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Somewhere in the Universe, there must be something better than man!
Astronaut Taylor crash lands on a distant planet ruled by apes who use a primitive race of humans for experimentation and sport. Soon Taylor finds himself among the hunted, his life in the hands of a benevolent chimpanzee scientist.
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Epic, meticulous, plot-driven and richly built.

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Written by TMDB members; each links to the original. Not part of Taste Buds's numbers.
It seems that this film is almost as famous for the folks who didn't take part - Marlon Brando, Edward G. Robinson, Steve McQueen and even Ingrid Bergman, as for it's achievements as a thought provoking piece of cinema. I have always found that Charlton Heston's delivery tended a touch to theatrical monologue; but it really does work in this existential sci-fi story. Returning from a space voyage to Earth several thousand years after they left, the crew discover a planet (they are not even sure which one) ruled over by apes with their own sophisticated, hierarchical, though still agrarian, society. Heston is soon captured but luckily falls under the protection of two curiously-minded scientists "Zira" (Kim Hunter) and "Cornelius" (Roddy McDowell) who suspect that there is much more to their societal beginnings than are oft quoted in the sacred scriptures by "Dr. Zaius" (Maurice Evans). The juxtapositioning of ape and man make for some quite funny scenarios and over 50 years later it still poses some relevant questions about man's assumptions and behaviour towards the rest of life on our world.
Read the whole review on TMDBHaving seen all three films from the rebooted series, I came into watching the original series expecting something relatively similar. To my pleasant surprise, it's a very different story. It's a fascinating dynamic that is set up in this version, which I in fact prefer compared to the films from the 2010s - as entertaining as they are in their own right. It's nicely paced and features good cinematography. The cast of 1968's <em>'Planet of the Apes'</em> are very good. Charlton Heston, as you might expect, sticks out the most, but Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter and Maurice Evans are good too. Everyone else is solid, as well. The effects haven't aged amazingly, for example the ape make-up/costumes are dated and clunky - particularly when the characters are speaking. That's all forgivable of course, given the release year. It's all still effective, either way. 8/10 - very close to being 9/10 in truth.
Read the whole review on TMDBThe writers turned a not very good novel into an allegory on race and religion. It also takes an nuclear stance which makes an impact in its finale. Charlton Heston is Taylor. An astronaut, part of a crew of four on a long term space mission. They crash landed in what looks like a deserted planet. Soon they encounter some hunter/gatherer human beings who do not speak. Then he finds apes on horseback who speak English. The apes treat the humans like animals. Taylor is injured by the apes and is unable to speak at first. A female ape who is a zoologist is shocked when Taylor speaks. The other apes see him as a threat. Taylor being able to talk and think is against what the apes have been taught. The answer lies in the forbidden zone as to what happened to the humans. The movie raises issues regarding race relations, the treatment of animals and adherence to holy texts. This is a powerful film famous for its twist ending.
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56 profiled raters. Loved most by The Prestige Hunters; disliked most by The Comfort Seekers.
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If you loved this film, the television, the book, the music, the game.