Rating: 
Summary: Not If You Paid Me, Tim........
Review: When(If) I meet God at the gates, and if he grants me one last wish, it will be for me to choke Tim Burton for 2+ hours, effectively paying him back for the 2+ hrs of my life I'll never have back after watching this sad excuse for a movie. Apes, huh? Well, I think I saw better actors at my local zoo. All in all, a truly wretched movie-going experience. Too sum up - I wouldn't take this movie/DVD for free, even to go pawn it - I would be too ashamed....by the way, this wouldn't let me enter ZERO stars and I would surely give a Negative Rating.......
Rating: 
Summary: Yikes!
Review: I'd never seen the 1974 version, but this is a totally creepy concept. My goodness, I know people that look and act just like these apes! Imagine if you will, evolution reversed, man as the captured animal, apes as the dominant race. When you imagine it, it seems a little unsettling. When you see it on screen, it becomes a too-close-for-comfort idea. The actors as apes are fabulous, but the initial chimp in the space suit that starts the whole thing is the cutest of all. I guess you should see this movie, but don't dim the lights too much. I gave it four stars because I hated the ending, but I won't give that away. If this movie plot were expanded on just a bit, humans wouldn't stand a chance. Animal lovers unite! This is the film for you. For those of us who prefer our animals tamed or in restaurants, perhaps you should give this one a miss. Scary.
Rating:
Summary: Not Apeing the Original
Review: Great next-generation go-round of the original classic, that is less a remake than - as Tim Burton put it - a "reimagining." And it works. In some ways, it's even more faithful to the famous Pierre Boulle novel.The real star of this piece is the ape effects, which are incredible. The 1968 version had man-apes - this version has ape-men. They bounce furiously about in wild acrobatics, handle objects with their feet, and very convincingly come off as actual erect, linguistically capable apes. The performances are all pretty good, though they take a back seat to the effects - ape and otherwise. Tim Roth as the evil chimpanzee general after human astronaut Mark Wahlberg is the best of the lot, with Helena Bonham Carter as Wahlberg's unlikely but fascinating love-interest coming in a close second. Charlton Heston has a fabulous cameo, as the one ape with previous knowledge of the former superior race of men preceding ape civilization. The story is closer in most regards to Boulle's novel, including the clever twist ending - which, of course, sets up the sequel. But the less said about it the better, for those intending to see it. Suffice it to say it's quite well done. Even if you weren't a fan of the original movie or novel, you'll find plenty in this film to keep your attention. And if you're a longstanding fan of the original series, you'll still enjoy this one on its own merits. Overall, it's not as good as the original, but it's still terrific.
Rating: 
Summary: Not one of Tim Burton's best efforts!!!
Review: FILM: Ok, you should know you're in trouble when the movie you're watching includes a love triangle with a guy formerly known as Marky Mark, a human female slave with a great body, and a cute, ultra-liberal chimp--erhh, sorry, I mean ape! HAAA!! I agree with everybody's criticism of Mark Wahlberg as Leo Davidson, he is woefully miscast and certainly seemed uncomfortable tryng to carry this film as lead man. I never cared for his character one bit, and he seemed to have great difficulty emoting or relaying the shock someone would have crash-landing onto a planet of ticked-off TALKING APES!!! Nevertheless, there are some good performances in this film--both Paul Giamatti and Michael Clarke Duncan give great performance as apes(actually Giamatti's character, Limbo, is an orangutan). The film itself is basically a two-hour morality play telling you that humans have mistreated animals, slaves, Indians and whoever else you want to throw in there. To me, it got kind of tiresome after the first thirty minutes. Tim Burton does a decent job directing this movie--not one of his more memorable outings. He certainly wasn't helped by the fact that the screenplay is pretty bad: all the characters are very one-dimensional and the dialogue is somewhat flat. In retrospect, he probably shouldn't have taken this project on, but I'm sure he thought it would turn out to be something special instead of a movie that was almost instantly forgotten two weeks after it was released. Two big positives were the makeup (the apes looked absolutely fantastic), and some of the locations were breathtakingly beautiful. But that's not enough to make this more than an average to below-average film.
DVD: The extras on this disc are infinitely more interesting than the film itself! Especially good was 'Ape School' which the actors had to through to learn how to walk and act like an ape. Also, to watch the actors go through the three hours of makeup was interesting, and it certainly didn't look too comfortable. Another interesting feature was the multi-angled scenes, where you get to see Tim Burton working with the actors to try and get a scene shot, and there is also an option to change camera angles yourself. Lastly, the quality of the picture and sound on this DVD is undeniably good.
Rating:
Summary: So many missing elements
Review: Can't understand why this movie is so much under rated but this could be due to its lack of main elements. 1. The CGI was a masterpiece.
2. The costumes were perfect.
3. The Apes movements, looks & attitude were all PERFECT!
4. One of the main missing elements was suspense! This has badly affected the movie. I mean come on, you just watch it as if it was just a story with being on edge or thrilled.
