In the fifty years since its 1968 debut, the Planet of the Apes franchise has remained one of the most complex, thought-provoking franchises in film. Its obvious resonances with racial tension and societal prejudice have always made the franchise relevant, and the latest trilogy set in the Planet of the Apes universe injected even more life into the franchise's veins. With the franchise comprising a vast array of films, some good and some bad, it makes for a fascinating set of films to rank.
The franchise includes nine films in total. 1968's Planet of the Apes gave way to a total of five films, and was also remade in 2001 by Tim Burton. The more recent trilogy, which began in 2011 and ended in 2017, acts as a prequel to the original films.
The strength of the reboots is a testament to the franchise as a whole. Many modern-day reboots and adaptations flounder, struggling to justify the decision to bring them back into the cultural discourse at all. The premise of simians overtaking humans as the dominant species on earth has proven irresistible, and manages to connect to contemporary politics and anxieties no matter the decade. Debate will always rage on as to which era of Planet of the Apes deserves the most praise, but a proper ranking of the franchise's nine films highlights the intrigue that has followed the talking apes wherever they've gone.
When Planet of the Apes first emerged in 1968, Hollywood franchises were few and far between. So, when the success of the first film prompted 20th Century Fox to consider a sequel, star Charlton Heston was skeptical. Heston ultimately returned for 1970's Beneath the Planet of the Apes in the form of a cameo, and only under the condition that he can blow up planet earth by the film's end. The vanishing of earth at the end of Beneath could have killed the franchise altogether, but a whole bunch of time-traveling shenanigans ensured that Planet of the Apes could live on.
In truth, the greater threat posed to the franchise by Beneath was the film's nonsensical story, which drew attention away from the titular apes and instead focused on a group of telepathic humans who worship an underground nuclear bomb. The premise has gained greater traction in the wake of the recent trilogy, leading to some fascinating fan theories, but it did not make a particularly strong impression as the initial follow-up to one of the most innovative sci-fi films of all time.
1973's Battle for the Planet of the Apes had so much potential. It was the fifth and final film in the original series, detailing the events of ape leader Caesar's battle to maintain apes' freedom. The battle is framed by a narrative set several hundred years in the future, in which an orangutan named Lawgiver accounts Caesar's struggle for an audience of apes and humans alike.
Battle offered a clear confrontation with the franchise's sociopolitical roots, and yet it failed to engage with these ideas in any meaningful way. Instead, it staged uninteresting fight sequences filled with unfunny quips from a cast mostly phoning it in. Even the chimpanzee makeup felt rather underwhelming in this final entry. Many of Battle's plot points were recycled decades later in Dawn and War, further highlighting just how wasted they were in the early 70's.
Tim Burton's take on Planet of the Apes is a difficult film to assess. It pretty much makes no sense, particularly its bizarre ending. It's technically a remake of the first film in the franchise, but it simultaneously works as a sequel to the film, taking place several hundred years in the future. 2001's Planet of the Apes remains blissfully unconcerned with the politics that have so heavily defined the other eight films. Instead, it operates like a silly B-movie. And in that sense, it works pretty well.
Sure, Planet of the Apes is the definition of mindless entertainment, but the film's ape prosthetics are pretty impressive, and are a clear upgrade from the costuming in the original films, which still remains impressive in its own right. Burton, who is not the first director to consider an Apes reboot, offers enough in the way of spectacle to make his take on the franchise worthwhile, even if the film's script is mediocre at best.
Conquest of the Planet of the Apes likely bears the worst name out of any film in the Apes franchise, but it does have one important thing going for it: Caesar. Indeed, 1972's Conquest marked audiences' introduction to Caesar, the young ape who would go on to lead a revolution in later films. The recent trilogy's tight focus on its version of Caesar likely made him a more memorable character, but Conquest still told a compelling story of an ape wrestling with his mistrust of humans.
Like many of the original sequels, Conquest does play things a bit safe. It refrains from fully engaging with the many themes bubbling beneath its surface, and behaves more like an action-packed blockbuster instead. Of course, there's nothing inherently wrong with opting for spectacle over substance, but the action in the film is far from spectacular. Still, considering the uneven nature of the early sequels, Conquest has a lot going for it.
