For me, the 1968 film Planet of the Apes exists almost as long as my childhood memories of science fiction, along with shows like Mork & Mindy, Star Wars, and Star Trek the story of an astronaut trapped on a planet inhabited by intelligent apes seemed to always exist in my understanding of space-based stories.
Over the years I've seen the original film, the sequels, the remakes and the toys, so when a friend suggested we read the original French novel by Pierre Boulle, I was definitely intrigued. The novel follows a journalist named Ulysse Mérou, who in 2050 joins a spaceships crew to explore planets in the Betelgeuse star system. Here they find a planet inhabited by intelligent great apes, where humans exists, but as a wild animal rather than a dominant species.
There are a couple big changes from the film including the fact that the apes speak their own language, and the protagonist ends up spending much of his time learning it. I can definitely see why the film went with having them speak English, but this made for a much more interesting story. The story ends differently than the film and does have significantly more focus on the loneliness and isolation felt by Ulysse.
A really intriguing read and one I'm glad I got the chance to experience.
Yesterday I took the day off from work and hung out with my oldest daughter at our local mall for the day. I actually do this with both of my kids every year on the day before their birthday as it's my last chance to hang out with them before they get another year older.
Anyway, after snacking on a lot of tasty food and enjoying a great lunch, we decided to check out the new film Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. The movie was fantastic, and other than a jerk using his cell phone two rows in front of me, we had a pretty great time.
Like the 2011 film Rise of the Planet of the Apes this film is a reboot of the classic '60s series and both films were really fascinating.
The second film takes place ten-years after the first, and the apes (led by the first film's protagonist, Caesar), have created a society of their own while humanity has largely been decimated (actually much higher than 1 in 10) due to a virus which was contracted shortly after the first film, leaving civilization behind and forcing humanity to live in small settlements again, cut off from each other and striving to survive as their world shuts down against them.
The best part of the film for me was the apes, both in terms of special effects and in terms of story, seeing how they have changed since the first film was fascinating and many of the films emotional high points happened to the apes, rather than the humans.
A great film, and well worth the watch.
