Rating: 
Summary: Movie is Good, But the Audio Stinks
Review: While I thought this movie was good when I first saw it as a kid (and I still do), I was very disappointed in the audio quality of the DVD version. The video clarity was impressive in its 2.35:1 widescreen presentation but they advertised the audio as being supported in 5.1 Dolby. There were absolutely no sounds coming out of the rear or front side speakers, even during action scenes. Also the DVD met THX certification, but you would never know it by listening to it. The clarity did not sound digital and as previously stated there was no stereo (Dolby 2.0) sound.Overall I would recommend the DVD if you just want to see the movie. But don't expect much from the audio as I feel we DVD-fanatics have come too used to today's blockbusters.
Rating: 
Summary: Let's put some British Actors in the Ape Suits-
Review: That way, with Maurice Evans and Roddy McDowell, they'll HAVE to concede our outer-space monkey opera is respectable! (Sheesh...)
It absolutely mystifies me what adults see in this movie. I've heard the arguement that it's ABOUT something, insofar as Heston and his ape supporters are tried for challenging an established doctrine of the ape world, but this is specious. It's easy to tell a "challenging" story about how people should stand up for intellectual freedom when you stack the deck allegorically, making the antagonists apes from another world and our hero the sole leading man type human in the entire story. (Now, if they made the hero a talking goat or sea otter, well, you would've had my attention...)
When I watched this bilgewater for a class in college, I couldn't help but allow my mind to wander- I wondered if Charleton Heston was perceived as being the scenery-chewer that he was when this picture was released in 1968(surely SOMEBODY noticed), and I wondered to what degree the writers who worked on this script chose camp for the utterances that spout out of the mouths of Heston and the others. Were we supposed, in 1968, to think Heston was hip when he said "never trust anyone over thirty?" Or what about Heston telling Kim Hunter, "may I kiss you Doctor?" and she(an ape doctor)replies, "Well, all right, but you're so ugly." But the two best ones are:
"Get your stinkin' paws off me, you damn dirty ape!" And "Damn you! Damn you all to hell!"
at the end. I will obey the convention and not give away the suprising
(but ridiculous) ending, and not tell you what Heston figures out at the end, just in case you're one of the 4 or 5 people left who:
1. Hasn't seen it
AND
2.Hasn't already heard about it.(the ending) Yes, it will surprise you, but the surprise eventually seems a little sophomoric, like the whole enterprise. After the novelty of Planet of the Apes '68 wears off, you may realize that its ironies are at the level of a precocious pre-adolescent who wants to be a writer, some day. This is a kid's movie, which wouldn't be so bad if we were spared the pretense of profundity. Roddy McDowell and Kim Hunter are good as the talking scientists, given what they have to do, and Maurice Evans does supply a well-rounded villain who feels he has to protect the status quo at any cost. And this is by far the best of the series. Yes, even with Charlton Heston.
Rating: 
Summary: The first of the Space Operas.....and still a classic!!!
Review: What can be said about 1968. It was a turbulent year for many. The United States was torn apart due to the youth protests over the Vietnam War. The assassinations of both Dr. Martin Luthur King, Jr. and Presidential Candidate Robert Kennedy. The violence of the National Democratic Convention in Chicago, Illinois. The Apollo 8 moon mission. The release of two MGM classic films, 2001:A Space Odyssey and Ice Station Zebra. Science and Technology progressing furthur than political and social knowledge. It was a wonder, if not a miracle, that we got out of the '60's alive. It was around the summer of 1968 that a classic science fiction film would address the civil unrest that the world was going through. Not just here, but everywhere on the Earth. The name of this masterpiece from 20th Century Fox was none other than....Planet Of The Apes. Set at first in 1973, the film begins with four astronauts. Three men and one woman. One of the men, Colonel Taylor, has gotten so sick and distressed with the state of humanity, that he virtually exiles himself from the human race, by going on the deep space mission for NASA. The film flash forwards to a stunning scene where the space probe crashes in the lake of a rocky, hilly, semi-arid planet with sparse forestation. When the female astronaut is killed in the crash, Taylor and the two young men escape when the ship starts to sink. At first the three survivors think that they are on another planet orbiting the star Bellatrix, in the constellation of Orion. During the course of the film, Taylor and his friends come upon a race of humans who are mute, and have the appearance of prehistoric man and woman. During that encounter, Taylor's two friends are killed when an army of Apes