Rating: 
Summary: A classic
Review: The film that started it all, the original Planet of the Apes is undeniably one of the films that helped turn science fiction films into a respectable genre. The film was released in a decade in which society seemed ready to self-destruct. And although it was almost impossible in that day and age to use entertainment to directly comment on such situations, as Jonathan Swift and many other social satirists of the past had done, the creators of Planet of the Apes made cunning use of allegory to indirectly point a mirror at the problems of their time. Just in case you're among the few who do not know about Planet of the Apes, a short synopsis is in order. The beginning of the film has Taylor (Charlton Heston) giving a log entry inside a spaceship on a deep space journey. By traveling close to the speed of light he and the other astronauts have abandoned the Earth they knew forever, since hundreds or thousands of years have passed there compared to only months on the ship. They are awakened from cold storage when the ship crash lands on a planet and immediately starts to sink, but not before Taylor realizes that 2000 years have passed in Earth time. With no ship nor anyone to contact, they know they are stuck. They discover that humans exist here but are little more than mute beasts, while apes are the dominant, sentient life form. Taylor is wounded and treated by two sympathetic chimpanzees interested in "animal behavior". Ultimately he will have to make his own mark and stand up for his own humanity in a world turned upside down, where the very word "humanity" does not exist. Actually, the premise of this film was developed into an extremely intelligent and shocking utopia allegory in the novel of Pierre Boulle called 'Monkey Planet'. Like other futuristic tales like 1984 or I Am Legend, the original novel makes us think about our reality by imagining how we could turn up. Unfortunately, the film adaptations of these stories aren't quite as effective, maybe because they impose a certain visual style and a certain rhythm. However, Planet of the Apes is a very, very good film. Though the screenplay could have been tighter, it's still pretty damn smart. As for the production, the settings aren't very elaborate, but it's because of the plot's limitations. One thing that is astonishing is the Oscar-winning make-up used to transform actors into apes. It is also a film that has certainly stood the test of time much better than most of its contemporaries. Trailers for all 5 of the Planet of the Apes films are provided on this DVD, with aspect ratios ranging from 1.66:1 to the correct 2.35:1. All look almost as good as the feature film, but do suffer from harsh sound. A photo gallery is also included with 9 behind the scenes photographs, 4 showing before and after shots of the make-up process, and 8 conceptual drawings for the film.
Rating: 
Summary: that makes three of us
Review: I can't tell you why without giving the end away, but anyone who thinks the movie a reasonable or faithful adaptation of the novel completely misses its point. I'm not talking about Charleton Heston's silly posturing and the film's various incongruities and unintentional anachronisms; I'm talking about the essence of the novel's plot and the idea behind that plot.
Rating:
Summary: really, really BAD
Review: Several reviewers have called Charlton Heston's acting here his best. It very well may be, but this is rather like applauding Dan Quayle for his best spelling or Woody Allen for his best weight-lifting. Charleton Heston couldn't act if his life depended on it--it's just too bad it never did. Pretty much everybody has heard of the film "Planet of the Apes" and knows something about it, so it's unlikely many with taste and discrimination and intelligence will come here (which accounts for all the five-star "reviews"), but just in case someone does: READ THE BOOK! It's NOTHING like the film!
Rating: 
Summary: The greatest sci-fi satire of all time
Review: Planet of the Apes is essentially a two-hour long "Twilight Zone" episode except far better. If one were to think of the film on those grounds, it probably would've received infinitely more acclaim than it originally earned. Consider the fact, aside that the simian makeup is still pretty convincing in this day and age, that the screenplay was written by Rod Serling. You then see the reason for the "Twilight Zone" comparison---Serling's influence runs deeply through the film. Planet of the Apes was one of the truly successful films to tackle the predominant social issues of its time and criticize them imaginatively, whether it be the Vietnam War, racial injustice, generational gaps--all of these intertwining instances occur in satrical measures. Heston, a highly competent (regardless of your polictical leanings/opinions) actor of his generation gives Taylor the necessary vigor to overcome inter-species prejudice. He and his compatriots travel nearly 2,000 years into the future and find themselves "crash-land" on a planet very similar to Earth. The paradox here is that...well, that you should see for yourself. A twist in perception, to say the least. And one of the great chilling satires in film.
