Planet of the Apes [DVD] [2001]

Tim Burton's "re-imagining" of Planet of the Apes is about one thing above all else: monkey movement. But for most filmgoers, whether fans of the 1967 original or not, that’s simply not enough. Thematically the story of an outsider in a society that doesn't know what to do with him chimes in nicely with Burton's other work. As always with Burton, the focus is more on what's colourfully going on around the central character (Mark Wahlberg) than his own story. It all looks stunning, of course, as make-up, set design and costumes outdo the accomplishments of the original. But otherwise a direct comparison with the classic version simply shows up holes in the Burton approach. The breakneck pace at which the pared-down plot is told makes little sense of the material and misses all the satire and social comment potential. What sold the idea to Burton was the opportunity to goof around with apes as humans: as a result the background is constantly peppered with lame visual gags which fall as flat as the unnecessary homages to Charlton Heston, who pops up repeating lines of his own dialogue from the first movie. Slick, action-packed and ultimately nonsensical, this is the film that made a monkey of Tim Burton.

On the DVD: balancing out the disappointing movie experience is an exceptional 13 hours of extra material. From the heavily CG-animated menus, you'll encounter some standard fare like libraries of promo material (posters, ads and trailers) and concept art. But they're enormous, as are the 26 cast and crew text profiles. If the THX optimiser tests don't convince you of the need for top equipment, there's DVD-ROM and NUON-enhanced player features as well. The "White Rabbit" Enhanced Viewing Mode for FX vignettes and four multi-angle featurettes on shooting scenes may seem a little dry, but the other features ranging from 10 to 30 minutes aren't. You'll find it hard picking a favourite between Rick Baker gushing over the lifetime dream of ape make-up, Michael Clarke Duncan playing to camera on location, or Danny Elfman at work on the scoring stage. Of the two commentaries Elfman’s is better by far, even if somewhat sporadic and clearly not recorded to picture. Burton's is typically fragmented, and is certainly not the place to discover what on earth the "shock-value-for-the-sake-of-it" ending means. --Paul Tonks

DVD Special Features:

Over 13 hours of special features:
Audio Commentaries by Tim Burton and Danny Elfman
Enhanced Viewing Mode--takes you behind the scenes as you watch the film Four Split-Screen Videos--makeup tests, group test, costume tests Movement test
Eight Featurettes--HBO Special, Simian Acadademy, Face Like a Monkey, Ape Coutour, On Location in Lake Powel, Chimp Symphony Op. 37, Swinging from the Trees, Stunt Test
Five Extended Scenes
Multi-Angle Scene Comparisons--Lets you see the action from the Director's chair
Music Video--"Rule the Planet Remix" by Paul Oakenfold
Stills Galleries
Cast & Crew Profiles
Theatrical Trailers and TV Spots

Picture format: 2.35:1 widescreen version 16:9
Language: English 5.1 Dolby Digital, English 5.1 DTS
Subtitles: Croatian, Czech, Danish, Finnish, Icelandic, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Swedish, Turkish, Dutch, English for the hearing impaired

In the year 2029, interstellar reconnaissance missions are relegated to chimpanzee pilots from the space station OBERON in deep space. On one such mission, a chimp loses communication and vanishes from the radar. Fearless astronaut Leo Davidson launches a rescue mission and, following a malfunction, lands on a jungle-like planet not unlike the Earth.

To Leo's astonishment, English-speaking apes and primtive humans inhabit the planet. Following his capture by the apes and subsequent escape, Leo assembles a small band of defiant humans and empathetic apes in an attempt to re-establish contact with OBERON, but his focus changes following an unexpected discovery. Armed with this new information, Leo leads a rebellion against an overpowering ape force that will resuly in freedom or complete annihilation.