Planet of the Apes 2001
Planet of the Apes ★★★ 2001 (PG-13)
Burton's “re-imagining” of the story looks more to the original novel by Pierre Boulle than it does to the 1968 classic. Wahlberg, as generic action hero Leo Davidson, takes over the Heston role, but with nowhere near the bravado or screen presence. Roth excels as Gen. Thade, an angry militarist with a loathing for all humans and a contempt for polite ape society. Needless to say, Leo becomes the focus for his rage. Come to think of it, all of the actors in the ape makeup do a fine job. The makeup effects, courtesy of Rick Baker, are astounding (and light-years ahead of where they were in '68), and the action moves along at a satisfyingly brisk pace. The screenplay provides plenty of sly and clever references to the original, but doesn't have its sense of social commentary (this is, after all, a summer blockbuster). What it does have is a twist ending that seems tacked on for the purpose of setting up a sequel. 125m/C VHS, DVD, Blu-ray Disc, UMD . US Mark Wahlberg, Tim Roth, Helena Bonham-Carter, Michael Clarke Duncan, Paul Giamatti, Estella Warren, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, David Warner, Kris Kristofferson, Erik Avari, Luke Eberl, Charlton Heston, Evan Dexter Parke, Michael Jace; D: Tim Burton; W: William Broyles Jr., Larry Konner, Mark Rosenthal; C: Philippe Rous-selot; M: Danny Elfman. Golden Raspberries '01: Worst Remake/Sequel, Worst Support. Actor (Heston), Worst Support. Actress (Warren).