Planet of the Apes [Archive]

Solomon

11-28-2008, 04:20 PM

Obviously it is a classic . . . I am just not sure what that means. Is it more of a classic in the sense of Beyond the Valley of the Dolls or closer to Casablanca?

Bonus question: Who owned the action figures in the 70's?

Motorhed

11-28-2008, 04:28 PM

I'd have to rank it very high in the scifi genre but I don't know that I could rank it up there with movies like Casablanca. I am a huge fan of scifi of the time period when POTA was made and the entire POTA series though.

wstsidela

11-28-2008, 04:29 PM

Damn dirty apes!!!!

DiazDude

11-28-2008, 04:32 PM

A classic in the league of Cassablanca but in the Sci Fi genre.

scottlr

11-28-2008, 04:43 PM

A classic in the league of Cassablanca but in the Sci Fi genre.

Yes, I agree. I never had action figures. I was chasin tail and playing in rock bands in the 70s "D

pcutt

11-28-2008, 04:52 PM

Motorhed

11-28-2008, 05:32 PM

The original POTA is a classic, while the sequels only serve to reduce its stature. I've always maintained that if the sequels would have never been made, POTA would be widely acknowledged as the classic that it is.

While I do agree that it should have been left alone with one movie, I can't help but enjoy the sequals too. I think they did some really interesting things with them, particularly after the 2nd one which just seemed like a way to get Heston out of the series. But even though I like the sequals, even I must admit that it would have been a much better idea to leave it as one movie.

rob2001

11-28-2008, 05:37 PM

I like most of the original movies. Some are better than others. The first is a classic in my book. Heston is right there with Shatner as far as over the top actors. (love em both) Love the sets too. It would be too cool to be able to go back and just hang out on some of those sets.

devnulljp

11-28-2008, 05:50 PM

EataPeach

11-28-2008, 05:50 PM

Bonus question: Who owned the action figures in the 70's?

I had them all!!!
I loved that movie then and think its totally cool now.

Suproman77

11-28-2008, 05:55 PM

It's a sci-fi classic in every sense of the word. It's also a sentimental classic to me in the sense that it's the closest thing there ever was to Twilight Zone movie with Rod Serling's direct involvement.

TonyVt

11-28-2008, 05:59 PM

The original Planet of the Apes is one of my favorite all time movies. It's a true classic.

coldinWI

11-28-2008, 06:01 PM

You spoke to a human?:D

rob2001

11-28-2008, 06:22 PM

Somthing I always wondered about the timeline on the movies. How did some humans end up not being able to speak and some went underground to worship the bomb with super smart brains?

rob2001

11-28-2008, 06:24 PM

TonyVt

11-28-2008, 07:18 PM

Does anyone remember the Planet of the Apes TV series?

daddyo

11-28-2008, 09:19 PM

Maybe some of the younger guys may not get it, but when I first saw the film at the drive-in when it first came out, the threat of nuclear war was real and on everybody's minds. Vietnam was full on and everybody knew it was a proxy war between the superpowers. The movie started out as a sci-fi but hit you over the head like a sledgehammer at the last scene when you realized it was an anti-war movie. That ending has to be one of the top 10 best movie endings of all time and a definate #1 in the sci-fi genre.

Brian D

11-28-2008, 10:52 PM

Bonus question: Who owned the action figures in the 70's?http://www.megomuseum.com/pota/index.html

One of my fondest Christmas memories from childhood was getting the Treehouse playset and four action figures (Astronaut, Soldier Ape, Dr. Zaius, and Cornelius). See the links on the left side of the page above for further details.

Check out the "gallery map" link on that page as well. I bet a few of you had some of the superhero action figures, the Star Trek figures, or some of the others.

Diablo

11-28-2008, 11:29 PM

I had the Planet of the Apes lunchbox. It even had the thermos with them on it. It was so cool! I saw the original movie at the drive in when I was very young kid. I remember thinking that it was the coolest movie ever. Had to get Mom and Dad to take us to each movie when it came out. I think that I had some action figures also. I still love POA when it comes on.

