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Gorilla's King

Name: Gorilla's King
Director: René Cardona Jr.
Released: 1977
Duration: 102 min

Representation Score

0.9/10

Minimal

1977

Director

René Cardona Jr.

Runtime

102 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

Gorilla's King is a conventional adventure film that leans heavily on mid-century genre clichés. The story prioritizes a traditional straight-centered family structure and reinforces established social hierarchies rather than challenging them. The film's perspective is rooted in a colonialist worldview, framing indigenous groups as obstacles to be overcome. This reinforces a binary between 'civilized' Western society and 'savage' wilderness. Ultimately, the film serves as a standard exploitation-era adventure, offering little in the way of diverse representation or social commentary.

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Category Breakdown

Does Gorilla's King have LGBTQ+ representation?

Minimal

The film follows a strictly straight-centered trajectory. The plot centers on the protagonist finding a mate in a white female character, reinforcing conventional romantic structures.

How does Gorilla's King portray gender?

Limited

Gender roles align with traditional adventure genre clichés. The female lead is framed primarily as a romantic interest and a maternal figure within the family unit.

How racially and ethnically diverse is Gorilla's King?

Limited

The narrative utilizes common jungle adventure clichés. While featuring indigenous characters, they function as obstacles rather than central agents, centering Western civilization as the ultimate social destination.

How does Gorilla's King represent religion and culture?

Limited

The story reinforces colonial-era hierarchies by depicting indigenous populations as savage. It prioritizes traditionalist values and the preservation of the nuclear family over cultural critique.

Does Gorilla's King include disability representation?

Minimal

There is no mention of characters possessing visible or invisible disabilities within the narrative.

Present on Screen

Features a diverse cast of characters including indigenous people and a native boy.

Limited or Absent

Avoids using indigenous populations as mere narrative obstacles or 'savage' clichés.
Could provide more ability to act to non-Western characters rather than centering Eurocentric social structures.
Could explore more complex gender roles beyond the romantic interest and maternal figure archetypes.

Official Synopsis

An African safari is attacked by savage natives and the sole survivor is an infant who is adopted and raised by gorillas. As he is growing up, his only human friend is a native boy he happens to meet in a chance encounter. He grows to be a young adult, discovers white civilization, and meets a beautiful white girl who becomes his mate. They have a son who becomes the second jungle boy in the movie, and the three of them prevail through perilous adventures.

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