known for slow, cerebral, mostly boring dramas like The Thin Red Line—will release The New World on Dec. 25. Ride out your eggnog or Manischewitz grogginess by watching cinema-ready noble savages fight Colin Farrell and Christian Bale. See a nubile Pocahontas ask Farrell’s John Smith character—in a scene from the The Notebook cutting-room floor—“What is beyond the world?” This is purely ahistorical Hollywood gold that will either lead you out of the theater in disgust and straight to Professor of History James Merrell, or simply away from everything you learned in his Colonial America class. Ho, ho, ho.

—Freddy Deknatel, Arts Editor

Friday, Dec. 9
New York City:
Jim Drain & Ara Paterson: Hypnogoogia The artists’ cumulative collaboration transforms the gallery into a visual and aural psychedelic landscape. Deitch Projects, 18 Wooster St., 12-6 p.m.

Vassar:
Vastards Concert A capella group sings old and new hits. Taylor 102,
8 p.m.
Jazz Ensemble Concert Under the direction of James Osborn. Skinner,
8 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 10
New York City:
The Dirty Projectors, Flying, and Good News Club Psych and avant-rock groups perform. Cake Shop, 152 Ludlow St., 9 p.m., $6

Vassar:
Vassar Devils Concert Final performance of the semester. Taylor 102, 8 p.m.

Sunday, Dec. 11
New York City:
Where Spring Comes Late (Kazoku) Yoji Yamada’s 1970 film documents the Japan World Exposition in Osaka and a poor family’s existence in postwar Japan. MoMa, 11 W. 53rd St., 2 p.m., $12