Planet Of The Apes, 1968-1974: a 'good' franchise?

I agree!

 

It holds up pretty well against other film franchises that come before 1974.

 

Indeed. Like a Fascist whipping everyone up into a war frenzy.

 

Brent got to make out with Nova in "Beneath".... Granted, it was when he was being tortured by the mutants, but still

 

FYI: Best Buy currently has this nine-film box set for a mere $29.99:
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/planet-of-the-apes-9-movie-collection-blu-ray/6289522.p?skuId=6289522

It has blu-rays for all the films and 4K UHD for the most recent trilogy of films (Dawn/Rise/War). Quite a deal!

 

Figures it'd go on sale somewhere after I purchased it last week (at Walmart, for $54.96 + tax)... I would have returned it to Walmart and went for the Best Buy deal, but since I already opened it, there'd be no way to return it, as they only exchange opened sets for the same set, which of course they open at the service desk so you can't/won't get a sealed set that you could return. I don't have an issue with their return/exchange policy, so I'm not grumbling about that, just mildly grumbling that I paid too much

 

4k all of them, one day...Please!

John M.

 

We also need the 1974 TV series on blu...

 

Here are a list of all the cuts. Not anything super-substantial (that changes the storyline, other than the ending)... ...but collectively, the cuts do make for a darker film...

PS: Note at the end, near the bottom of the link below -- that even some of the music was different in the original cut -- darker, more foreboding.

Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (Comparison: Theatrical Cut - Unrated Director's Cut) - Movie-Censorship.com

 

A prologue was shot and was taken out after all the b.s. about violence to keep the film under90 minutes. When Caesar was being captured for interegation a guard running over the Century city bridge has a helmet that magically becomes a cop hat. They used a shot or two from the filmed prolouge after the film was ordered re-edited. I have bxw stills and a few magazine articles about the scene. Shame that most persons involved are gone now. The 2008 bluray is really the 1972 Japanese theatrical version. The gorilla getting killed in the pre title sequence was very bloody and had religious overtones with how the ape was spralled out like a crusifiction on the street.
Typing on tv so im sorry for any mistakes, John M.

 

Why? I don't understand...

 

When re-editing or when changes were made this footage weather from the excised pre title sequence or whatever was subtly used when looking for Caesar for interrogation. It starts with a regular uniformed guard (with police cap) walking and looking then he sees someone jogging away and persues. He goes onto the Century city walk over bridge and a camera angle of the guard in pursuit between the railings ( a very 70 s shot I love ) now dons a riot helmut. He slows down goes on the steps and when we see him again he has a regular police hat as he did in the sequence start.
To me this is not a continuity error in that I feel that the prolouge had a few great shots and now since it was excised why not get some mileage out of the footage shot and not catching, or did not care much, that the helmet and face of the original policeman/ guard that started the whole scene was changed.

I might be mistaken but much of this info came from a person involved in Fox publicly in 1972 and was a friend of the family. He worked in the NY, New York 20th Century Fox office and left the company the following year. His name was Jerry A. and he liked my perception skills, for a 12 year old anyway. Also how I knew the ending was fxxxxd with and the Jerry Goldsmith music added which had stringed instruments and not all brass that Tom Scott used.
All of this mystery and great Bruce Surtees DP made Conquest my favorite Apes film. John M.

 

Made an error. Cop chasing Caesar from start has riot helmet then when he descends the Century city bridge now dons a regular police cap. Sentence 4 (above) starts this explanation. It still ends with wrong cop and wrong headwear.
All this exposition is about how the editors cannibalized a piece or two from the pre title sequence that wasnt used. Take care, John M.

 

I always thought the ape that was killed in the prologue was a chimp, not a gorilla... I was lead to believe that because of the prologue in the novelization of "Conquest", where it states (in part) : "The policeman knew what he would find-an ape. He discovered it was a large, mature, male chimpanzee"... But, I can see the novelization has it wrong, because what is on your B&W stills would trump anything a book would say. Your pictures would be proof.

 

That'd be cool, but I wouldn't count on it... 2014 would have been an opportune time to release it, as it would have been the 40th anniversary of the show, and there might have still been enough interest in it because there would have been hype about 2014's "Dawn/POTA" and people going to buy "Dawn" might have also seen a TV series Blu-Ray set on the shelf and bought it on impulse... But, now that ship has sailed...

2024 will be the 50th anniversary of the TV series' premiere, but I think by then, the interest won't be there for them to justify the price of making it high-def for a Blu-Ray release...

