Review of Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971) by Rachel F — 13 Jul 2009

If you can accept the inconsistencies with the events and situations established by the first two films in the series, this third entry is acceptable. Those inconsistences are not minor, however. First, we must accept that super-genius Milo was able to find, salvage, repair and operate a sophisticated spaceship that is several centures ahead of the technological level of the apes as shown in the first movie.

Then we have to accept that ordinary ape citizens Cornelius and Zira possessed a very detailed history of their rise from pets to slaves to masters on a formerly human-dominated Earth, when the first movie made it pretty clear that only a very few select apes knew anything about man's prior significance.

Once past these issues, Escape is a tolerable action thriller. The first act is a bit too light-hearted in tone compared to the rest of the film and the earlier films in the series, but probably suited the situations.

The final act was suspenseful enough, and the final reveal that sets up future sequels was well done. Nevertheless, it's clear on the screen that this film did not have the budget of the earlier pictures, and it suffers by comparsion.