Revealing mistake: In the last third of the film just after the announcement that Kong is coming, a native jumps out of his hut, loses his balance and falls by a chicken coop. His wig comes off and gets caught on the fence.
Revealing mistake: When the sea creature appears and the raft overturns, the people falling are very obvious stiff dummies. One even falls downwards and its two feet stick up from the water.
Continuity mistake: During King Kong's rampage on the island, he fights some of the natives on a scaffold platform. He picks up one of them and puts him in his mouth. In the wide shot, the native's feet are on the left side of Kong's mouth and his head is on the right. The close-up shows that his head is on the left while his feet are on the right. (01:22:00)
Continuity mistake: When Denham shows a second map to the captain, one can see it has a big map on the center part. In the close-up, it swaps to being a small drawing on a side.
Continuity mistake: In New York, Kong fetches a woman in her sleep. In the close-ups she's wearing white pyjamas, but the mannequin she's replaced for when she falls has short hair and dark clothes.
Continuity mistake: When Kong lifts Ann from the bed she is wearing a short dress. In the close-up the dress goes way down to her ankles.
Trivia: For a single frame, one can see the structure that holds the Kong puppet. The first time it's still visible in modern copies at time code 00:52:36 (after the people run away on a log used as a bridge). The second one was digitally removed years ago, and it takes place when Kong exits the cave right after Ann faints. (00:52:36 - 01:05:30)
Continuity mistake: Kong keeps changing styles throughout the movie at least 4 times: In the close-ups of its head it either has a round face with dirty teeth, fangs and small nostrils or white teeth with no fangs; as opposed to the full body models where it swaps between a cone-head forehead with small nostrils, and a rounder one with larger nostrils, both models with pearly white teeth.
Continuity mistake: The right cuff of Kong's shackles disappears from his wrist when he destroys the train, only to reappear later on.
Continuity mistake: The planes that attack Kong have two parallel wings, the lower wing being shorter. In the close-up of the planes next to Kong both wings are the same size.
Continuity mistake: Kong shakes the sailors off the log and a man falls down. A shot later he's back on the log. (00:53:12)
Continuity mistake: During the fight between Kong and the dinosaur, the shape of the tree Ann is on differs between shots.
Continuity mistake: After Kong escapes from the theater, a car crashes against a wall with no glass on the windshield. In the next shot, broken glass appears.
Revealing mistake: At the Empire State, the woman is an obvious square-shaped footage of film pasted on top of the footage of Kong. After the plane attacks Kong and his right arm goes limb it goes behind the pasted footage.
Continuity mistake: This happens in King Kong's death scene. After he puts down Ann for the last time, he is shot and his right arm goes limp. In the close-up, he's suddenly using that limp arm to hold on to a spire.
Answer: It's never shown or explained, and the film uses a broad "suspension of disbelief" premise. The audience just accepts the characters were able to somehow transport a huge ape to New York City.
raywest ★