appear. Being rounded up with the rest of the mute humans, Taylor is held prisoner at first. It is only when he befriends two kind chimpanzee scientists and another young ape, that Taylor reveals how intelligent he is to his captors. That revelation not only surprises the ape population, but also sneds them into a state of panic. Knowing that Taylor will soon be disposed of, the two chimpanzees, Cornelius and Zira, along with Zira's nephew Lucius, help Taylor and a female mute human named Nova, escape from their imprisonment. There, they flee into a desert area called the Forbidden Zone, where they find the remnants of the human race, and a shocking answer that not only takes Taylor by surprise, but everyone else who has watched the movie. What can be said about Planet Of The Apes. Charlton Heston summed it up best. "It was the first of the space operas." Not only that, it has gone on to become a futuristic, post apocalyptic, science fiction adventure. A film that not entertains, but also addresses many key issues about our society and the problems that the human race still suffers from to this day. Charlton Heston does a remarkable performance as Taylor, a man so much of a cynical and sarcastic misanthrope who is ironically thrusted into the role of man's savior. The late British actors Roddy McDowall and Maurice Evans also bring out remarkable perormances as Cornelius and the human-hating and fearing Dr. Zaius. Even Kim Hunter and Linda Harrison give remarkable performances as Zira and Nova. The soundtrack by Jerry Goldsmith is powerful, if not beautiful. And the script written by Rod Serling and Michael Wilson, is also solid and thought-provoking. Right until the shocking conclusion where we learn about where Taylor was all along. If you enjoy science fiction, you will enjoy Planet Of The Apes. The 1968 version is alot better than Tim Burton's re-imagining. Most of all, you will be astounded and totally surprised by this wonderful and cerebral masterpiece of the genre.
Rating:
Summary: The original, and by far the best
Review: I've seen the original Planet of the Apes about three times, and still rate it the number 1 apes film. Michael Wilson and Rod Serling's screenplay is intelligent, and Franklin Schaffner is a wonderful director. Starring Charlton Heston and Kim Hunter (She was more important in this one than Roddy Mcdowall) this film still sends social messages and is wildly entertaining.
The story begins with Colonel George Taylor (Charlton Heston), the leader of a band of astronauts, falling asleep. A year later, the spacecraft crashes in the water of an unfamiliar planet. He and his crew (except Stuart, the lovely female astronaut) escape and go to shore. Taylor, after checking the clocks, knows that in his time, his crew and him were away from Earth for 18 months. But 2,000 years passed on Earth. The astronauts move across the desert, and discover a watering hole in the forest. They also encounter primitive humans. While eating, the humans and astronauts are hunted by intelligent gorillas. They kill one astronaut. Taylor is shot and taken captive. He meets a sympathetic chimpanzee named Zira (Kim Hunter) and her husband Cornelius (Roddy Mcdowall). Taylor, a human who once had believed that man was not worth studying anymore, finds himself defending human kind, mating with a girl named Nova (Linda Harrison) and hunted by the orangutan leader Dr. Zauis (Marice Evans). The film's true stars are: Charlton Heston, Marice Evans, Kim Hunter, Roddy McDowall, and Linda Harrison. Produced by Arthur P. Jacobs, the film was beautiful. John Chambers created fairly good makeup (The Oranutans look the most realistic, even though the male orangs look like female orangs), and the film remains a classic.
Rating:
Summary: By Far The Best!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Review: This Movie Is about a team of astronauts,who leave Earth in the Year 1970,to go out and sleep untill the ship lands,and when it lands the 3 men and 1 woman are supposed to try and set up a colony,wherever they land.....Well,when they wake up they lady's dead,she died in hibernation,but anyway,they've landed in the middle of a lake and they are forced to abandon ship...but before they leave they see the clock,they've been asleep for about 2,000 years!Now with a small amount of food they have to see if this strange planet has life,or if it can sustain life....Boy,are they in for a surprise!they find a "herd" of humans,but they seem wild,uncivilized,and they can't speak....Then the Apes come,and the hunt the humans,with guns,they speak,and they appear to be cililized!Of what's left of the team,only Taylor seems to be left,he sees one of his partners die,and he's seperated from the other....Anyway,Taylor is captured,and taken for research and experimentation on by By Dr,Zira,a Chimpanzee.....After she begins to think Taylor may be different,than the Average wild human and he proves to her that hes differnet when,after a hit on the head he can talk again,he brings something to the Apes that they Fear most:Change..........
