Planet of the Apes

MOVIE REVIEW OF Planet of the Apes (1968) G

Cast
Director	franklin j. schaffner	Runtime: 1hrs 52min ( 112min)
george taylor	.....	charlton heston
cornelius	.....	roddy mcDowall
zira	.....	kim hunter
dr. zaius	.....	maurice evans
president of the assembly	.....	james whitmore
honorious	.....	james daly
nova	.....	linda harrison
landon	.....	robert gunner
lucius	.....	lou wagner
maximus	.....	woodrow parfrey
dodge	.....	jeff burton
julius	.....	buck kartalian
hunt leader	.....	norman burton
dr. galen	.....	wright king
minister	.....	paul lambert

PLOT SUMMARY

After 18 months in space, George Taylor crash lands his spacecraft on an unknown planet. According to theory, and confirmed by instruments, the outside world has aged nearly 2000 years. All signs indicate that they are now living in the year 3978. Unfortunately, the female crew member has died in her sleep chamber (which is important later in the movie). This leaves Taylor and his other two crew members to navigate this strange planet with only 3 days of rations left in their survival packs.

A short time into the movie, Taylor and his crewmen are attacked. This is when they realize that on this planet, apes are the dominant species, and humans are the inferior race. From there, the story becomes Taylor's attempts to survive capture and to escape the holds of the talking ape civilization. Fortunately, there are a few apes who actually care for all species.

For those who have not seen the movie, or heard its reputation, I will not offer spoilers. But wait it out until the end...the twist is eye-opening.

TECH INSPECTION

It's always hard not to compare one movie against another instead of on it's own merits and pitfalls. And I found it no different with Planet of the Apes. I was constantly telling myself how the 2001 remake is so inferior to the original. So to keep from harping on these differences, I have focused on one aspect which stuck out for no particular reason to me. Unlike many time-altering movies, the small details of this one are not overlooked. For instance, after several months in a sleep chamber, the male crew members have grown beards, and after a dip in a lake, their pants are really wet...and stay that way. Pretty good for a 1968 flick, wouldn't you say?

One other note: This movie has a rating of G. Of course, by 1968 standards, this was probably common. However, today I would guess the sticky academy would plop a rating of PG, or even PG-13 on it for the brief shots of Charlton Heston's naked rear end!

QUOTES
Finally, a short list of quotes I think are worth repeating. You may recognize some, but these are my own picks, not ones that are particularly famous:

• He's prepared to die. Ha! Chalk up another victory for the human spirit. ~ Taylor
• I can't help but thinking somewhere in the universe there has to be something better than man. Has to be. ~ Taylor
• Man has no understanding. He can be taught a few simple tricks. Nothing more. ~ Dr. Zaius
• Take your stinkin' paws off me you damn dirty ape! ~ Taylor
• Some apes, it seems, are more equal than others. ~ Taylor
• All men look alike to most apes. ~ Zira
• Somehow it makes you look less intelligent. ~ Cornelius

Here is my personal rating of this movie. This rating is out of ten meows.
⁸/₁₀

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