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The following FAQ entries may contain spoilers. Only the biggest ones (if any) will be covered with spoiler tags. Spoiler tags have been used sparingly in order to make the page more readable.
For detailed information about the amounts and types of (a) sex and nudity, (b) violence and gore, (c) profanity, (d) alcohol, drugs, and smoking, and (e) frightening and intense scenes in this movie, consult the IMDb Parents Guide for this movie. The Parents Guide for Planet of the Apes can be found here.
Yes. Planet of the Apes is based on the 1963 novel La Plančte des Singes by French writer Pierre Boulle. It was translated into English by British writer and translator Xan Fielding and published as Monkey Planet (1963). The novel was adapted for the screen by American screenwriters Michael Wilson and Rod Serling [best known for his TV series, The Twilight Zone (1959-1964, 1985-1989, 2002-2003)].
Planet of the Apes is the first film in a series of five. The other films include Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970), Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971), Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972), and Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973).
The evolution of apes into sentient beings and humans into mere animals is not explained in the movie. Some viewers have surmised that the apes evolved into more advanced forms after the apparent nuclear war, following which most of humanity was destroyed. Others suggest that surviving apes were affected by the radiation fallout to the effect that they either mutated or evolved very quickly.The remaining humans either were subdued and eventually dumbed down by lack of a structured knowledge or were possibly affected in a negative way by the radiation. In the book, however, the story takes place on a different, but very earth-like, world. There, mankind started using the apes for medical experimentation, ultimately in great masses as part of an all-out effort to cure cancer. They then had these huge numbers of apes and found that they were easily trained to do mundane household tasks. The apes were brought into people's homes to work as domestic servants. This situation went on for several centuries and, at the same time, mankind was getting lazier and lazier. People had apes to do everything for them, while the apes were getting smarter and more discontent with their situation. Eventually, the apes learn to talk and finally they simply take over. Mankind by this time had not only become physically lazy but mentally as well. When the apes take over, humans can put up no resistance.
It's unclear as to whether there was an actual hierarchy. Some viewers saw the orangutans on top, the gorillas at the bottom, and the chimps in between. Others felt it was more of a demarcation in preference of professions. The gorillas, with their strength and apparent appreciation for authority, tended to join the military; the orangutans tended to prefer political and religious professions; and the chimpanzees, with their curiosity, seemed to prefer scientific (and probably adventure) professions. However you look at the ape hierarchy, one thing was perfectly clear...humans were beneath them all.
Landon (Robert Gunner) was hit in the head with a club during the round-up and, according to Dr Zaius (Maurice Evans), suffered a skull fracture. Taylor (Charlton Heston) was shot in the neck and was unable to speak for several days (weeks?) afterward. Consequently, many viewers have surmised that Landon may have been screaming and cursing after he was captured and that Dr Zaius (or whomever was in charge) had him immediately lobotomized to hide the fact that he was a human with the ability to speak. Although there is no onscreen evidence to prove that's how it happened, it can be noted that Zaius must have known that Landon also had the ability to speak as he reveals in the office scene in which Zaius accuses Taylor of being a mutant. Taylor asks "How can the appearance of one mutant send you into a panic?" Zaius replies, "Because you're not unique. There's the one you call Landon."
The movie does not make it clear what became of the planet's moon. One possibility is that it was blown up and formed a ring of smaller rocks and dust around the planet. That would account for one of the astronauts saying "There's always a 'strange cloud cover at night.'"
Talking dolls aren't always driven by batteries. Dolls and pet toys are sometimes driven by a mechanism that "wheezes" when pushed or tilted.
Towards the end of the movie, Zaius lets Taylor go with the warning, "You may not like what you see." This doesn't necessarily mean that Zaius knows about the statue. One thing Zaius does know, as he admits when he tells Taylor, "I have always known about man," is that man was once the dominant primate on the planet. It might also be assumed that Zaius knows it was man who destroyed the Eastern seaboard. This may be what Zaius thinks Taylor may learn if he pokes around in the Forbidden Zone.
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