Back to the Planet of the Apes

BACK TO THE PLANET OF THE APES is the first of the cut 'n' paste TV movies from the early 1980s, each of which stapled together two episodes of the unsuccessful '70s TV series PLANET OF THE APES. As usual, these are low rent affairs that don't really work as two movies, because the episodes are self-contained and joining them together feels like an artificial experience.

The first half of this movie is the better of the two, mainly because it's the pilot episode so it sets up the plot for the rest of the story. It's the usual stuff - pilots crash land on the titular planet are imprisoned by the apes - a weak retread of the famous film, no less, but it's okay. It doesn't help that the production values are low and the performances worse. The second half of the film is a dull human/ape bonding story that'll have you reaching for the remote. All in all it's not very good, but four more pasted TV movies would follow.

In 1974, after the conclusion of the final of the five films which made up the Planet of the Apes series, a TV show was made to extend the franchise even further. Unlike the movies, though, it wasn't a success and folded before the end of its run. I suppose as a means of salvaging some money from this failure, in 1981 five TV movies were made, where each edited two individual episodes of the series together to achieve feature length. Back to the Planet of the Apes was the first such film and combined the first and third episodes of the series.

As a film, it's pretty limited really, on account of its awkward genesis. Like all the others it very much feels like what they all are – two TV episodes joined together. Consequently, the two halves are pretty different and there is little overall cohesion. Seeing as this uses material from episode one, it at least has a proper beginning though. The first half introduces the characters and sets things in motion, while the second part involves one of apes being forced by circumstance to work alongside one of the humans in order to survive a dangerous situation. I felt the first half was the more interesting and the second flagged as a consequence. In all honesty, if you are a fan of the Apes franchise you would be far better just watching the series. The films are no more than a curiosity now, although they admittedly are a relatively interesting one.

While watching this movie, I could not help but shake a sense of familiarity. I was pretty sure I hadn't seen it before, but a part of me recognised what was unfolding.

Lone behold, I find that it's just two episodes of the TV show stuck together. Regardless of this, it's quite an engaging little piece. You get the same type of message as the previous movies yet with a little less focus on the weird and a little more focus on the actual relationship between man and ape.

It's something we've seen before and the plot does feel a bit mediocre and shoestring at times, but I most certainly enjoyed it. The ending is shoddy, but this can be explained by the episodes being stuck together.

Overall, solid acting and a familiar premise means that you'll enjoy this little ride back through the Planet of the Apes, but will probably want to revisit the original by the end. 6/10