Solomon

11-28-2008, 11:53 PM

Planet of the Apes and Evil Kneviel merchandise . . . how awesome were the 70's?

I know I am not the only one who had the windup Evil Kneviel toy.

58gasman

11-29-2008, 12:08 AM

One of the best Sci-Fi movies of all time. One of the best movies of the 60's.

I thought Charlton Heston's monologue at the beginning of the film was one of Heston's better ( and thankfully, more subtle) acting perfomances.

I saw the movie again about a year ago and thought that the original holds up remarkably well.

TwoTubMan

11-29-2008, 12:09 AM

What always bothered me is that Taylor never once looked up, saw the moon, and figured out where he was.

:confused:

John Hurtt

11-29-2008, 12:31 AM

Not a fan here, I like the remake better. The original is held in fairly high regard in the Sci-Fi community, though.

fretless

11-29-2008, 12:35 AM

I've always love that movie. As a kid me and my friends were obsessed with everything, and anything associated with it. I remember the days leading up to the TV series. Man, that's all we talked about for weeks. I had to petition to get an extention on bedtime just to see it (a year earlier I got an extension for The 6 million dollar man - another fave). I remember we were all a bit let down with the show, however. It sure didn't spoil our enthusiasm though!

Glad somebody brought up the treehouse playset! I got that for Christmas one year. I was the envy of the neighborhood. I had every one of the figures. And yes, we all had the Evil Kenieval stuff. I remember putting General Urko on Evil's motorcylce and winding that bad boy up and letting it fly! Man, it was great being a kid in the 70's!!!

gag halfrunt

11-29-2008, 01:15 AM

I always thought it was a combo of dark-hearted white paranoia/projection and thinly disguised racism myself. Charlton Heston didn't help dispel that impression any either.
Either way, it's neither classic cinema not classic sci-fi in my book.
Wow, you've got to be kidding.

Racist? Charleton Heston? The one who marched with MLK on Washington? The one who picketed segregated theaters showing his movies?

I guess some people see racism anywhere they look.
http://z.about.com/d/afroamhistory/1/0/0/1/photos_heston_poitier_belafonte.gif

TBoneDeluxe

11-29-2008, 02:34 AM

Wow, you've got to be kidding.

Racist? Charleton Heston? The one who marched with MLK on Washington? The one who picketed segregated theaters showing his movies?

I guess some people see racism anywhere they look.
http://z.about.com/d/afroamhistory/1/0/0/1/photos_heston_poitier_belafonte.gif

Amen brother. That one threw me for a loop also.

dunara

11-29-2008, 02:58 AM

:agree There are certain aspects of Heston's life and activities with which I have serious problems, but his credentials on race were impeccable. Sure,there's a race message in POTA, but it's not a negative one. Discussing race or using race as a plot vehicle does not necessarily make the work racist, per se. I seriously doubt Heston would never have been involved if he thought it was.

BTW - I agree - why didn't a trained astronaut look up and see the moon?

Suproman77

11-29-2008, 05:35 AM

What always bothered me is that Taylor never once looked up, saw the moon, and figured out where he was.

:confused:

BTW - I agree - why didn't a trained astronaut look up and see the moon?

Dodge: "It doesn't add up. There's a mantle of dust around this planet and yet it's as humid as a jungle. Thunder and lightning and yet no rain. Cloud cover every night and that strange luminosity, and yet no moon."

roomservice

11-29-2008, 05:55 AM

What always bothered me is that Taylor never once looked up, saw the moon, and figured out where he was.

:confused:

:jo

maybe he was in the cells when the moon was out and it was a bit cloudy the rest of the time......????

Great piece of Sci-Fi and the ending still sends shivers down my spine 35+ years after seeing it for the first time on terrestial TV.

