Planet of the Apes (1968)

[SoulBiter]

They are playing this at select theatres this month for a couple of days..... I can' wait to see this on the big screen again!!!!

[Avatar]

Haha, cool. Must say I preferred it to the remake.

--A

[peter]

The initial Charlton Heston one was ok, but the follow up's were dire. No - think it's a rare case Where the reboot's have surpassed the orgnals by a distance.

But on second thoughts, the latest versions have not actually got to the original films point of starting yet (ie way into the future when the apes are long established masters) have they. I wonder if they will actually go that far ....... it would be difficult given that they have already done the back story wouldn't it?

[aTOMiC]

Original film IMHO is far superior to reboots.
There is something missing from the newer movies that I find lacking.
There is no central human protagonist that is as compelling as Taylor.

It reminds me of the Star Wars prequels. Without Luke, Leia and Han the prequels were cgi leaden spectacles with uninteresting and sometimes downright annoying characters.

Say what you want about Heston but he did draw your attention and he was the audience's pov character.

The newer films definitely tend to favor the apes pov which I find less engaging.

The less I say about Tim Burton's POTA the better.

Again this is my personal opinion. The original POTA has been and continues to be one of my favorite sci fi films.
I definitely agree the sequels to the original were progressively less effective films.

[JIkj fjds j]

Say what you want about Heston but he did draw your attention and he was the audience's pov character.

His strength of voice makes for some unforgettable lines.
Like when he said: I do believe she'd eat her own young!
Though I can't remember which ape he was talking about.

[Cail]

Original film IMHO is far superior to reboots.
There is something missing from the newer movies that I find lacking.
There is no central human protagonist that is as compelling as Taylor.

It reminds me of the Star Wars prequels. Without Luke, Leia and Han the prequels were cgi leaden spectacles with uninteresting and sometimes downright annoying characters.

Say what you want about Heston but he did draw your attention and he was the audience's pov character.

The newer films definitely tend to favor the apes pov which I find less engaging.

The less I say about Tim Burton's POTA the better.

Again this is my personal opinion. The original POTA has been and continues to be one of my favorite sci fi films.
I definitely agree the sequels to the original were progressively less effective films.

I don't know that I've agreed more with another post since I've been here.

[SoulBiter]

They really set this up well and they did so with good writing and actual plot that isn't propped up by sparkly cgi. Taylor starts the film talking about how he doesn't believe that the human race is the best there is to offer. By the end he is telling Dr Zaes "man was here first and he was better than you!! You owe him your science, you owe him your culture
!". The music and the score are just outstanding... they use the sounds of the ocean/waves and the wind and even horses hoof beats in the score itself to give full effect. The movie didn't need the support of graphics to keep you on the edge. One of my favorite films and I am pumped to see it in theatres again.

[peter]

Mmmm...... I wonder if you guys are just hung up on the 'originals have to be better than remakes' schtick? ( I put the case of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre as an example of the of this). Still, I refer to my earlier point that the reboot's are stand alone, and not remakes of the original.

[SoulBiter]

I don't think so...I typically give each film a chance to prove me wrong. But most seem to fall into this pattern.... Sometimes you just have magic In a bottle with a movie that is difficult if not impossible to duplicate.

[Avatar]

Still, I refer to my earlier point that the reboot's are stand alone, and not remakes of the original.

Tim Burton's one was a remake. In fact, that's the one I was talking about...Don't think I've watched any of the more recent ones.

And yes...subsequent originals were not that good. But the first one was...impactful.

--A

[aTOMiC]

Mmmm...... I wonder if you guys are just hung up on the 'originals have to be better than remakes' schtick?

There isn't any schtick involved in my assessment of the films. In my opinion there just isn't any way to compare the characterizations between the old and new interpretations. None of the other films have a central protagonist as compelling as the first. If they did we would be referring to them by that actors name the way we do the Heston film.
BTW I do like the most recent series.

[dANdeLION]

I loved the original, hated the 4 sequels, despised the ending of the 2001 reboot (Ape Lincoln? Seriously??), and so far, liked the latest 2 films.

[aTOMiC]

I loved the original, hated the 4 sequels, despised the ending of the 2001 reboot (Ape Lincoln? Seriously??), and so far, liked the latest 2 films.

I didn't hate the sequels but I didn't like them either. They kind of are what they are. The second film had some interesting moments and the ending was a definite nail in the coffin for the franchise which is amazing since they managed to pump out sequels after that. How on earth did apes who can't swim (supposedly) fish Taylor's spacecraft from the bottom of the lake, then repair technology they aren't familiar with, then launch and pilot the ship in such a way that they arrive back on earth in the 1970s to form a time paradox that produces the ape society to begin with?
Talk about making no logical sense.


As to the Tim Burton film I can't remember if what was clearly the Lincoln Memorial for humans now a memorial for General Thade specifically or not. But the notion of Ape Lincoln would be hilarious if it weren't so idiotic. No matter how you interpret the ending it doesn't make much logical sense. I think they were just trying to create a surprise ending as powerful as the original and monumentally failed. Casting Mark Wahlberg in the lead didn't help matters either. He sounded like he was reading cue cards the whole film which is pretty much the level of acting you get with all of his roles. On the other hand Tim Roth's General Thade was outstanding IMHO.