Rating:
Summary: See No Evil
Review: Let me be up front in saying that the very reason I believe this movie works may not be the same 2 reasons you think it does. Jerry Goldsmith is the first. Never let it be said "sound doesn't matter much". Because it does. In fact this may be the best enhancement yet a movie has received from a quality sound track, this side of Halloween. The second reason this movie hits on all cylinders is Maurice Evans. His work as Dr. Zaius lends such an antagonistic credibility as to be UNFORGETTABLE, one for the ages. You can never have dramatic moments unless you have believable characters and though the entire cast IS stellar, it is Evans who I believe is the most noteworthy here. In conclusion, I would like to thank FOX for including the trailers for the other Ape movies. If ever there was doubt that I should have purchased the whole box set, I can watch the trailers and know the balance of the Ape movies are rubbish. Sure, I would have liked to have the bonue disc, but I wouldn't want it at the expense of sacrificing this movies intengrity by purchasing the whole set. I feel I would be supporting ridiculous sequels, and I would rather have my self respect than a 2 hour documentry. The Lost World? UGH! Episode 1: The Phantom Menace? BAH! Few series get better as the series progresses and the Apes saga is but one of many casualties on a road to greatness. If you don't have The Planet Of Apes and you love sci-fi, you will appreciate the loving hand of the first movie, but the rest are like a menacing backhand.
Rating:
Summary: Went APE For This DVD
Review: I've seen all of the APES movies on television with commercials in my childhood. The lovely thing about DVD is that my faded, scratched, spliced, and commercial-interupted memories of this film (and its sequels) are completely erased by a vivid, remastered version. It's really a nicely made film. I think the ape makeup survives today in this era of CG characters. The story is solid. I was surprised to see Rod Serling's name credited as one of the screenwriters! I'd never realized this. Then, as I proceeded to watch the movie, I began to see it as a feature-length TWILIGHT ZONE episode. (*I mean this as a compliment!) The movie introduces its human characters, strands them on a strange planet, then shocks its audience by revealing the apes 1/3 of the way into the story. The film's final image is pure TWILIGHT ZONE, with an O. Henry twist to the whole story. Brilliant! The DVD looks great. The sound is done well. I wish there were more bonus items -- it's too bad that the APES documentary is only available by purchasing the entire set. I'd love to get a gander at the makeup men and the set designers. The look of these films is spectacular. Watching APES again was a walk down memory lane. Who would've known that Fox could get such mileage out of the APES concept! 5 films! The original is the best. And this DVD presentation does it justice.
