Planet of the Apes (2001)
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Helena Bonham Carter, Paul Giamati, Estelle Warren
Director: Tim Burton
Synopsis: Burton's 'reimagining' of original sci-fi classic where Apes rule the planet.
Reviewed by: Ali Khan

Captain Leo Davidson (Wahlberg), US Air force, follows his trainee chimpanzee into a time warp only to find himself marooned on a planet where the roles between ape and human have been reversed. Apes rule and humans are reduced to the status of slaves. Davidson reluctantly leads a minor human revolt against the apes, assisted by human rights activist chimpanzee, Ari (Bonham Carter). But opposed and pursued by the rabidly anti-human General Thade (Roth) the humans and their small band of renegade apes' options are quickly running out.

The remake of the 1968 version of Planet of the Apes has had a difficult re-birth. Started and stalled several times it has also been through numerous possible casts (Swarzenegger) and directors (Jim Cameron, Oliver Stone). When Tim Burton came aboard, fans of the original rejoiced that the 'visionary' director who gave the caped crusader his new dark and brooding screen image had come on board. In many ways, Planet of the Apes was a film crying out for an update. In 1968 the original film directed by Franklin J. Schaffner had pushed the barriers of Sci-Fi at a time when the genre was in need of revitalisation. But with a 30-year gap and the advances made in special effects, Planet of the Apes - 2001, was a remake worth looking forward to.

Unfortunately, even as a stand-alone film Burton's 're-imagining' is largely forgettable summer fare though it may still qualify as the best of what has been a terribly mediocre year. However, when compared to the original the film pales further. While the 1968 version was a gamble at the time of release - being green lighted only because of Charlton Heston's personal belief in the film - the update has been stripped of all the intelligence of its predecessor. The original was an incisive satire on American society in the late 1960s commenting on concerns such as the threat of nuclear war. The reversal of roles also allowed issues such as racism and religious indoctrination to be tackled in an indirectly forthright manner. The result was a multi-layered film that despite its age remained a frank and stinging comment on modern day society.

With so much baggage to boot, Burton had his hands full in trying to emulate what over the years become an iconic film and this constrains him throughout his remake. Somewhat surprisingly Burton, who was at pains to clarify that his film was not a remake but a reimagining, decided to adhere to an 'Ape city' that is pre-industrial - as in the original film - but unlike Pierre Boulle's novel which is set in a post modern environment. The human characters - lead by Wahlberg's astronaut are one dimensional and wholly uninteresting - none more so than Estelle Warren - the skimpily clad 'love interest'. Wahlberg's understated school of acting also plays against the movie - for much of the film the audience are made to feel that he has simply landed in a slightly different neighbourhood rather than a planet run by apes. Much of the visual impact of actually seeing the apes talking and on horseback is also lost because this time round the audience knows exactly what to expect. The result is far less dramatic with a distinctly weaker feeling of alienation - Burton's humans have also not lost the faculty of speech - unlike the first film.

More predictably Burton is more at home with his ape characters - Bonham-Carter radiates a beauty beyond her ape features and Tim Roth's vicious General Thade is suitably over the top. Paul Giamatti provides the comedy in bearable doses and Rick Baker's make up is suitably impressive.

But despite this the films characterisations overall let the film down. For example, the love triangle between Wahlberg, Bonham-Carter and Estelle Warren, while fun in a way, never really makes sense. Far more realistic was Kim Hunter's (playing Bonham-Carter's role in the original) comment when faced with kissing Charlton Heston - if only you weren't so ugly! Quite why Bonham-Carter's Ari develops such a crush on Wahlberg's astronaut is a mystery. The film falters further towards the end as Burton first tries to tie up the loose ends and then to pull off an ending with the same cinematic appeal as the famous Statue of Liberty conclusion of the original.

There are a few short glimpses of Burton's quirky vision (apes removing false teeth, teenage apes enjoying a night out) as well as some homage to the original. Charlton Heston has a cameo as the father of General Thade and utters his famous words - Damn them, damn them all to hell - again - except that whereas in the first film he cursed his fellow humans for the nuclear holocaust - this time he utters the same phrase as a dying ape. Linda Harrison who played Estelle Warren's role in the original is also in there somewhere.

Undoubtedly expectations for Planet of the Apes (2001) were high but despite that the film has been a disappointment. Burton was expected to have brought much more to the film and he should have done so. Unfortunately, this is by far and away his least characteristic film lacking the stunning visual flair or the quirky characterisation that is his forte. Instead Planet of the Apes is very much middle of the road blockbuster material - enjoyable enough but ultimately disappointing partly because of expectations and partly because of inherent weaknesses in the film itself. In the end the two films set apart by 33 years are reflection of changing audience tastes. In 1968 cinemagoers were more willing to accept a slow moving, serious film dealing with contemporary issues. Today's Apes caters to an audience with shorter attention spans and a demand for more escapist fare - an altogether quite different dish. If things continue this way it may not be that long before apes take over the directorial reigns from humans!