AWSUM MOVIES: Beneath The Planet of the Apes

AWSUM MOVIES: The Lessons of

Beneath

The Planet of the Apes

There are multiple layers to this movie, its not the best movie in the world, nor the Apes series but within that context, it keeps within the social issues that were addressed in the first movie (fear of the other) and takes it to a whole new realm of fucked-upness never seen before in cinema, until the dawn of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre and the slasher movie.

If anything this movie tries to restrain itself politically (and gore-illy) within the realms of sci-fi and biblical fantasy, walking the tightrope of fear and social indifference, towards ultimate tragedy. Where the original movie began to lighten up towards the end with mellow moments of humour and affection between man and ape (Taylor kissing Zira) it is quite the opposite in its darker sequel.

Gone is Heston’s wit and quick one liners and James Franciscus character, (Brent) must now carry the baton, being put thru the same mills as Heston in an essential repeat of the first movies horrific scenes of human captivity and Ape like barbarism towards mankind. What makes it interesting is Brent’s journey towards the movie title: We actually go Beneath the Planet of the Apes.

Essentially this movie is a cold war tale. A warning to change are warlike ways. We see the logical outcome of mankind pushed to the absolute limit, defenceless (bar powers of illusion) living beneath the Apes world, in the catacombs of a ancient and long since buried New York city. Brent and Nova take us on a journey there, into hell and if there is a hell, then it probably would look something like this: an impassioned intellectual underworld inhabited by the ghosts of our Cold War, emotionless mutants of the nuclear fire, who worship the ultimate doomsday weapon.

Yes there are many lessons to be learned from this movie and perhaps the best lesson of all, is to avoid making a bomb so big, that it could destroy the whole fucking planet, which ultimately is what happens. Originally Heston’s idea (so there wouldn’t be anymore Ape sequels) the Bomb itself is the mother of all bombs, ‘a cobalt casing, all made in the name of peace’.

This shiny mother almost outdoes the performances of its simian co-stars, who (probably jealous of it hogging all the limelight) attempt in the end to shoot at it and pull it over with ropes, until Taylor's bloodied hand sets off the trigger. It is a fitting end to the Ape series (but it didn’t end there, we still had Escape, Conquest and Battle to enjoy) and all in all Beneath the Planet of the Apes leaves an indelible impression on ones mind, about the mentality of racism, bigotry and blind arrogance, leading to absolute destruction.