A true classic film. The sequels did dilute its impact I felt...Beneath had a great idea and I'd like to see that done with the fx we have nowadays. Escape was just slapstick I felt, Conquest was scary in that it showed a revolution happening right now and brought home racism to me much more than the first film did. Battle was a nice way to round it off I felt.

I had the action figures from the TV series, Burke & whatsisname, Galen, Zaius too. TV series was ok (I was 7) I thought at the time.

The remake - I actually liked but felt uncomfortable fancying Helena Bonham Carter as a chimp :eek:

Suproman77

11-29-2008, 05:55 AM

:agree There are certain aspects of Heston's life and activities with which I have serious problems, but his credentials on race were impeccable. Sure,there's a race message in POTA, but it's not a negative one. Discussing race or using race as a plot vehicle does not necessarily make the work racist, per se. I seriously doubt Heston would never have been involved if he thought it was.

This reminds me of a saying....It's only racist if you are. ;)

DiazDude

11-29-2008, 06:56 AM

He didn't look up to see the moon because it wasn't in the script.

Bussman

11-29-2008, 09:27 AM

You guys should read the 1963 Pierre Boulle book that started it all. It is about racism and culture clash.

A very smart prisoner of war story written as a dystopian social commentary, by the same guy who gave us "The Bridge Over the River Kwai".

Suproman77

11-29-2008, 09:59 AM

You guys should read the 1963 Pierre Boulle book that started it all. It is about racism and culture clash.

For sure, it is. There's a big difference between 'being about racism' and 'being racist', though. HUGE, in fact.

Bussman

11-29-2008, 10:42 AM

That's the point I was trying to make...

Suproman77

11-29-2008, 10:46 AM

That's the point I was trying to make...

Cool...just emphasizing it.

dkaplowitz

11-29-2008, 10:48 AM

Bonus question: Who owned the action figures in the 70's?
I know for sure I had the Cornelius one. I seem to recall having had a Zaius as well. There may have been others, but those are the ones I have any recollection about.

daddyo

11-29-2008, 10:50 AM

semi-hollowbody

11-29-2008, 11:12 AM

I LOVED those movies when I was a kid...
when I was 7 or 8 my friend down the street (he was learning disabled but we didnt know that then) used to ALWAYS give his toys away...so christmas day he comes over with the brand new planet of the apes tree house and a bunch of the brand new figures, weapons, all the misc stuff, and asked if I wanted it

well, what do you think an 8 year old said..."HELLZ YEAH"

funny thing is his parents NEVER asked what happened to it, never asked for it back...he came over a LOT to play with it though LOL...we spent a greqat deal of the next year playing with it and my parents bought me a few more of the figures...

The next year Ricky shows up with the enterprise and a bunch of star trek figures, but I wouldnt take them, maybe the one year difference made me think about it more...

Santa Ricky...thats whay we used to call him!

semi-hollowbody

11-29-2008, 11:15 AM

Of course it's about racism. You'd have to be catatonic not to get that the humans are like blacks and the apes represent the cultural elites within the white society of the 60s. But it's not racist in that it promotes a segregationalist agenda. Quite the opposite.
yes but little kids watching it had NO idea of the social/racial implications...and when the get older and hear that it sorta wrecks it for them...to this day I cant watch those movies without feeling slightly guilty...:NUTS

daddyo

11-29-2008, 11:26 AM

yes but little kids watching it had NO idea of the social/racial implications...and when the get older and hear that it sorta wrecks it for them...to this day I cant watch those movies without feeling slightly guilty...:NUTS
I was 7 when I first saw that movie and I got it all. I saw the humans being treated like stupid animals and thought to myself, "hey, that's not fair, they're not stupid animals . . ." and the penny dropped.

roomservice

11-29-2008, 11:43 AM

Boulle's novel covered so much ground...... racism, elitism, stagnation, prejudice, interracial relationships etc - a fantastic novel that I was fortunate enough to read not long after I saw the first film. That's when the penny dropped with me....very insightful writer.