5. The next main missing element was emotions! I mean you sympathize with no one at all as if you care less for all characters. You'll never get attached to anybody... this destroyed the movie.
6. Last but not least, the plot was weak. At the end of the movie you just don't know what has happened and why did it end this way!!! Why the monkey came late? Why earth was roled by apes in the year 2029 while it was in the past?!! How did the monkeys turn into apes? Why did humans become less intelligent?!! So many missing elements that you just have to swallow without understanding. I'd still watch the next coming sequels but as for this one I won't keep it... it is good to watch once!
Rating: 
Summary: Poor update
Review: This was a such a disappointment, and sure to be a minor footnote in the history of the "Apes" movies, so it's hardly worth going into a lengthy review of what's wrong with it. First, the corny moments-- references to the original movie which just fall flat as humor or tributes (though the scene where Wahlberg's character kisses the female chimp who befriends him is a clever and unexpected turn on the original), then the monumentally stupid scene at the climax of the ape/human battle when the space chimp comes down, and the apes stop the battle to genuflect. This was supposed to the dramatic climax of the movie, for crying out loud! Compare that with the climactic scene in the '68 version, and you'll see how this one falls short. Also, the plot is way to predictable -- I had the end figured out within the first five minutes of the movie -- although, to the movie's credit, it does explain why there would be an alien world with human beings, chimps, orangutans, and gorillas. There are some good ideas in the movie, and also on the plus side, I've always wanted to the see the final scene in this movie on film since reading the original novel, from whence the scene originates. But overall, this movie has none of the drama, tension, and memorable dialogue from the original. Maybe it was the lack of memorable dialogue in the script that prompted them to re-use the most memorable lines from the original in new contexts. I'm a fan, and this is the first time I've been truly let down by Tim Burton. I've heard that the overall disappointment that greeted this film's release has ensured that there will be no sequels. Let's hope we can have an end to bad remakes of other classic '70's movies, as well.
Rating: 
Summary: great film
Review: Your ship is out of control. It's heading fast toward the ground. You maneuver it to land into water and soften your impact. Upon landing, you get out and scope the jungle all around you; you see dozens of people running from jungle monsters. They are approaching quickly, so you run with the rest of the prey. As one of these giant creatures draws near, you realize that these monsters are wearing armor and carrying weapons. You can't seem to run fast enough as these ferocious primates are making ground, and just as you make it out of the woods, one of these beasts jumps on your shoulders and knocks you flat on your back. You look up into his deadly eyes as you reach with your hands for any sort of salvation. With your right hand you find a boot, but this boot isn't empty. It's being worn by a giant ape who threatens "Get your stinking hands off me you ... dirty human."
But... Apes don't talk. Well, they do if you're Captain Leo Davidson and you just traveled far from home to land on an alien planet. "Planet of the Apes" is a great sci-fi thriller with an exciting plot, great acting, unprecedented costumes and special effects, awesome fight scenes, but with one minor blunder.
Tim Burton, director, (Batman, Ed Wood, Edward Scissorhands) recreated a classic favorite and spiced it up with modern technology and a few twists. Tim Roth (Pulp Fiction, Four Rooms, Reservoir Dogs) plays the evil General Thade. Roth delivered an outstandingly convincing performance as he played a ruthless ape that hates humans and will not stop until he sees them all dead. Roth played opposite to Marky Mark Wahlberg (Fear, The Corrupter, Three Kings). Wahlberg played Captain Leo Davidson. Leo Davidson is a simple character with just one goal: getting home.
Along with the great acting, this film had the best costumes that I have ever seen in a movie. This is without a doubt, the aspect of the movie that surpassed all that came before it. These actors where not wearing Halloween costumes, rather silicon based suits and masks that molded to the form of the actor's body. There is no way to have the apes look more real other than using real apes or machines. The costumes were excellent.
A movie can't be great by its special effects alone. This is where the plot comes to use. In the year 2029, a U.S. Air force Captain Leo Davidson, played by Mark Wahlberg, is sent to the future on a planet ruled by human killing apes. Leo is captured, later escapes, and then leads an army of humans to the forbidden zone, the area believed to be where apes where first created. Leo heads to the forbidden zone to meet up with his Air Force Wing, who is waiting for him there. ***CAUTION: Reading the rest of this might ruin the movie if you have never seen it before*** When Leo arrives he finds his old ship, however it is old, empty, run-down, and the supposed sacred temple of the apes. This is a twist. Leo then realizes that his going to the past caused his Air Force Wing to come after him, but actually landed 1000 years before him. This in turn, is what started the ape revolution.