Rating:
Summary: A Marvelous Mirror of Human Behavior
Review: "Planet of the Apes" should be in any list of major movies of the 20th century because it is a poignant commentary on human behavior. George Taylor (Charleton Heston) is one of four astronauts who crash land on a planet where human beings are mute brutes dominated by intelligent apes. Through Taylor's eyes, we observe the apes as they interact with each other and with their human captives. We are treated, among other things, to a wonderful commentary on American race relations as we discover that ape society is stratified among orangutans, gorillas, and chimpanzees. "You know how he looks down his nose at chimpanzees," Dr. Zira (Kim Hunter), referring to one of the orangutan elders, says to one of her chimpanzee colleagues to which he responds "the quota system has been abolished! You made it. Why can't I?" That the apes are meant to be mirrors of human behavior is constantly reinforced throughout with inversions of popular sayings and maxims: "You know what they say- human see; human do," one gorilla (Buck Karlitin) tells Dr. Zira. Later. Later, an orangutan priest is overheard at a funeral saying "the deceased once said 'I never meant an ape I didn't like." When the apes discover that Taylor is indeed an intelligent, thinking being, they are at a loss to explain him; he does not fit into their theology or their scientific theories. One chimpanzee, however, Dr. Cornelius (Roddy McDowell) believes Taylor might be the "missing link" in his theory of evolution, and here we are treated to a wonderful inversion of Charles Darwin. Taylor's presence triggers a crisis in ape intellectual circles. Soon Taylor, Cornelius, and Zira are placed on trial during which an orangutan prosecutor argues that apes possess the spark of divine being with all of the passion and conviction of William Jennings Bryan in the Scopes "Monkey Trial" of the 1920's. During this trial, we discover that the orangutan elders are a shortsided and dogmatic set whose medieval-like dogma keeps ape society and learning static. The trial presents the chimpanzee scientists with only one option, to prove their theories or face conviction for heresy. To this end, they rescue Taylor from captivity and set out for "The Forbidden Zone," a desolate stretch of the planet that hides the secrets of the apes' origin and where Taylor learns the truth about the Planet of apes (unfortunately, that truth and the movie's ending is given away by the video box cover, but after almost 32 years, almost everyone knows the ending anyway). Planet of the Apes is suitable for all ages. Children will, I think, enjoy the action and the apes; adults will enjoy the intelligent script (written by Rod Serling of "Twilight Zone" fame, adapted from Pierre Boulle's novel "Les Planete Des Signes") and hilarious and chilling inversions of human behavior. Profanity (very little, except perhaps the last scene which contains most of the movie's profanity, which is tame by today's standards) and violence are minimal. In short, this movie does so well what science fiction was meant to do: portray human behavior.
Rating:
Summary: It's a madhouse!
Review: I'm glad Fox decided to make this film available for those who just want this one, rather than the box set. The first film is by far the best and though I do enjoy the series, they just don't have the impact of the original. The sequels seemed to suffer from budget cuts with each successive film and it shows. ( How did the apes manage to salvage a damaged spacecraft that very obviously sunk, repair it and fly it in the third film anyway?) Anyway, the video and sound quality is excellent. In fact, I've never seen it this good before. I grew up loving the TV series as a child, but was too young to catch the films in the theater. As a result, my only experience with Planet of the Apes was watching horribly cropped TV versions on Saturday afternoon broadcasts. It's like watching a new film with the DVD quality present here. It really shows when you look at the trailer for the film and see how washed out the film used to look. Not any more! This film will always be a classic. Though I am looking forward to Tim Burton's version, the original will be hard to beat. If you've never seen it before, watch it and you'll see what I mean.
Rating:
Summary: Great old film!
Review: I decided to buy this movie more or less for a change. I don't usually watch or like movies which are older than I am, but this is one of the exceptions. I had never actually seen the whole movie, just bits and pieces every once in awhile, plus the film is such a huge part of popular culture I was already familiar with the whole story. After seeing it in full I can't help but love it. Sure the acting is sappy, but its a thirty years old. I thought Fox did a great job with this dvd version. The picture is crisp and clear, plus most of the sound throughout the film is very good and not choppy, which is often rare with films of this age. I won't get into telling the whole story, as many other reviewers have done so already. For me though the story was very intriguing and I really got into the movie, plus, this film has one of the best endings that I have ever seen, if only more films ended like that :) Anyways, if you haven't seen this movie ever, or in a long time, I recommend picking up this DVD release, it won't get any better than this.
Rating:
Summary: DVD Review
Review: Of course we all know this movie is one of the all time greats co-written by the master of oddity, Rod Serling, so I will just review the DVD quality. I already had the VHS THX widescreen release of this and compared it to the DVD back to back. As with most of the other THX titles in the 20th Century Fox series, I found very little or no difference in the sharpness or quality of the two. I feel I wasted money trying to upgrade a picture that was quite frankly near the same as what I had. I think I'll sell this DVD and buy something I don't already have. As far as extras, there are some boring still photos and a trailer. Save your bucks if you already have the THX VHS. 5 stars-movie / 3 stars-DVD.
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