It's Time!

11-29-2008, 11:51 AM

I've never understood this scene :confused:

http://www.scifidrive.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/planetofapes_liberty.gif

Suproman77

11-29-2008, 12:01 PM

I've never understood this scene :confused:

http://www.scifidrive.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/planetofapes_liberty.gif

Ummm...you're joking, right? :D

Dr. Tweedbucket

11-29-2008, 12:04 PM

I thought is was one of the dumbest movies I've ever seen. :messedup .... I saw about 1 hour's worth Thursday :cry:

It's Time!

11-29-2008, 12:10 PM

Ummm...you're joking, right? :D

Isn't the Statue of Liberty located on an island :confused:

http://www.visitingdc.com/images/statue-of-liberty-picture-2.jpg

Suproman77

11-29-2008, 12:12 PM

Isn't the Statue of Liberty located on an island :confused:

http://www.visitingdc.com/images/statue-of-liberty-picture-2.jpg

Well, yeah...now it is. We're talking thousands of years in the future though and the Earth has undergone some drastic changes...apparently at the hands of men, so it seems.

proreverb68

11-29-2008, 12:22 PM

Planet of the Apes and Evil Kneviel merchandise . . . how awesome were the 70's?

I know I am not the only one who had the windup Evil Kneviel toy.

Yeh, I had that evil kneviel bike too...
We used to run that thing all over the house...making jumps and ramps.

You'd wind that thing up and...I can still remember the smell of that burning rubber and the sound of that winding motor...
One day after a really great jump...it was abruptly time for bed.
Next day I looked all over for it.... it just "suddenly" dissapeared.

I asked my parents where it went....seems they never knew.

Heh~

Randy

11-29-2008, 08:24 PM

Of course it's about racism. You'd have to be catatonic not to get that the humans are like blacks and the apes represent the cultural elites within the white society of the 60s...

That's an interesting perspective.... I also thought there was an underlying message regarding racism, but my interpretation was totally different. :confused:

Kingbeegtrs

11-29-2008, 10:37 PM

It's about the flaws of organized religion, racism, and most of all you can't forget McCarthyism. Rod Serling helped write it...he and the other writers were either victims of McCarthy or close friends with victims.

Do you believe that all apes are equal?
Some apes are more equal than others.

TonyVt

11-29-2008, 10:48 PM

TBoneDeluxe

11-30-2008, 12:50 AM

dunara

11-30-2008, 01:47 AM

Anyone see the Tim Burton directed remake that came out in 2001? I finally saw it a couple of weeks ago and was baffled by the ending. Anyone else feel that it ranks right up there with one of the worst movie endings of all time?

Absolutely, but given the intelligence and artistic awareness that Burton usually brings to the table, you have to wonder what the Studio's role was in the whole unfortunate mess. It would appear that all they wanted was an action movie in monkey suits......:puh

DiazDude

11-30-2008, 06:24 AM

The Fox movie channel is showing the original POTA films today (Sunday)

roomservice

11-30-2008, 06:51 AM

Anyone see the Tim Burton directed remake that came out in 2001? I finally saw it a couple of weeks ago and was baffled by the ending. Anyone else feel that it ranks right up there with one of the worst movie endings of all time?

Its a crap ending for sure but I think (says he lol) that it is related somewhat to the ending in the book where Ulysses Merou (sp please - years since I read it) and Nova land back on Earth that seems the same as when he left it (several thusands of years ago) and is met by a bunch of gorillas in a jeep.......that's my take on it lol!

Brian Krashpad

11-30-2008, 06:58 AM

Bonus question: Who owned the action figures in the 70's?

Action figures? No.

Bubble gum trading cards, hells yes.

Still have them, in fact.

johnny67

11-30-2008, 07:11 AM

http://www.scifidrive.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/planetofapes_liberty.gif[/quote]

that was a spooky ending!! Just looking at that pic gives me a scary feeling. One of the best. I enjoyed all the movies in the series, but of course the first one was the best by far. I was in New York in 83' and very dissapointed that I could not go to the statue of liberty since it was being refurnished, ow well.

