Brehm Center

            In 1968, Planet of the Apes presented to its viewers an upside-down world, where apes were in charge and humans were their soul-less slaves. Moviegoers flocked to see the film, as well as the four sequels and two television series that followed, largely because of this ironic juxtaposition of “man and beast.” But this simple story also tapped deeply into emotions concerning one of society’s ongoing struggles  – the racial conflict between blacks and whites. 1968 was the year of Martin Luther King’s assassination, as well as the Kerner Commission’s report that found America to be “two nations, black, white, separate and unequal.” What appeared on the surface as mere entertainment had a deeper resonance.  

            Now some thirty plus years later, this fantasy story has again made it to the screen.  And it has again proven to be a blockbuster. Tim Burton’s “reimagining” of Planet of the Apes is projected to make close to $1 billion (from US and international sales and merchandise) on an initial investment of approximately $170 million. The DVD will be out for purchase as a Christmas gift!

Much of the appeal of Planet of the Apes is visual. Six-time Oscar winner Rick Baker’s make-up for the apes is wondrous to see. Though he is sheathed in latex, Tim Roth is nevertheless able to portray the villainous General Thade with such forcefulness that an Oscar nomination seems likely. And Helena Bonham Carter instills Ari with such compassion and grace that despite the “limitation” of her make-up, we found her smile more beautiful than the movie’s human “blond bombshell,” Estella Warren. But though the reimagining of this fantasy story is first of all about fun, audiences still find themselves confronted by deeper issues than the sizzle of special effects, make-up and costuming. The prejudice and exclusion seen on the screen mirror attitudes and actions still in our society.

The movie is thus entertainment…and more. Because it is “mere” entertainment, a Hollywood action movie with a big budget, some will think it harmless, even mindless escape. But as Carl Sandburg once opined, that which entertains also educates, and that which makes you laugh or cry does something to the deepest roots of your personality. This is still the case. Although all the sexual chemistry, for example, in the movie was between the ape-woman Ari and Leo – and not between Leo and the beautiful young woman, Daena (Estella Warren) – there was in the theater a palpable nervousness when it was time for a chaste kiss across species. Much like the arguments against inter-racial dating in the sixties, separate, even if equal, seemed to be the expectation. Will we really accept those who are not like us as our equals? We still struggle as a society (and a Church), don’t we?

Interestingly, two evangelicals had key roles in making the movie. Bill Broyles, a Southern Baptist who also wrote CastAway and Apollo 13 did the initial screenplay. His interest in the value of the human again shines through. And Ralph Winter, a Presbyterian who has been the producer of such movies as Star Trek IV-VI and X-Men, was the executive producer. Both cared about the “truth,” the informing vision imbedded in this story, and they sought to bring it freshly to the screen. Clearly, however, the chief creative envisioner was Tim Burton, the director, whose interest in a movie’s design and visual quality is legendary. Burton’s visual obsession resulted in some of the story’s depth and nuance being lost in the rewriting and editing. But Burton’s fascination with the dark side of life (for example, in Batman and Sleepy Hollow) is largely missing, and much of the exploration of what it is to be truly human has thus survived intact. (Note: the movies PG rating is still deserved as the finale is a breathtaking desert battle, which while not lingering on the blood, has mayhem and violence galore.) Here is a movie that can help you ask yourself questions of inclusion and embrace. 

For like the original, the story is a parable about prejudice, put within a classic tale of human redemption, of freedom from slavery. Leo Davidson (Mark Wahlberg) is the human savior – someone who is one with the oppressed but who comes from outside their social structure to save them. Davidson leaves his space station to rescue his favorite genetically improved chimp who is lost in space, only to discover a planet of talking apes who have enslaved humans like himself. The story of their rescue is filled with the expected action and has its own momentum. But allusions also abound. Viewers, for example, will find in Ari, the liberal, rich daughter of a senator, a Kennedy-like “Democrat” who wants everyone to be given equal opportunity. More importantly, this story of human redemption bears a certain resemblance to the Exodus story. As with Moses and the reluctant Israelites, it even includes a “Red Sea”-like escape across water.

            Movie portrayals of “saviors” who free us from bondage and make us whole should be applauded by Christians, given a culture that is quickly losing the taste and smell of the Christ story. Burton’s reimagining is not an attempted “Christian” story. Don’t get us wrong. But the movie is trying to affect its viewers wholly, as human beings, and its portrayal of redemption is thus wonder-filled (despite the tacked-on ending that purposely plays with our heads). It might be the apes that visually captivate us, and the action that sustains our attention, but it is the Story that rings true, the “myth” that proves satisfying to our spirits. Perhaps movie-goers who encounter Leo will be able to see with new eyes another Savior, who is also one of us, yet distinct from us.

Robert K. Johnston and

Catherine M. Barsotti