Planet of the Apes (1968)

Clearly I'm late to the party on this one, so let's just get that out of the way. Our tastes in movies are pretty varied, but my wife got me to watch this and I can't complain. Despite it's dated effects and makeup, this is still a great sci-fi movie.

Beginning in the faraway future of 2006, Taylor (Charlton Heston) and three other astronauts embark on a near-light speed mission that, because of a suspended animation malfunction, jettisons 1972 years into the future. One of the astronauts dies in transit, and the others are now wandering through a desert when they come across some odd looking creatures on horseback that capture or kill the men. Some time later, Taylor wakes up inside a cage and is confronted by a talking gorilla named Zira. In this future, humans are the animals and apes are the humans. Once Taylor is able to speak, he begins to convince Zira and her fiance Cornelius (Roddy McDowall) that he's not a threat to them and just wants to get home. The two of them help Taylor escape and they start to run. Knowing full-well the apes will be prosecuted if captured, they still decide to let Taylor continue on his own. But something isn't quite right.

Yes, I did see the 2001 remake with Mark Wahlberg before this, and NO I would not have given it a glowing review. Some people view movies from the 50s and 60s as inferior because they don't have today's graphics and technology, but this was revolutionary for its time. That's why people revere it, and that's why it's somewhat of a cult hit. It wouldn't have spawned so many sequels and remakes if moviegoers didn't want to see them. This movie's not for everyone, but if you go into it knowing you're not going to see stuff like computer animation, then you'll enjoy this flick. Grade: A-