Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971)

Following the cataclysmic finale of Beneath the Planet of the Apes, there was only one logical direction for the series to go---> back to the future. The result is an illogically conceived and satirical prequel that will amuse and delight and ultimately devastate with its bleak Shakesperean tragedy.

When Taylor's spacecraft unexpectedly splashes down in 1973 and is retrieved by a military envoy, the three astronauts that emerge from the capsule are not revealed to be Taylor, Landon and Dodge, but rather the astonishing simian ape-o-nauts Cornelius, Zira and Milo... the third of which is a completely disposeable character who is appropriately killed off very early by a caged zoo gorilla who was probably jealous that the talking simian chimpanzees were getting all of the attention. With Milo out of the picture, the story focuses on the relationship between Cornelius and Zira in ways that were not afforded the opportunity in the two previous films and is filled with tongue-in-cheek episodes inspired by Pierre Boulle's original novel as Cornelius and Zira go around "aping" 20th century human culture (a subtle and clever mockery of our own) in an attempt to make themselves fit in to our society.

While Cornelius and Zira make themselves at home as cultural "celebrities" they are being carefully monitored under the watchful auspices of the nefarious Dr. Otto Hasslein played by recognizable character actor Eric Braeden (of Young and the Restless fame) who listens with great interest to what the talking chimps have to say about where they came from during a Presidential Inquiry and how they managed to arrive in Taylor's spacecraft as Cornelius explains that it landed on their seaboard and was repaired by Milo -an implausibility which is the film's glaring continuity error since Taylor's spacecraft immediately sunk into the depths of the Forbidden Zone it is a far fetched conclusion that they somehow managed to not only find, retrieve and repair it (even if they had repaired Astronaut Brent's crashed spacecraft from Beneath) with engineering far in advance of their own intellectual ape intelligence (which Milo only "half-understood" as Cornelius describes it) but managed to do so and escape within a very small window of time before the planet was obliterated by the shockwave of destruction catapulting them backwards in time and arriving at roughly the same destination and era as Taylor's original point of departure (it could be argued that these narrative discrepancies support the theory of "Hasslein's Observed Time Curve" which suggests that a predestination paradox created alternate intersecting timelines as illustrated by the incongruent timeline of events that occur between Conquest and Battle). Nevertheless, once you get past the narrative gaps and just go with it, Escape is a fun and dramatically intense film but is my least favorite second only to the weakest link in the evolutionary Apes chain; Battle For The Planet of the Apes.

When Zira announces that she is pregnant, the film takes a dark and conspiratorial turn when the government realizes the consequence a race of intelligent talking apes will have on the future of our human civilization. In an effort to protect their newborn (the ape who would become Caesar), Cornelius and Zira find refuge with Armando, a sideshow circus entertainer played by the extravagant Ricardo Montalban who gladly welcomes the simian family with open arms, but it isn't long before Dr. Hasslein picks up the fugitives' trail and hunts them down in a tragic and inevitable climax that sets up the paradox of the entire Planet of the Apes chronology.

"Escape From The Planet Of The Apes"

is part of the the classic SciFi

movie series begun with "Planet Of The Apes".

Three "apes" arrive in the pop culture

America of 1973 (?) from a future where

apes are the dominant and intellectually superior

species, able to communicate by spoken

language (English), and humans are as beasts.

Upon their escape, they witness the destruction

of the earth due to a weapon of warfare

created by humans and used by apes.

This film provides a thematic bridge in the

movie series, but also stands on its own.

It is both comic and tragic.

It is notable for trotting out the social

and political concerns as defined by the

pop media of the period in a

heavy-handed way and trivializing

them with humor at the same time.

Social satire well done.

The great thing about this film is that

it gives one numerous themes to consider.

It is serious and rich with meaning

while at the same time campy and fun

and ultimately tragic.

Among the interesting ideas presented are:

submission to God's will...

danger of political zealotry...

ends justifying the means...

analogy between "apes" and the negroid race...

trumping of absolute truth by majority vote...

modesty in dress vs. exhibitionism...

pacifism vs. just use of violence...

use of animals...

truth telling and omission...

...and on and on

The film is a great vehicle for discussion

and a definite candidate for repeated viewing.

Sure, the ape costumes are rather silly,

but so what;

we know they are not real apes anyway.

Last, but certainly not least, is the

great, great, great musical score

by Jerry Goldsmith. Wow!

Good plot, interesting characters,

campy humor, serious themes, great music,

action; what's not to like?

Buy Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971) Now

Even if you are not an APES series fan, this movie grows on you. It is easily the most intentionally comic of the series, and features a cleverly plotted mix of real drama and sci-fi, and placing the action in then-present day Los Angeles gives it a peculiar point of view, one that succeeds almost brilliantly. Kim Hunter and Roddy McDowall inhabit their roles so completely that you believe utterly that they are apes, and that their peril is real. Since I love the twists in a movie that give it gravity and an enduring quality, I love the strange sense of doom and tragedy that pervades this movie, even when it is at its most humorous. The final moments remain chillingly effective, and paved the way for the many, many copycat plots featured in movies yet to come. Forget BENEATH... -go directly to this movie; you will not be disappointed.

Read Best Reviews of Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971) Here

I love the original Planet of the Apes film. In my view it's a classic. I feel the movies that came after were far less than the original, and yet I'm glad for them because I really liked the characters introduced in the original movie and wanted more. This movie is one I hesitated to own because I always found it very painful to watch. And that is why I think it succeeds. This is campy, and very '70's...yet to this day I still care for Zira and Cornelius and feel pain by the end at their murder. So for that reason I think the movie succeeds. Anytime something comes along that makes me feel along with or about the characters--that's a ride I want to go on--even if it is 40 years old and very dated, almost silly by today's standards.

Want Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971) Discount?

This installment in the POTA series is not as child friendly as some reviewers would have you believe. Despite the lighthearted scenes of Zira speaking for the first time to the unexpected, the presidential inquiry, and the apes tour of the city. This movie has a serious and sometimes grim tone with a sad and tragic ending that may upset some children. I would recommend that you watch this in it's entirety first before you decide if this is suitable for your children. There is no nudity or profanity, so it's safe in that respect. I saw this for the first time when I was roughly 13 years old and the ending traumatized me to no end. I may have been a little extra sensetive then, but to this day I can not forgive Eric Braeden. He played the part of Otto Hasslein too well.

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