Review of Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971) by Mark O — 13 Jan 2009

This is a follow up to the first two movies, and appears to take up where the second one left off, with Cornelius (Roddy McDowall), Dr. Zira (Kim Hunter), and Dr. Milo (Sal Mineo), turning up on present day (1970s) earth in the spaceship that Taylor (Charlton Heston) crashed in the first movie.

Apparently, Dr. Milo found and recovered the spacecraft. During the time period covered by the first and most of the second movie, Dr. Milo apparently devoted himself to the study of the spacecraft and was able to repair it. Then for some reason he and Cornelius and Zira decided to go for a ride in it, using who knows what for fuel. They were able to escape just prior to the destruction of the Earth and were hurled back in time to the present (1970s) era.

So, this third installment in the series deals with Cornelius and Zira attempting to make a place for themselves in the world of men, a world as strange to them as theirs was to Taylor. During they stay they gain a status of celebrity and are pursued by television reporters as well as government officials. The movie has a few "cute" moments, watching Zira and Cornelius acclimate to technologies they've never seen, but it lacks the luster of watching Taylor explore their savage world.

Not everyone is happy the two are there, however, and soon they are forced to flee. Zira is pregnant, and the birth of her child is feared to be the beginning of the downfall of man. Expect tragedy as this scenario plays out.

One interesting question that this raises in regards to the storyline is that of a paradox in what Cornelius and Zira said happened, and what will happen because of they're presence in their past. According to Zira and Cornelius, the rise of apes, and the fall of man, began with a plague that wipes out dogs and cats. Simians are used to replace that gap in the human household, providing fertile soil for rapid evolution and development. However, with their revelation of those facts, will it still occur? Will people still take in simians as household pets knowing what will happen if they do? Probably not, but the introduction of their child into the world, an intelligent ape capable of speech and reasoning, with the potential to breed more like him, even with dumb apes, the future may still turn out the same way. It's interesting to consider, and it's enough to make me want to watch the next movie in the series.