Almost 30 years after the sequel “Battle of the Planet of the Apes” concluded the original "Apes" franchise in 1973, there was a remake of “Planet of the Apes” in 2001, which brought the series back to the theater. Around the mid 90’s, Hollywood had tried to remake just about any classic that would probably make them a lot of money, and even though remakes have been around for ages, it’s the current generation that’s really trying to exploit any classic they can.
This remake in particular is often regarded as one of the lesser remakes to come out in recent years. Personally, I have a soft spot for this film, as it was the movie that introduced me to the franchise at a young age. I was a young third grade student at the time of this film’s release, I had no idea it was a remake of any sort, and all I could pay attention to was how awesome the advertising looked. Looking back as an adult, the faults of the film are evident, and it’s not on par with its successors, but still, let's look back at what can be counted as the first modern “Planet of the Apes” movie.
We begin with an awesome opening credit sequence, with a foreboding overtone, Danny Elfmans music is suitably eerie, and the imagery on display is awesome. Honestly, for all the films faults, this title sequence gets me excited for the experience to come. The story begins on a deep-space science station, where astronauts are training apes to fly shuttle pods. I have to say, I’m both impressed and underwhelmed at how simple the layout and design of this station is. I appreciate that it isn’t too over the top with the production, but it’s also a boring layout to look at.
Back to the plot, there’s an astronaut named Leo who’s tired of sending chimps out to study space anomalies, and after one chimp disappears in an electromagnetic storm, he takes it upon himself to retrieve his ape and study this mysteries phenomenon. The storm then triggers a wormhole that sends him thousands of years into the future, where the planet is overrun by apes, and the humans are being trampled underfoot. There's a subtle visual metaphor with the crashed ship resembling an egg, as if to say our hero is being re-born in a new world. Just like in the original, our stranded astronaut makes friends with two apes, escapes the ape city with a small group of humans, and ventures across the planet into a forbidden area, where they learn how all of this came to be. Meanwhile, an evil ape named Thade is determined to hunt him down and kill him to ensure that no other ape learns the true origins of the planet.
While the plot has similarities to the original, the details are all different. This time, the native humans talk and aren’t the same mute creatures as the original.
The apes on the other hand are still intelligent and can talk, but they also behave like animals. They leap around, crawl all over things, make strange monkey sounds, and always explode in crazy, animalistic states of rage. It doesn’t make any logical sense when the apes argue that they’re superior to humans, because the humans are just as smart, if not smarter than them, just not as strong. I'm partial to the original apes that stood upright and didn't make any noises, but I suppose this gives the remake an identity all its own. Anyone wanting smart, logical, thought-provoking Sci-Fi can watch the original, and anyone wanting a goofy, but kind of fun, action packed, B-list Sci-Fi can watch this instead ... so they almost balance out, and I do like that this reimagining has a personality and tone different from the original.
That being said, this movie has its faults that hold it back … the most obvious is the lead character Leo. Mark Wahlberg can be a decent actor, but he doesn’t bring anything special to this role, and the character is rather flat. The remaining characters are either okay or just forgettable.
Helena Bonham Carter is passable in the role of the female lead chimpanzee, but her character is only lead by the nose and only occasionally offers something significant to the film. The late Michael Clarke Duncan is perfectly cast as a tough Gorilla war general, but once again, I wish they did more with his character. Speaking of late greats ... Charlton Heston has a cameo as an elder ape, which could have been cool, but it's ruined when he mimics his famous line that closed out the original movie. The most memorable character by far is the villain, a Chimpanzee commander called Thade, played by Tim Roth. On the one hand, he isn’t nearly as sophisticated as the antagonist from the original classic and is far wilder, like a savage monster. However, his design is great, and Tim Roth is fun to watch as he hams it up … although, he does go little too over the top for the films own good.
I suppose I should mention that this film was directed by Tim Burton of all people, who usually has a distinct style and presentation … but it’s just not felt here. In general, I love Tim Burton's movies, but this just feels like anyone’s big budget Sci-Fi blockbuster, without a distinct personality behind the presentation, which Buton usually excels at. I will say that I love the commitment to practical effects and action on display. Without question, the best thing this movie has is Rick Baker’s stellar ape makeup. The original movie featured groundbreaking makeup for its time, but in this film, the detail and aesthetics are so precise and cool that I find them superior, and in many respects … I think these are the best-looking apes of any film in the series.
The battles featured in the film are okay in
the moment, but they aren’t as exciting as the marketing suggested. No joke,
the trailers had me fooled into thinking this remake was going to be an epic war movie
between apes and men, but the spectacle is mostly subpar, albeit enjoyable.
Again, I appreciated that we build up to a final battle with practical effects
and armies of real extras, as opposed to excessive CGI, and it’s at least
superior to what the original 1973 movie "Battle for the Planet of the
Apes" delivered.
In a twist, he finds himself stranded in an alternate reality Earth, where apes live in Washington and at the Lincoln memorial, the statue of Abraham Lincoln is now General Thade, or Ape-raham Lincoln as many like to call it. This ending is admittedly closer to the original novel, but it’s not on par with the frightening image of a sacred landmark like the Statue of Liberty in ruins. It’s honestly silly and laughable in execution, as opposed to grim and ominous, and closes the movie on a down note.
Overall, while I don’t hate this movie, and still have a soft spot for some of the B-Movie hallmarks on display … this is still one of the weaker, and disposable entries in the series. While I admire director Tim Burton trying to do something different with this film, and stepping out of his familiar elements, the experience only offers surface level enjoyment, versus other ape movies both past and current, which deliver so much more in both substance and excitement. The ape-makeup and overall look of the 2001 film is fantastic, but in comparison to the more recent ape movies that began in 2011 with “Rise of the Planet of the Apes”, this first attempt at reimagining the franchise didn’t deliver or archive anything too special and can largely be skipped over … unless you’re someone who enjoys B-movies, you might find some passable enjoyment from this.
Thanks for
reading my review of the 2001 remake of “Planet of the Apes” ... and
continue to enjoy the movies you Love.
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