07.00 Planet Of The Apes
Planet Of The Apes. "Escape" The coolest and most enjoyable of all of the Apes movies. Since it's about time-travel it's also my favourite Apes movie. And it's funny. What's not to love?
Remarkably the humourous tone of this third chapter is not in conflict with the overall dark tone of the series, or this episode's incredibly dark conclusion. Let's face it, how many light-hearted movies can you think of that end with the slow-motion, gunning down of all the main characters (good and evil), including a small baby?
None, I bet. Yet, Escape From The Planet Of The Apes is just such a movie. And it works. Mostly because, while the first half is humourous and charming, there is an underlying tension to all the scenes that never lets the audience let their guard down. The early death of Dr. Milo and the early establishing of the fact that Zira is told to keep a secret because their lives depend upon it, are the reason that this works. From that point on we know, despite the comedy onscreen, that lives can be lost in this movie and Zira and Cornelius are in constant danger.
But, aside from the tone and the ending, there are many reasons why this is a remarkable movie.
The performances. Kim Hunter and Eric Braeden are wonderful leads. She's the George Taylor of this story (the character who advocates change) while he is the new Zaius (trying to maintain the status quo at all costs). Braeden has some amazing scenes (the television interview is mind-blowing, and all his scenes with Zira are electric) and makes a compelling, and likable, bad guy. As with the first movie, we can understand the point of view of the villains of the piece. Nothing is black and white in these tales. All of them, especially the US President, are trying to find out what the right thing is.
The POTA stories are known for their iconic images, and none is more iconic/memorable than that the opening shot of the three apeonauts without their helmets. That's beyond cool.
As is the music, not only in the opening titles, since the score for the whole movie is terrific.
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Wed, Jan 7, 09 - Planet Of The Apes