Bussman

11-30-2008, 10:50 AM

Its a crap ending for sure but I think (says he lol) that it is related somewhat to the ending in the book where Ulysses Merou (sp please - years since I read it) and Nova land back on Earth that seems the same as when he left it (several thusands of years ago) and is met by a bunch of gorillas in a jeep.......that's my take on it lol!

Tim Burton tried to end his movie sort of like the book. In the book there is an extra layer as Ulysse Mérou's tale is told from the perspective of a message in a bottle read by two space travelers: Jinn and Phyllis.

At the end of the book the two space travelers dismiss the tale outright since they deem humans unfit for space travel. Jinn and Phyllis are apes and believe humans to be incapable of reason, much less space travel... or writing.

rmconner80

12-01-2008, 09:16 AM

"YOU MANIACS!!!"

I'm 33 and love the original film. It's a classic for sure and has a ton of deep stuff in it. I remember being in elementary school, I remember Reagan, I remember considering (even as a child) the threat of mutually assured destruction through nuclear war "toe to toe with the Ruskies" (to quote Slim Pickens in Dr. Strangelove).

The archaeology scenes were very poingant for the time (i.e. the late 60s and the Leakey's digging in olduvai gorge, etc) and the tension between science / secular humanisim (ape-ism??) and religion is extremely apt for the time... and still is now. I love this tongue in cheek shot during the trial...

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3196/2334197374_3ef40a5539.jpg?v=0

Also, you may remember that Heston himself actually played the judge or one of the ape participants during the trial.

I love Burton, but his version sucked. Some films are tied culturally to the time in which they were made. I never understood remaking Psycho or POTA, etc. Sorry, it just doesn't work> why would I watch a remake when the originals stand the test of time, and always will?

KRosser

12-01-2008, 10:49 AM

Let's not forget the awesome Jerry Goldsmith score, featuring the formidable Emil Richards on loads of 'found percussion'

Jet Age Eric

12-01-2008, 11:20 AM

eBay

12-01-2008, 11:23 AM

They had the Planet of the Apes weekend marathon here and it's starting to drive me crazy. First off, those morons escape their ship, start exploring a foreign planet and then take of their clothes for a swim. Who knows what sort of things live in that pond.

Next, they see those scare crows and just keep plowing forward without taking stock and reassessing the situation.

Then they encounter humans raiding cultivated fields and don't wonder what sort of super creatures might have planted them.

Their fate is pretty much downhill from there.

*****

later that epoch...

*****

They venture into the forbidden zone, encounter weird halucinations and don't step back to try to figure out what's going on or simply go somewhere else.

If you want to get humans back on the grid, you should also be having sex with every woman you can find.

Bussman

12-01-2008, 11:46 AM

...If you want to get humans back on the grid, you should also be having sex with every woman you can find.

Even more so when the natives look like this:

http://multimedia.ekstrabladet.dk/eb/archive/00310/Linda_Harrison_310856m.jpg

Suproman77

12-01-2008, 12:13 PM

Even more so when the natives look like this:

http://multimedia.ekstrabladet.dk/eb/archive/00310/Linda_Harrison_310856m.jpg

They can't talk, but they can shave their legs, eh?

Sounds like the perfect woman to me! :D

bug0711

12-01-2008, 12:18 PM

roomservice

12-01-2008, 12:32 PM

Tim Burton tried to end his movie sort of like the book. In the book there is an extra layer as Ulysse Mérou's tale is told from the perspective of a message in a bottle read by two space travelers: Jinn and Phyllis.

