Beneath the Planet of the Apes

I’ve often thought of Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970) as my favorite of all the "Planet of the Apes" movies, but it’s been awhile since I watched it, so I’m writing down my observations as I do. The early scene where Brent sees the apes for the first time, at a war rally, where the general of the gorillas (Ursus) is giving a speech about how "the only good human is a dead human!"—I notice he sounds a lot like the reindeer coach in Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)—but no, it's actually James Gregory, the character actor who appeared in every cop show known to man. Orson Welles was offered the part, which would have—especially if he had eschewed the ape makeup—taken it to another level. The part of Brent was actually first offered to Burt Reynolds, but they couldn't figure out how to work a Trans Am into the story. It also occurs to me how much better the movie would be with Michael Caine in the Brent part. He’s horrified by the sight of the apes, you can just hear him: “It’s a bloody nightmare, that's what it is.”

The story is about some astronauts who come looking for Taylor and his crew, from the previous movie, somehow retracing their steps... into the future. Brent, the only one who survives, as played by James Franciscus, is kind of lame—pretty much a stand-in for Charlton Heston, who appears only briefly, obviously only available for about a week of filming. Franciscus is a pale substitute… but oddly resembles Heston, to the extent that when meeting him, Dr. Zira (Kim Hunter) thinks he is Taylor at first (of course, "all humans look the same"). He looks even more like the white, Western version of Jesus than Heston does. For awhile then, it’s about, on the human side, these beautiful, hot humans, Brent and Nova, running around in animal skins that miraculously keep breasts and genitals covered; you keep watching because it’s only a matter of time before something falls out (but of course nothing ever does; it’s called editing). On the ape side, they try to set up a philosophical allegory with the human condition, which is kind of amusing, but is a bit simplistic. When I was a little kid I thought the different types of apes were supposed to represent different races, not comprehending until later how offensive that is. What I didn't realize then was that they were actually meant to represent stereotypical residents of the the different boroughs of New York—which is also offensive—and doesn't quite work. And the whole story might be most offensive to gorillas, who are highly intelligent, peaceful animals.

For awhile then the movie proceeds as a lame western: there is the chase, the capture, the chase, the capture, on and on... danger, injury, getaway. Finally, it’s a tremendous relief, nearly halfway through the movie, when Brent and Nova venture underground—the “Beneath”—and this is what always inspired my imagination—the weird, underground, tile passageways—a fond memory that has helped make the NYC subway system more bearable as an adult. Unfortunately, the most disturbing part of the movie also comes in here, when the mutants psychically control Brent's mind and make him shove Nova's head underwater in a rancid fountain. I'm sure this scene strikes a chord with the members of the audience who regularly witness domestic abuse, but I could do without it.



"I reveal my Inmost Self unto my God."

Finally, we get to meet the mutants, who are "highly evolved" people who live underground in constant fear of being invaded by the apes. They have lost their exterior layer of skin, I guess due to radiation, or maybe having no need for it, as they never venture into the sunlight. For some reason, however, they wear rubber masks that make them look like "normal" humans. The really disturbing thing, I always thought, was that they actually look scarier —and maybe this is the result of subtle makeup and good acting—with the masks on than off!

Another Biblical pose—it's all in a day's work.

Eventually, Brent and Taylor (Charlton Heston) meet up, and the odd thing is that Taylor is a full head taller than Brent, even though they came from the same time period of the past. It's like Brent is the Taylor ventriloquist dummy. He holds up in a fight, however—and the reason they fight is because one of the mutants uses his psychic ability to make them fight—and because you can't have an action movie without some really, really tedious, brutal, hand-to-hand combat. Brent and Taylor just prove to be too distracting for the mutants, however, who let up their guard and allow the apes to invade their underground hideout. The mutants are only able to hold off the aggressors by using illusions, and ultimately the war loving gorillas are depicted as being too dumb to hold the illusions. It seems the mutants have expected this all along and have prepared for this day by worshiping a doomsday bomb which they seem all too happy to utilize. Really, all along, you realize they suffer from nothing so much as poor self-images. Even in the end they are really pretty lame, and it's Heston who gets to push the button.

Finally, after the action has mercifully ceased, we hear a narrator who seems to have been borrowed from an educational film: "In one of the countless galaxies of the universe lies a medium sized star. And one of its satellites, a green and insignificant planet, is now dead." Who could this be, speaking, if humans are all dead and gone? Well, after this exhausting exercise in self-hatred, who cares—and good riddance. You leave the theater thinking, "At least we won't have to endure another sequel." But wait...

You damn fools won't be making another sequel if Chuck Heston has anything to say about it.