|
Stars: (Movie)
|
 |
|
Stars (DVD):
|
 |
Stuff Blowed Up: |  |
As expected, the effects for “The Planet of The Apes” are considerably improved over the original, but the changes to the story remove most of the elements that made the original a classic. The conflict between science and religion is gone – Dr. Zaus would have made this a better movie. Ari's concern for the humans is meant to be compassionate, but mostly cones across as being politically correct. And the much discussed surprise ending first looks like it's going to be a reset-to-zero copout, then turns to something that's just goofy.
The apes do lots of acrobatics, and their unreal swoops and massive jumps will have you looking for the wires. It gives the movie and “Crouching Monkey, Hidden Chimp” feel.
The DVD offers lots of fascinating extras. There are a half dozen detailed documentaries discussing everything including makeup (of course) how the made the apes outrun horses at full gallop, Ape School, where humans learned to be more apelike and apes got lesions in being human. The result is a disk where the “making of” stories are more interesting than the movie itself.
© 2003 Dave Hitt