Rating:
Summary: THE ONLY GOOD HUMAN IS A DEAD HUMAN
Review: The new planet of the apes was totally better-with neater makeup
and Wahlberg doesnt whine as much as heston did. I have seen all of the planet of the apes movies-my favorite one
is battle for planet of the apes. The best scene was when the apes are hunting the humans and just
shoot and kill them while capturing them! I thought it was good because I hate humans-all they do is kill
other humans and butcher endangered species just so they can make
a few bucks! This one is about a astronaut who crash lands on a strange planet
ruled by apes and they have put humans into slavery and abuse them as well.
(good!) I was dissapointed with how it ended-because I was expecting
a battle scene like in the new one-but in this one they just
let Heston go. Whatever! GET YOUR STINKIN HANDS OFF ME YOU DAMN DIRTY HUMAN! NEXT YOU'LL BE TELLING US THESE HUMAN BEASTS HAVE A SOUL! KILL THEM ALL!
Rating:
Summary: Don't be Turned Off by Sequels
Review: The Planet of the Apes series as a whole has deservedly earned itself a reputation as embarassing, schlocky and terrible. However, the sequels were all written and directed by other people who apparently missed the point of the first movie and wound up rewriting the origins of the planet in a way that completely robbed the series of any serious message or impact. This first movie is an excellent satire on both dogmatic thinking and on the self-destructiveness of man. The excellent script, adapting the original novel, is by Rod Serling of Twilight Zone fame. Unfortunately, these days many people who have not bothered watching the movie know the (originally) surprise ending. But even then it is a very effective film, so don't worry about knowing the surpise ruining the movie. It is still quite exciting, entertaining viewing. Even the scenery and costumes avoid appearing dated unlike most 1970s sci-fi films, including that masterpiece 2001. The make-up is great for its time (and won a special Academy Award before f/x or makeup were regular categories), although the mouths on the apes don't move much (in contrast to Burton's version). The only real weakness of the film is Charlton Heston's horrid overacting, which detracts from the serious message of the film, but it is fun to watch him spewing such lines as "IT'S A MADHOUSE!". And, yes, sometimes the filmmakers hit you on the head with their message. But don't let prejudice stop you from watching this film. This movie only has any bad rep at all as the result of guilt by association with the sequels.
Rating: 
Summary: Terrific classic
Review: This film, compared to Tim Burton's new version, is obviously better. John Chambers could definately have done better makeup, though. This film, however, had better actors, more suprises, and a much gentler society. Astronaut George Taylor (Charlton Heston) and his men crsh-land on an unfamiliar planet in the Earth year 3955. They travel to a corn field where they meet mute, primitive humans. Taylor is soon hunted by a group of gorillas and taken to a primitive city. Orangutang politicians rule the planet, the gorillas make up the army, and the kindly chimpanzees are the intuectuals. Taylor is helped by the chimp Zira (Kim Hunter) and her husband Cornielius (Roddy Mcdowall). The three tryto escape Dr. Zeis (Marice Evans) and the army. All in all, this was a great film. The makeup of the new one was better, but this one had better action. This film also gives Charlton Heston some great lines, one he would say in the new film. "Take yer stinkin` paws off me you damn dirty ape!" "Damn you! Damn you all to hell!"
Rating:
Summary: Classic
Review: A stew of 1960's social commentary (due to too mant writers--including Twilight Zone's Rod Srrling) can't dampen the impact of this film. Excuse the make up (which was revolutionary for the time) and sit back and enjoy astronaut Taylor's struggle to deal with this "Madhouse!" Before POTA, science fiction was rayguns and bugeyed aliens. This movie proved that explore important themes, such as freedom, racism, nuclear war, human value, and even animal cruelty. One does ot have to be a science fiction fan to enjoy POTA. I however, am a science fiction fan, and find it to be a rockin' good time. I still watch in order to relive the feeling I first got when Taylor finds the Statue of Liberty. You do all remember that moment, yes? L)
Rating:
Summary: Fabulous, even after all these years
Review: Still one of the best SF films ever made. Fabulous in so many ways: the Wilson/Serling script; the direction by Franklin Schaeffner; William Creber's beautiful starship; the acting by Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter, Maurice Evans, James Whitmore, Woodrow Parfrey, and, oh yeah, Chuck Heston. And, of course, the makeup by John Chambers. I love this film, and this DVD is a beautiful transfer. Highly recommended.
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