Beneath the Planet of the Apes

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Cast & Crew

James Franciscus
John Brent

Kim Hunter
Dr. Zira

Charlton Heston
George Taylor

Maurice Evans
Dr. Zaius

Linda Harrison
Nova

Victor Buono
Fat Man

Paul Richards
Mendez

Thomas Gomez
Minister

Ted Post
Director

Paul Dehn
Writer (Story)

Mort Abrahams
Writer (Story)

Paul Dehn
Screenwriter

Mort Abrahams
Associate Producer

Arthur P. Jacobs
Producer

Leonard Rosenman
Original Music

Milton R. Krasner
Cinematographer

Marion Rothman
Film Editor

William J. Creber
Art Direction

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Critic Reviews for Beneath The Planet Of The Apes

Audience Reviews for Beneath The Planet Of The Apes

• Jun 29, 2014

  In one of the biggest sequel letdowns I have ever seen, "Beneath the Planet of the Apes" follows another astronaut who crash lands on the same planet as Taylor from the first film while searching for him. He learns about the planet's true identity very quickly and the first half just feels like it borrows heavily from the script of the first. It is very lazy screenwriting and when they eventually do explore beneath the planet, it just becomes bizarre and laughable. I did not care what happened to any of these characters, because their motivations are manipulated throughout and you cannot latch onto anything that is happening. I really wanted to like this film, but it just flat out drops the ball. Terrible writing, horrible effects, and lukewarm performances, "Beneath the Planet of the Apes" is not worth your time at all. Although I do applaud a few nice touches, this film is a piece of garbage.
  

  KJ P Super Reviewer
• Mar 31, 2014

  I was a great fan of all the Planet of the Apes movies, but because I watched them as a child, I decided to revisit them and write the reviews. First one I got from the series was this 1970 film directed by Ted Post and written by Paul Dehn. It is the second of five films in the original Planet of the Apes series produced by Arthur P. Jacobs. The film stars James Franciscus, Kim Hunter, and Linda Harrison, and features Charlton Heston in a supporting role. What a disappointment! In this sequel, another spacecraft crashes on the planet ruled by apes, carrying astronaut Brent who searches for Taylor and discovers an underground city inhabited by mutated humans with psychic powers (real boring creatures). Beneath the Planet of the Apes was a success at the box office but it wasn't anything special! Following the events of Planet of the Apes, time-displaced astronaut Taylor (Charlton Heston) and the mute Nova (Linda Harrison) are riding on horseback through the desert of the Forbidden Zone... the start was like out of nowhere, directing was really atrocious in those first few minutes! Without warning, fire shoots up from the ground and deep chasms open. Confused by the strange phenomenon, Taylor investigates a cliff wall and disappears before Nova's eyes. It looked like everything was hurried, and had no feelings or substance. Later, the directing improves but you can see in almost every shot that Ted Post is a TV director, not ready for a cinema... yet. Acting was almost identical to the original movie, I would not spend too much time there - good is the word! The most outstanding part of this movie was the music part. Taking over for Jerry Goldsmith, composer Leonard Rosenman retained the neoprimitive musical underpinnings of the ape world while creating a score very much written in his own, inimitable style. Rosenman's approach is in its way diametrically opposed to Goldsmith's-composed of vertically-stacked layers of sound, clanging, metallic effects, bristling, rambunctious chase music and a perverse, chaotic march for the ape army. Add to this some striking electronic effects and a bizarre choral mass written for the atomic bomb-worshipping mutants, and you have the recipe for one of the most original science fiction movie scores ever written. Sadly, not even that could save the movie from the negative score!
  Panta O Super Reviewer
• Jul 04, 2012

  has some interesting points but by the end it all comes to a poor conclusion. charlton heston is wasted in a minor role and is replaced with a poor clone. the idea was a good concept but sadly it doesn't work after a while
  Brendan N Super Reviewer
• Mar 10, 2012

  Beneath the Planet of the Apes is a fairly good sci-fi drama, but lacks the craft of the original. The story follows Brent, an astronaut sent to rescue Taylor, who ends up marooned on the same planet, but is taken captive by human mutants who live in the Forbidden Zone. James Franciscus, Linda Harrison, and Kim Hunter lead the cast and give solid performances. However, the poor effects hinder the film and (with the mystery of the planet revealed in the first film) it's hard to recreate the same suspense again. Still, the film finds an interesting place to take the story and expands the mythology. Ultimately, Beneath the Planet of the Apes fails to deliver on the promise of first film, and instead delivers a mediocre sequel.
  Dann M Super Reviewer

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