Escape From the Planet of the Apes (1971)

 

It might be strange to hear that a sequel in the series called 'Planet of the Apes' would be one of the best by foregoing the science fiction and focusing instead on the characters, but here we are. This one is truly one of the best of the lot. 

Heck, I might even say the best sequel of the original run. 

When a spaceship is discovered floating off the coast of Los Angeles, it is quickly brought ashore as the military has identified it as the ship with which Taylor left Earth two years prior. Everyone is shocked though, to find that the three astronauts are in fact apes. They are in fact Cornelius, Zira and dr Milo, but they keep silent as they realize that they have gone back in time and humans of this era might become hostile towards them.

How they got back in time gets a little of the 'sort of' scientific explanation. Let's put it down to the explosion of Earth (from the previous movie) warped them back in time somehow. No, it doesn't really add up. No, it doesn't really matter either.

After Milo is killed by a gorilla, Zira and Cornelius quickly befriend two doctors at the zoo, Lewis and Stevie and shortly after the world comes to discover that they can speak and that they come from the future. They are hailed as the new darlings all across the board, and pretty much get invited to any shindig and what have you. But there is one person that doesn't feel comfortable with our chimpanzee friends, and that is doctor Hasslein. He soon gets the paranoid idea that the downfall of man and the destruction of the human race can be stopped by killing Cornelius and Zira, especially as it transpires that Zira is pregnant. 

So they run, accidentally killing an orderly in the process. They find refuge with Armando, a circus owner who is a massive fan of Saint Francis of Assissi and who loves and adores all animals. But when the search tightens, Cornelius and Zira have to run yet again, closely followed by Hasslein...

There isn't a whole lot of science fiction here. No, this feels more akin to a study of the human condition as humanity first adores novelties and then quickly discards them or grows to hate them. You get to spend so much time with Cornelius and Zira and McDowall and Hunter play them so wonderfully, it's very hard not to fall in love with the characters. Especially Kim Hunter does a marvelous job. And even though our two scientists are nice people, Ricardo Montalban steals the show for the few minutes he is on screen. 

Dude had quite the presence, trust me.

But things wouldn't work as well without an icy villain in the form of Dr Hasslein. He is especially good as what he says makes sense in a horrendous sort of way. He also truly believes that what he is doing is the right thing and thàt always makes for compelling evildoers. You slowly see the wheel turning and quickly realize that after the initial love for our chimpanzees, the downfall is sure to come. 

I won't spoil the ending, but suffice to say it is heartbreaking. 

Yes, there is sequel bait, which everyone will see coming a mile away. But that doesn't take away from the gutwrench right before this. 

This one is really, really good. Sure, it might depend on your ability to watch people in ape masks doing their thing, but still: this is why you need great actors to portray characters in heavy makeup, because they can bring a ton of personality to the role. 

Go ahead and watch it. It helps if you've seen the first two, but even on its own, this one comes  recommended.