Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4415 in DVD
• Released on: 2001-10-08
• Rating: Suitable for 15 years and over
• Number of discs: 6
• Formats: Box set, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 6
• Running time: 582 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
The five films in the Planet of the Apes series are enjoyable as pure entertainment and yet substantial enough to have inspired academic studies about the film's broader political themes. Loosely adapted from the novel by French author Pierre Boulle, Planet of the Apes was released at the height of racial and political unrest in America, adding resonance to its story of a NASA astronaut (Charlton Heston) stranded on a planet where superior apes dominate inferior human slaves. The film's final image--in which a horrified Heston realises the fate of humankind--remains one of the most indelible in all of science-fiction cinema.

Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970) continues the original's distant future scenario, pitting militant apes against mutant humans dwelling in the subterranean ruins of New York City. Its phenomenal success spawned Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971), in which simian scientists Cornelius and Zira (Roddy McDowall and Kim Hunter, reprising their roles from Planet) travel backward in time, setting the stage for the ape supremacy of the first two films. McDowall returned in Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972) as Caesar, the son of Cornelius, leading an ape revolution that bridges the historical gap of the previous films. Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973) ended the five-film cycle with McDowall again playing the chimpanzee leader Caesar, defeating gorillas and human mutants to establish the hierarchy introduced in the original film.

The Apes films present a classic what-if scenario that hasn't lost a bit of its potency. As if to prove its cultural endurance, the cycle returned to its origins with director Tim Burton's remake of Planet of the Apes in 2001. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

On the DVD: A glorious indulgence for diehard fans of the series, this handsomely packaged six-disc set contains all five original" Apes" movies, from the wonderful 1967 original to 1973's low-budget Battle. It all look as good as possible in widescreen anamorphic transfers, the first movie's starkly wonderful cinematography in particular is a treat to see on DVD. Planet has been remixed in vivid Dolby 5.1, highlighting the bold sound design and JerryGoldsmith's masterful avant-garde score. The others are good Dolby stereo, with the odd exception of Escape, which is mono. There are trailers on each disc, but no commentaries sadly. The sixth bonus disc consists of a relatively new two-hour documentary hosted by Roddy McDowall which takes us through the entire saga in detail, pointing out the series' daring social commentary and the increasing difficulties of working with progressively smaller budgets. Sensibly, the documentary spends about an hour on the first movie and then an hour discussing all the rest. Overall, this is a very attractive package. --Mark Walker

DVD Description
DVD Special Features:

Planet of the Apes:
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 anamorphic 16:9
Sound: 5.1 Surround
Photo Gallery
Original Theatrical Trailers
Language: English
Subtitles: Hard of hearing English, Czech, Danish, Finnish, Hungarian, Icelandic, Hebrew, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish

Beneath the Planet of the Apes:
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 anamorphic 16:9
Sound: 2.0 Surround
Photo Gallery
Cast Page
Language: English
Subtitles: Hard of hearing English, Czech, Danish, Finnish, Hungarian, Icelandic, Hebrew, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish.

Escape from Planet of the Apes:
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 anamorphic 16:9
Sound: 2.0 Mono
Cast Page
Original Theatrical Trailers
Language: English
Subtitles: Hard of hearing English, Czech, Danish, Finnish, Hungarian, Icelandic, Hebrew, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish

Conquest of the Planet of the Apes:
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 anamorphic 16:9
Sound: 2.0 Surround
Original Theatrical Trailers
Cast Page
Language: English
Subtitles: Hard of hearing English, Czech, Danish, Finnish, Hungarian, Icelandic, Hebrew, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish

Battle for the Planet of the Apes:
Aspect ratio: 2.35:1 anamorphic 16:9
Sound: 2.0 Surround
Original Theatrical Trailers
Cast Page
Language: English
Subtitles: Hard of hearing English, Czech, Danish, Finnish, Hungarian, Icelandic, Hebrew, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish

Behind the Planet of the Apes: (two-hour documentary disc) Aspect ratio:1.33:1 (4:3)
Sound: 2.0 Stereo
TV Spots
Original Theatrical Trailers
Language: English
Subtitles: Hard of hearing English, Czech, Danish, Finnish, Hungarian, Icelandic, Hebrew, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish

