Planet of the Apes (1968) (Movie Review)

  When it comes to long running Sci-Fi franchises, one of the earliest to set the standard was "Planet of the Apes". While I've never called myself a die-hard fan of this series, I've always respected it's status in the Sci-Fi hall of fame, and will occasionally enjoy watching select films from the series. Before "Star Wars" or "Alien", this was 20th Century Foxes big Sci-Fi Blockbuster franchise, and is still going strong several decades later. "The Planet of the Apes” series began in 1968, and remains a unique franchise, with some really good films ... and by extent some really bad ones too. With all the different spinoffs and reboots, it’s hard to avoid giving this series a look. I’m not going to review the two short-lived television series, “Planet of the Apes” in 1974, or the animated series that followed in 1975 titled “Return to the Planet of the Apes”. I’m just looking at the theatrical movies, and giving my personal thoughts on them. Now, in order to talk about the sequels, I’ll have to talk about the endings, so spoiler alerts ahead. As usual, we’ll start at the beginning with the original 1968 classic “Planet of the Apes”. 

 

 Based on the 1963 French novel “La Planete des singes” by Pierre Boulle, “Planet of the Apes” remains one of the most popular and beloved Sci-Fi’s of all time. Empire Magazine even placed it among the 500 best movies ever made. However, anyone expecting a big, action packed, Sci-Fi adventure, with humans battling apes might be disappointed with this film. Personally, I do find this a very exciting movie, but for different reasons other then simple popcorn entertainment. This is a smart movie that asks interesting, even thought provoking questions about our society, and delivers an imaginative, yet honest warning story about a possible world gone upside down. Best of all, this film never lets it’s social commentary get in the way of the main characters, or the story at hand. There's also just enough action, as well as mystery, and atmosphere to keep things engaging.

 

    

  As our venture begins, a small team of astronauts are testing light speed, in the span of seven hundred years, they’ll have traveled across the galaxy in six months. However, they stay in hyperspace for too long, up to the point where Earth time has passed for 2000 years. More problems ensue as their space ship crash-lands on what appears to be a disserted planet. 

It’s not long before the team stumbles upon a society in which apes have evolved into creatures with human-like intelligence, speech and have become the dominate spices of the planet. The human occupants are now mute creatures wearing animal skins, and are basically being trampled underfoot. The crew gets killed off, all except for one named Taylor, who is captured by the apes. He befriends two chimpanzees named Zira and Cornelius, who try to learn all about him. Unfortunately, a ruthless law keeping orangutan named Dr. Zaius already knows that he’s an early stage of intelligent man that once dominated apes, and refuses to let history repeat itself. Using a false religion, he tries to convince the other apes that he’s an unholy apparition that must be executed. Later, the two chimpanzees free Taylor, and set off across the planet to find answers of his being here, which leads to the terrifying realization that this planet is indeed Earth, thousands of years in the future, and through some mysterious reason, mankind doomed itself, which lead to all of this.

  The screen play was partially written by Rod Serling, shortly after the cancelation of his famous TV series "The Twilight Zone". In many respects, this movie could have easily passed as an episode of the show. In fact the twist ending was mainly inspired by the episode titled "I Shot an Arrow Into the Air", which likewise revolved around astronaut's who thought they were on another planet, but were in fact on Earth the whole time. Taylors monologue in the opening of the film, in which he laments the failed growth of human kind, was also written by Serling, and could have easily been one of his opening narrations for a "Twilight Zone". Just like the themes in his episodes, this movie holds a mirror up to human kind, and showcases the ape world as a slightly exaggerated reflection of our own society. Apes are even color coordinated, and strict to their own classes, with the orange suited Orangutans being the intellectual lawmakers, the purple suited Gorillas being the military strong arms, and the green suited Chimpanzees as the ordinary citizens. The ape makeup on display was also quite impressive for the time, and won the Academy Award for Best Achievement in Make-Up. The film also had an Oscar nomination for Best Costume Design.

  Charlton Heston, famous for his leading roles in “The Ten Commandments” and "Ben-Hur", now plays astronaut Taylor, a man fed-up with the miss-deeds of human kind, and hopes to find something better. Needless to say, he’s great in the role. Something about his mannerism feels genuine, and even though he can be a bit of a hot head, he still holds your attention. I especially love his voice ... no one else can say the line “Take your filthy hands off of me, you Damn dirty ape” with as much class as him. 

I’m not going to lie, most of this movie is spent with Taylor being held prisoner by the apes, going on trial, and getting tested on by the ape doctors, and it’s not until the third act of the film that he and the chimps go on their little journey. This can make the film come off as boring to regular viewers, but if you pay attention to the characters, and the subjects established in the film, then it can be quiet engaging. The two chips, Zira and Cornelius are also really good characters, and become the most frequent, reoccurring players in the series. The antagonist, Dr. Zaius, is someone that you really grow to hate, every time he does something against Taylor, you just want to punch him. Yet, you don't get the impression that he's evil, in fact, he's actually quiet layered, and an example of what happens when desperation forces you to do unforgivable things. Then there’s this one human girl named Nova, who doesn’t say anything throughout the entire film, and doesn’t directly contribute anything to the plot, but she provides the necessary companionship, and levity for Taylor during his struggles. 

  One element that personally holds my attention is the films unique atmosphere and tone. Right from the opening, it creates a genuinely eerie feel, and the music composed by the late great Jerry Goldsmith has something of an avant-garde quality, using odd percussion instruments. His score for "Planet of the Apes" was also nominated at the Oscars for Best Original Music. I love how the planet is initially presented as a very mysterious one, with odd lightning storms that only form in one section of the planet, yet there’s no rain. 

There's odd lunar activity, and yet there’s no moon, rows of scarecrows that divide one half of the planet, even areas that the apes are forbidden to cross into. I always loved this one exchange, in which Taylor claims they have supplies to last for a couple days, to which a fellow astronauts asks "How long do you think a day is on this planet?" Little details like that really make this film come to life. A lot of the sets and locations alone can create this really alienating mood, as most of the buildings seem to be made of rock, and twist at weird angles. The cinematography in this film is spectacular. I really like the scale that they give to the landscape, and this was before wide screen became so popular. Scenes from the opening of the film were shot around Lake Powell, while other scenes were filmed on beeches between Malibu and Oxnard in California. Lastly, I admire that there's no clear answer to what accrued all those years ago, leading to apes becoming the dominate spices of the planet.

  Of cores, the ending is one of the most famous in film history, as Taylor and his mute girl friend Nova, go off on their own, and discover the remains of the Statue of Liberty. It’s such a popular image, and left quiet an in-packed. Now days, disaster movies in the vein of “The Day after Tomorrow” and “Clover field” put all their marketing into the destruction of the Statue of Liberty, or other national land marks, but back then, it was so sudden and frightening to see such a sacred landmark in ruins. It's also thematically chilling, as an image that once imbodied peace and perseverance was now representing man kinds down-fall and ignorance. On its own, "Planet of the Apes", still holds up over the years. The questions it raises about our culture can still get people thinking, and it’s warning of humanity dooming itself is still quiet effective. Audiences that love classic, old, Sci-Fi’s should definitely give it a watch. I still think it’s good, maybe not one of my absolute favorite movies, but still one of the greats of Sci-Fi cinema. I’d encourage anyone to check it out for themselves, as long as you go in with the right mind set. 

Thanks for reading my review of the 1968 Sci-Fi classic "Planet of the Apes" ... and continue to enjoy the movies you love!