In the wake of Tim Burton's disastrous attempt at rebooting Planet of the Apes in 2001, the franchise faded into obscurity for a decade. Its triumphant return in 2011, however, proved to be worth the wait. Rupert Wyatt's Rise of the Planet of the Apes offered a bold new vision for what the Apes franchise could be. The film follows Alzheimer's researcher Will Rodman (James Franco) as he bonds with Caesar, a young ape who he rescued from the lab. Their relationship, and the journey it sends them on, ultimately becomes the driving force behind apes' rise to dominance.
Caesar is brought to life via motion-capture by actor Andy Serkis. Serkis' performance is mesmerizing, and his work only improves through each iteration of the new films. Serkis and the rest of Rise's cast do a great job of setting up all the dominos that will fall in the next two films in the trilogy, but the film does feel a little formulaic in its storytelling. Still, its ability to bridge the gap between two distinct generations of the Apes franchise is laudable.
The fact that 1971's Escape from the Planet of the Apes is among the best of the original sequels is a small miracle. Its premise seemed destined for failure. After all, the dramatic ending in Beneath forced Escape to begin with a convoluted explanation as to how and why protagonists Cornelius and Zira managed to time travel to 1973, allowing the story to go on. A Planet of the Apes film set in a planet of humans should have been a trainwreck, but the film manages to tell an intimate story dealing with issues of corruption and guilt.
By placing its apes into our world, Escape clearly connected with the ongoing anxieties at the time of its release. Even today, the film feels relevant for its overt discussion of racial unrest and social division. It also works as a loving sendoff to some of the characters who had defined the franchise up until that point.
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is commonly considered the greatest entry in the Planet of the Apes franchise, and for good reason. It certainly features the greatest antagonist in the franchise's history in Koba. The political rift between Koba and Caesar is nothing short of fascinating, and it continues to deepen as the film goes on. The film is rich with social commentary, emphatically proving that big-budget blockbusters could maintain the kind of intelligence more often associated with smaller fare. Dawn's multifaceted success is due in large part to director Matt Reeves, who replaced Rupert Wyatt as director of the final two films in the trilogy.
Reeves also achieves something rare in an Apes film by making his human characters equally as compelling as the apes. Keri Russell, Jason Clarke, and Gary Oldman all deliver some of their best work in Dawn, and provide a chilling glimpse into what human society looks like in the wake of the simian flu.
1968's Planet of the Apes spawned eight more films, as well as a slew of TV shows, comic books, novels, and video games. And still, it remains one of the franchise's greatest achievements, as well as one of the most spectacular sci-fi films of all time. The film will always be remembered for its iconic ending, which established a planet full of talking apes as a terrifying possibility right here on earth. However, the film excels throughout, carried in large part by lead performer Charlton Heston, whose delivery of several classic lines is filled with genuine passion and fear.
Also worth mentioning is Roddy McDowall, whose performance as Cornelius is nothing short of excellent, and yet it gets lost amidst the film's well-deserved praise for its transformative practical effects. Even as Andy Serkis revolutionized the Apes films with his use of mo-cap technology, there is a certain charm in the original apes' appearance that will forever remain impressive.
Closing out a trilogy is no easy task, as can be evidenced in everything from the Matrix trilogy to Christopher Nolan's Batman trio. Closing out a trilogy with one of the greatest sci-fi films ever made? Even harder. And yet, Matt Reeves achieved exactly that with 2017's War for the Planet of the Apes. The film is nothing short of epic, putting Serkis' Caesar through unprecedented turmoil on both a physical and emotional level. Reeves takes obvious inspiration from classic war movies like Apocalypse Now and Bridge on the River Kwai, but the film never feels derivative. Rather, it remains faithful to the characters and the environment that had captivated fans for so long.
War also features perhaps the best score in the franchise's history, which is particularly impressive considering just how crucial earlier scores were to their respective entries in the Apes franchise. For such a grand film, War manages to craft some beautifully intimate moments, largely centered around Caesar and Nova, a young girl who accompanies the apes on their final journey towards salvation. Over the course of nine films, the Planet of the Apes franchise offers some of the brightest moments in the history of filmmaking, but its most recent effort stands out as the franchise's crown jewel. As Disney looks towards creating a new take on the acclaimed franchise, one can only hope they recognize what has made Planet of the Apes so successful for so long.
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