Subject: Review: Planet of the Apes (2001)

From: Christian Pyle <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 01 Dec 2001 02:26:10 -0000

Planet of the Apes
Reviewed by Christian Pyle
Directed by Tim Burton
Written by William Broyles Jr., Lawrence Konner, and Mark Rosenthal (based on 
the novel by Pierre Boulle)
Starring Mark Wahlberg, Tim Roth, Helena Bonham Carter, and Michael Clarke 
Duncan
Grade: C

Twentieth Century Fox has been trying to get a new "Planet of the Apes" 
franchise up and running for awhile.  The still-popular 1968 original spawned 
four sequels, two TV series, and countless merchandising, so a reprise was 
inevitable.  When Tim Burton took over the project (from Oliver Stone, of all 
people), I had high hopes; Burton has a gift for turning cult camp into 
engaging films (see "Batman," "Ed Wood," "Mars Attacks").  However, this 
"Planet" is unevolved.

The astronaut running from monkeys this time is Capt. Leo Davidson (Mark 
Wahlberg).  While working on a deep-space research station in 2029, cocky Leo 
flies into a strange electrical storm and finds himself transported to a 
planet ruled by apes.  He's abducted with a group of primitive humans, 
including beautiful Daena (Estella Warren) and her father (Kris 
Kristofferson), who will be sold as slaves to the simian aristocrats.  While 
in captivity, Leo meets ruthless General Thade (Tim Roth), who is bent on 
eradicating all humans, and human rights advocate Ari (Helena Bonham Carter), 
the rebellious daughter of a senator (David Warner).  Before long, Leo has 
escaped from bondage and led Daena, Ari, and a mixed group of humans and apes 
out of the city.  The rebellion finally gets Thade permission to exterminate 
humanity . . . 

The original "Planet" with Charlton Heston, who has a cameo in the remake as 
Thade's father, had a disarming freshness that no remake can recapture.  Like 
a lot of 1960's science fiction, "Planet 1968" mixed social commentary with 
the action in a way that made the film seem like an allegory.  True, its 
commentary picked easy targets and tended to be simplistic.  The main subject 
was the conflict between science and religion, which was reduced to "science 
good / religion bad."  However, it worked because the allegorical aspect made 
its simplicity charming.  

The commentary in Burton's "Planet" seems trite and forced.  Burton's target 
is racism, with the apes as the "master race" and the humans as the oppressed 
minority.  The script seems peppered with race-related soundbites just to 
lend some depth to a superficial storyline.  The screenwriters for "Planet 
2001" seem to have borrowed the basic plot outline from "Antz" (power-mad 
general bent on genocide, young female aristocrat who teams up with a 
lower-class rebel on the run), but they forgot to borrow the cleverness of 
that film's dialogue.

Most of "Planet" seemed tedious.  The only part I liked was the controversial 
ending.  "Planet 1968" was co-written by "Twilight Zone" creator Rod Serling, 
and its memorable twist ending was one of his best.  So, "Planet 2001" is 
obliged to provide a similar twist, and it does.  Burton's ending inverts the 
original version's ending while paying homage to it.  The ending's a lot more 
clever than the rest of "Planet 2001."

© 2001 Christian L. Pyle

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X-RAMR-ID: 30340
X-Language: en
X-RT-ReviewID: 269288
X-RT-TitleID: 1108704
X-RT-AuthorID: 1057
X-RT-RatingText: C