At the end of the book the two space travelers dismiss the tale outright since they deem humans unfit for space travel. Jinn and Phyllis are apes and believe humans to be incapable of reason, much less space travel... or writing.

oh well done - I didnt want to give the real ending away!!!!

lol:BEER

daddyo

12-01-2008, 12:56 PM

Even more so when the natives look like this:

http://multimedia.ekstrabladet.dk/eb/archive/00310/Linda_Harrison_310856m.jpg
I remember as a boy seeing this movie and this girl and the shots of Heston on horseback in a loin cloth with her infront and thinking that this was a good template for a manly existance - but it never worked out for me:(

TBoneDeluxe

12-01-2008, 01:12 PM

They can't talk, but they can shave their legs, eh?

Sounds like the perfect woman to me! :D

:rotflmao

chrisr777

12-01-2008, 01:26 PM

I watched all five on TMC over the weekend and loved every minute of it.

They had some really interesting stuff about the making of the films in between as well. Including discussion of the race aspect by the people who made it.

loudboy

12-01-2008, 01:29 PM

Anyone see the Tim Burton directed remake that came out in 2001? I finally saw it a couple of weeks ago and was baffled by the ending. Anyone else feel that it ranks right up there with one of the worst movie endings of all time?

That was one of those movies where the "Making Of" featurette was about 20X better than the actual movie.

zekmoe

12-01-2008, 02:10 PM

I can't believe someone posted that they didn't get the ending. Must have been a joke, as it was a scary and wild ending, especially as a kid.
Remember, the earth used to be one land mass years ago. Then it broke apart and the coastal layout hasn't stopped changing. Just look at it from a geological timeline perspective.

Jet Age Eric

12-01-2008, 02:15 PM

"Awesome" is the word for the score.

Burton's POTA was horrible. I firmly believe the dude CANNOT tell a story. He should be an art director (is that the right term?). -E

Let's not forget the awesome Jerry Goldsmith score, featuring the formidable Emil Richards on loads of 'found percussion'

Alvis

12-02-2008, 02:05 AM

I guess one reads into the films what they want to.I didn't get all the undertones as a kid.I just thought it was a great new kind of horror movie
The same way kids didn't get all the cold war stuff on Rocky & Bullwinkle

Speakin of apes ,check this out

http://soundingcircle.com/newslog2.php/__show_article/_a000195-000176.htm

GlueMan

12-02-2008, 09:44 AM

While I do agree that it should have been left alone with one movie, I can't help but enjoy the sequals too. I think they did some really interesting things with them, particularly after the 2nd one which just seemed like a way to get Heston out of the series. But even though I like the sequals, even I must admit that it would have been a much better idea to leave it as one movie.

According to a number of people, including Heston himself, in one of those "making of" shows - Heston didn't want to do a sequel and had to be convince to do the little bit he did do. Additionally, it was Heston's idea to detonate the Holy Bomb at the end to insure there would be no more sequels. It didn't work of course.

I personally loved the first two.

rob2001

12-02-2008, 05:55 PM

The Fox movie channel is showing the original POTA films today (Sunday)

Yep, I was home with the flu and watched waaaay too much ape. I'm all aped out for now!

Used to be when they were on randomly i'd always watch. I don't think i'll watch any Ape movies for quite a while! Still love them though.

kingnimrod

12-02-2008, 07:08 PM

we watched all 5 of the movies on TV this past weekend as well.

The first one is pretty decent, and the other 4 range from laughable to downright unwatchable. Especially the last two.

Those people must have been doing a ton of drugs, especially Roddy McDowall, the only main actor in all 5 of them.

If I hadn't been sick in bed, I'd probably have found something more entertaining to do like scrubbing the toilet.

Also, I just have to say that as bad as the remake is, it's still far better than any of the original sequels.

Brian D

12-02-2008, 10:17 PM

...especially Roddy McDowall, the only main actor in all 5 of them...This is technically true, but he is only in the second movie (Beneath the Planet of the Apes) during the flashback sequence in the beginning that uses footage from the first movie. The part of Cornelius in "Beneath" was played by David Watson.

He did manage to make the other four movies, however.