Planet of the Apes 2001

[rockyg]

Just got Planet of the Apes 2001. Has anyone else noticed dropou on the DTS soundtrack but not on DD5.1. Have played loads of dts disks with no similiar problem. Equipment is Tosh SD210e and Sony 930 Dts amp.
Cheer
Rob

[Alanok]

I'm using a Toshiba SD210e and a Yamaha VS-10 and noticed no DTS dropout.

[RichB]

No probs with the DTS track for me when I rented this, using a Sony DVD player & Yamaha amp
I had a serious problem with the movie tho, it was dire! :D

[John Stout]

I had similar probs playing it on a Pioneer 525. Used the DTS option and it froze on chapter 3. Dobly 5.1 plays fine.

[Rob]

Here's my ten penneth.

With the exception of the ending, which was OK, but probably not the most sensible thing to do if you wanted to win viewers hearts/minds, I thought this was an excellent film.

I'm not one for remakes, but it is often said that you shouldn't remake something unless you have something new to say. For me, this version did an exceptional job of updating the apes. Granted, you would expect that 30+ years would improve the make-up, but whereas in the original it was obviously men in ape suits, what we are given here is real ape-acting characters. The stunt and wire work was well executed.

Tim Roth and Paul Giamatti (Limbo, the orang-utan ape trader) were exceptional. The sets, landscapes and general cinematography would wonderful and to be honest, I thought the film was pretty riveting for these reasons.

With some of the dross peddled these days, I really do fail to see how this movie can be described as dire.

DTS was generally OK, although I did notice dropouts twice (althought I'm only talking milliseconds here) and I can't really say that it spolied the film.

[Michael Brooke]

<B>With some of the dross peddled these days, I really do fail to see how this movie can be described as dire.</B>

Since I normally avoid big-budget sci-fi blockbusters like the proverbial plague, I can’t say how it compares with “the dross peddled these days”, but I certainly thought it was the worst film I saw in the cinema last year by a short head – and I speak as someone who would have defended Tim Burton to the hilt on principle until very recently!

It’s the first Burton DVD I won’t be adding to my collection.

[charlie angel]

Loved it - absolutely hilarious, from Mark Wahlberg's two short planks acting to Tim Roth's gloriously over the top Thade I thought it was a hoot from start to finish.

Agreed that it didn't seem like a Tim Burton film, but enjoyed all the same.

[John Stout]

The original version is my all-time favourite movie, so I had mixed feelings about a remake. I really enjoyed the remake on the big screen, but on dvd it becomes apparent that it takes 15 minutes more to tell less of a story.

I expected better of Wahlberg, having enjoyed the likes of Boogie Nights and Perfect Storm. But the ape actors (with the exception of HBC) were very good - the makeup was outstanding. I liked the overall look of the film (the opening credits were very attention grabbing), and the music managed to be both new and respectful of Jerry Goldsmith's score for the original movie.

It's just a shame that the story was a bit thin, but it's unfair to blame it on Burton. He signed on thinking he had something like a year to shoot it, only to be told that Fox wanted it six months earlier as they had no big summer movie. So the end result was bound to be rushed.

I loved the ending, even if I am still trying to work out how Thade escaped and went back in time!

[8-]]

Missed it on the big screen, but after seeing it once on DVD (even with the nice DTS soundtrack) I knew that I didn't want to keep it.

[Rob]

I just think it's a shame that some people get bogged down with slagging off films based on who directed it or what their expectations were. The fact is that there is a lot to admire in this film, even if there were elements which didn't suit everybody.

Most people can find a reason to say that something has a bad plot or bad story if they try hard enough. But who was it who said that there are only 4 or 5 plots anyway? I more or less agree with this and therefore many films come down to subjective elements such as atmosphere, visuals etc. e.g. "The Thin Red Line (1998)" is not a great story, but it's a terrific film.

I can't say I've seen that many TB films, but what I liked about Sleepy Hollow, I also liked about Planet of the Apes - it had a certain atmosphere or ambience that you can't quantify in terms of "story" or "ending" etc.

Also, the DVD has some really insightful behind the scenes movie-making stuff - e.g. multiple camera angles on a scene as insignifcant as throwing a slave in the cage! Attention to detail apparent in the overall production is also present and correct in the extras.

Of course, why try to find anything entertaining when it's far easier to slag things off and be negative. Each to his own, but I found it entertaining.