This is not the end of the movie, as the end is really the only part of the movie that I would have liked to have seen played differently. The apes and the humans become friends and Leo hops in a space ship to go back home. He makes it back to the year 2029, but when he lands he sees that his home is now run by apes. How is this possible? How can one go to the future and because of it, change the past? How does 2029 change by actions that happen hundreds of years in the future? This doesn't make any sense. If there is some way to explain it (perhaps in a sequel) it'll have to imaginitive. Aside from its impossible ending, "Planet of the Apes" is an outstanding film with nonstop action that will keep you on the edge of your seat every time you see it. Along with its great acting, powerful plot, eventful twists, and best costumes ever made for a movie, "Planet of the Apes" is a must see movie. thanks, Marc
Rating:
Summary: This movie made a monkey out of me
Review: What a colossal waste of time! I saw it in the theater and fidgeted in my chair from the sheer stupidity of this dud; and like an idiot, I suffered till the end so I could see the ending. I won't give the ending away, but if you liked the original movie, you'll kick yourself after seeing the jerk ending in this one. So you're probably thinking I wouldn't know a good ape movie if it peeled me. Well I saw all five of the original ape movies, plus the series. And let me tell you, as a true 70s ape fan, I hated this remake. Hated it! First question: who in their right mind would let Tim Burton direct this kind of a movie (the man doesn't even know how to use a comb)? Second question: who the heck hired the [person] who was the casting director for this bomb? Third question: who concocted such an asinine ending? True, it wasn't meant to be a remake (sort of), but it wasn't a good story either. You can't ride a movie on special effects alone. And speaking of the special effects ' which are good ' I gritted my teeth when they kept milking that stupid ape-jumping effect. Once was nice, twice was okay, ten times was annoying....
Rating:
Summary: OK but not what it could have been
Review: The special effects and makeup are visually stunning, as is the picturesque world the artists who worked on it created. BUT as movies go.....not good. The characterizations were vague to the nth power and Mark W just wasn't dynamic enough in the lead role. The female lead.....Helena Bonham Carter as a gorilla....was the only character I actively cared about, but even her we don't really get to know all that well. By the time the movie is over you feel like something was missing, like this movie could have been great "if only". All in all, this DVD is worth renting but not buying.
Rating:
Summary: Fun re-imagining.
Review: "Planet of the Apes" (2001) Being a huge fan of the original, I went along to Planet of the Apes expecting an entertaining, if not brilliant film. That is exactly what you get with this movie. This movie isn't about build-up and a perfect script, it's about having fun and being entertained. On that surface, Planet of the Apes definitely succeeded. That's not saying it doesn't have flaws or anything, because this "re-imagining" of the hugely popular and classical 1968 movie does have problems. For starters, the whole mystery and atmosphere of the island is gone with this film. In the 1968 film the atmospheric tension and mysterious moodiness of Planet of the Apes is what brought it most vividly alive. In this movie, it's more about showing off the latest designing techniques and special effect mountains, not about the tension in the air. That was especially the case with the whole "ape city" part of the movie. I thought that was really quite laughable, not because it looked bad or anything, but because the apes just are amusing in the wrong way. In the 1968 movie (excuse all these comparisons) the apes are funny because they are like human replicas, treating humans like dogs. I liked that perspective of the first film. The 2001 version has the apes just seeming...funny, and completely stupid. I also disagreed - along with many - about the casting of Mark Wahlberg. I really like the guy as an actor, but in the leading performance Markie Mark just suffered. He made the character looked cold and not at all stressed or surprised that he was surrounded by a bunch of mute people and apes that can talk. Okay, so we all know he wasn't going to be a new Mr. Heston, but his performance as Leo remains very unsatisfying and his dullest to date. Despite those couple of flaws, I no doubt enjoyed myself in the action sequences, loved the makeup, and thought the scenery was gorgeous and I thoroughly (with the excuse of Wahlberg) enjoyed some of the performances. Tim Roth was especially menacing, power-hungry and amazingly ape-like in the role he was born to play. Roth may come off funny to some viewers, but hey, are apes funny? Roth was perfect casting. Another perfect casting was Helena Bonham Carter, who is known well for her continuous quality performances. In this movie she plays the most delicate and developed character and her acting helped the character become more vivid, memorable and strong. Well done there. Another thing I loved about the movie is it never slows down. Sure, I was quite bored during the development of the apes' world, but the action and sense of old-fashioned adventure make this movie amazing appealing. The movie is always on its toes, always moving, and we always have something to look at. One thing that disappointed me about the movie is - and I can't believe I'm saying this - Tim Burton's directing. He just doesn't make the film as moody or atmospheric as his previous productions. Tim does outline what he wants to do well and how he wants it done extremely well, but he could've put more effort into the way the movie looks in terms of techniques and editing, considering his previous efforts like Edward Scissorhands and Sleepy Hollow are works of atmospheric joy. However, Tim makes sure the movie starts with a bang and ends with a bang, and that's what I was interested in with Planet of the Apes. It's not perfect, but it remains one of the most eye-catching and fun movies of summer 2001. MY GRADE: B-
|
