The years is 2029 and Leo Davidson is an astronaut aboard a ship containing trained apes which are being used in space exploration. When his ape disappears during a reconnaissance mission, Leo goes after him. But he finds himself sucked through a wormhole which lands him on a planet which is ruled by apes and where humans are their slaves.
Leo escapes capture with the help of Ari, a chimpanzee who is a human rights activist, and a band of human rebels. But the viciously anti-human General Thade is leading his gorilla army in pursuit of the rebel band. Leo's only hope is to reach the sacred temple within the Forbidden Zone in the hopes of finding the key to his escape. What he will find will also bring forth shocking revelations about the origins of this strange world.
Of course this 2001 version of Planet of the Apes is a remake of Franklin J. Schaffner's 1968 original. It is directed by Tim Burton, who rarely disappoints although actually this film doesn't really have that Gothic Tim Burton feel to it. Mark Wahlberg replaces Charlton Heston as the lead character, which is certainly a significant difference.
But that's not all that is different. There are a number of changes to the storyline and also to the details of the story. For example, humans can talk in this remake whereas in the original they had not developed that ability. The ending is also a significant difference, but I won't spoil that.
Of course the costumes and effects are far superior in this modern remake. After all, there are 33 years and $900,000,000 differentiating the two films. It's a pretty cool remake to be sure, but one should definitely take the time to see the original first even if not its four sequels.
3 space monkeys out of 5
Rated PG-13 for some sequences of action/violence
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