If there would have been a 40th anniversary Blu-Ray release, or even just a standard DVD of an anniversary release of the show, they could have interviewed Ron Harper and maybe have gotten him to do commentaries on select episodes, they could have included the complete James Naughton interview, of which only small bits were used in the "Behind/POTA" documentary... Booth Colman would have still been alive at that time, so they could have interviewed him, and they could have interviewed some of the gorilla regulars such as Ron Stein, Eldon Burke, and Tom McDonough... Guest stars such as Bobby Porter, Jackie Earle Haley, Sondra Locke, and Joanna Barnes could have been interviewed/done episode commentaries as well... But, I think that'll never come to fruition, as some of them may have passed away since then, or may be well-settled into retirement and not want to do things like that anymore...

Still, I'm glad that the TV series was released on DVD at all... That's the only good thing to have come out of the piece of **** movie from 2001 being released...

 

So was he the same guy? IN FICTION, he just changed helmet in-between the scenes for some reason, not a "flub".

 

I'm sure it was supposed to be the same officer chasing Caesar the whole time, so it was a continuity error... It's hard to believe a cop chasing Caesar would start out wearing a helmet and then suddenly decide to change to a cap while in pursuit.

But that continuity error doesn't bother me too much-There's one in "Beneath" that bugs me, toward the end of the movie when Caspay asks Mendez "What will you do Holiness", to which Mendez replies "Everything necessary" and Mendez is in his full robes, and then when the Grand Army of the Apes bursts the doors open with their makeshift battering ram, Mendez is without his full robes attire... I can't see how he'd slip out of his robes that quickly.

 

Its a different actor and a different hat. Ofcourse I would blame continuity first but all the info and the bluray itself shows that error. Im not really an Ape nut like fans are for other film franchises, but close.
I had a lot of info on Conquest as a teenager concerning the editing and mess J.Lee Thompson and crew had to deal with after the sneak preview in Phoenix Arizona, which my Uncle John attended , to get a GP /PG rating.
Theirs so much to the story. I think, not sure, that the shot dead ape (gorilla) is in the paperback version of Eric Greens book or the Brian Pendrough (SP) book.
I tried many times to send photos here but never works for me.
Alittle groggy take care, John M.

 

IN FICTION, we can pretend there were two men running after Caesar... the "regular cop" was the main one, and that's it. The "Helmet Guy" was left behind for some reason.

Too bad the prologue was discarded.

 

I own both of the books you're referring to: I'll have to check out Brian's book to see if that photo is in there... Regarding Eric's book, I own the hardcover version, but I don't recall the picture being in there-If it is in there, and I seen it, I may not remember it, because Eric's book left me cold-Not my cup of tea... Joe Russo's book was good, Brian's book (mentioned by you) was good, Joe Fordham & Jeff Bond's book "POTA-Evolution of the Legend" is decent, and the newly released "The Making of Planet of the Apes" by J.W. Rinzler looks like it'll be excellent. (I recently bought J.W.'s book, but haven't started to read it.)

 

The soft cover book is the one with the photo. If not Ill find it.
The Cinemafantastique issue from 1972 with photos is on a Planet of the apes web sites and you can read and see it all. Ill find the site...be back soon. John M.
Rinzlers book is very good still finding more info after all these years.I
The recent cd redo of the Planet of the Apes score and accompanying book is also very informative. Forgot his name, ill find it.

 

I agree absolutely. The question though is the prologue excise. The scene with the cop chasing Caesar was just my proof that some footage from that discarded pre title sequence got used elsewhere.
The cop with the helmut is one of the great stuntmen of film Tom Steele (Dave Sharpe also is here) and he is also seen scoping the mall just before the first street confrontation between apes and riot control guards starts. John M.

Pota.goatley.com bottom of magazine page with statue of liberty on cover.
Cinemafantastique 1972 issue- probably the best article on Apes ever done. Written during the filming of Conquest.

 

John O Callaghan did Score and great Book for the more musician in us. Great

 

Production values are about the same as the films. Be nice to see a Planet Of The Apes tv series reboot in the 21st century.

 

Always complaining getting the original 5 Pota films released on 4k and came across an August 2018 5 film 4k presentation at Manhattan Quad Cinema of the films. Newly redone in 4k remastered new sound on big screens for $30. Where the heck was I and does this mean a disc/ streaming release. Its already a year later.
I did not want to start a new thread so I renewed this one. Anybody have any info about that presentation and a future 4k release, thanks, John M.