Synopsis
This deluxe box set features the five PLANET OF THE APES movies, beginning with the 1968 original (starring Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowall, and Kim Hunter), in which a group of astronauts find themselves stranded on a world where apes evolved from humans, only to learn the shocking surprise about humanity's future.
BENEATH THE PLANET OF THE APES, the second installment in the PLANET OF THE APES series, finds another astronaut (James Franciscus) following in his predecessor's time-wandering footsteps to the planet ruled by highly evolved apes. There he encounters a group of nuclear holocaust survivors living in Grand Central Station and worshipping the very atomic warhead that destroyed their world.
ESCAPE FROM PLANET OF THE APES, the third chapter in the series, finds ape heroes Cornelius (McDowall) and Zira (Hunter) in 1970s Los Angeles. They have traveled back in time, but soon find that they have enemies in the past as well as the present.
In CONQUEST OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, an intelligent ape (McDowall, playing the son of his other APES character, Cornelius) from the far future leads an army of simian servants in a revolt against their human masters. This fourth film features the most explosive subtext of any in the series, along with a sleek, futuristic production design.
The fifth and final episode, BATTLE FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES, features a community of intelligent apes living in harmony with a group of humans after the collapse of human civilization. However, a band of mutants who reside beneath a destroyed city try to conquer those they perceive as enemies.
This comprehensive collection also includes the feature-length documentary BEHIND THE PLANET OF THE APES, hosted by McDowall.

Customer Reviews

The movie's surprise ending is not as surprising as the book
Astronauts are sent to a distant plane and crash. They find a barren wasteland and look for a place to survive. They fond more than the bargain for when the tables are turned and Apes rule the day.
Will they make friends or be sliced and diced?
Can the ever get back?
What would you do?

Now after that radical statement I know different media calls for different handling of the story. And most movies do not live up to the book. However some exceed the book. Surprise this is the "don't live up to the book" one. If you thought that the movie was insightful, surprising and shocking the first time you saw it. Then you defiantly have lower expectations than the reader does. Especially with such a botched ending; the ending changed the whole purpose and mystery of the story.

I did like the idea of having a movie where the woman was not talking all the time. (Just kidding) And the makeup for the simians was excellent. I suppose if you haven't read the book that this would be a pleasant time passer.

See Roddy McDowall again in "Lord Love A Duck" (1966) where he monkeys around with Tuesday Weld.

Classic Sci Fi Film
"Planet of the Apes" was made over 40 years old and as a result it has a somewhat dated feel to it. However it has still much to recommend it. Charlton Heston is excellent as the time traveller from Earth who lands on a planet ruled by walking ,talking ape like creatures who hunt humans for sport and generally treat them like scumbags. He gets captured by these creatures before escaping thus avoiding likely castration and a lobotomy. The truth of the ape run planet is revealed in a dramatic ,iconic closing sequence. "Planet of the Apes" of course relies on the discredited theory of evolution as its foundation but is there anyone left who seriously believes that the human race has evolved from apes and that walking ,talking apes such as those seen in this film could evolve from present day simians ?

Film + Documentary + Price = *****
One of the previous reviewers is being a little uncharitable in saying there are no extras in this excellent DVD set. Sure on the main 5 film discs there are very few extras. However disc 6 contains an superb 2 hour+ documentary on the making of the films. So may there be no extras but there is an extra disc!

The first film is a classic. Both entertaining adventure story and classic Sci-fi rolled into one. Watching the documentary you will see film critics reading in social messages about race and the political times in the US in 1968. However quite a few other people (including the producer) say there was no attempt to put messages into the film! Whatever your view on this the performances of the cast and the make-up are quite superb. Remember the make-up is all for real - no CGI in the 1960's.

The later films do decline in quality and their budgets were progressivly reduced as the films went by. The first and second sequels (Heston appears briefly at the start and end of the first) are both decent. The last two are pretty poor.

As a set though, and at the right price (search around 'cause this is available ridiculously cheap at the moment) this is worth it for the first film and documentary alone.