Evolution and Devolution
Well, you can’t make a movie where apes rule the planet without touching upon Darwinian evolution. Clearly, when the humans race that Taylor left behind got into global nuclear war that destroyed all their civilization a vacuum was created in which more simian cousins took the quicker path to evolutionary advancement. Ah, but then that conclusion ignores a very important element of Planet of the Apes. Simply not enough time passes for all humans to have been wiped out, thus setting the stage or an equal race. So, in other words, Planet of the Apes is not merely about the evolution of chimps, gorillas and orangutans, but it is also about how the human beings underwent a serious case of de-evolution following nuclear winter. Are they not men? Yes, they are...but significantly de-evolved men. This thematic layer speaks to another—somewhat surprising—theme of the movie.
War! What is it Good For? Absolutely Nothing!
Considering that ultra-right wing icon and former head of the National Rifle Association Charlton Heston was not just the star of the film, but a major force in getting it made, the de-evolution of humans that is depicted comes as something as a shock. There is simply no getting around the fact that the evolutionary step backward for the human species that created the vacuum in which apes could evolve to a higher status is directly related to the use of nuclear weapons. And what—when everything is boiled down to essentials—are nuclear weapons? The world’s biggest gun. So, in effect, Planet of the Apes carries a strong anti-gun message which is couched in it even stronger anti-war message. Worth remembering, of course, is that the film debuted in 1968 when the anti-war protests against American’s involvement in Vietnam reached its fever pitch. Of course, it is also worth taking into consideration that two years later Franklin Schaffner would direct one of the most unlikely hits of its era: the definitively pro-war biopic, Patton. Strange times.
Animal Cruelty
A minor but pervasive theme in Planet of the Apes is drawing attention to animal experimentation and the cruelty involved in such research. By switching the role and situating the audience into Taylor’s perspective and by extension making Taylor essentially a lab rat for the ape society to experimental upon (as actually realized in the tragic lobotomy of Landon) the film forces the audience to confront the reality that humans, apes, rats, guinea pigs and the rest of God’s creatures are all animals of the same flesh, blood and capacity to feel pain. The film makes a very subtle (especially in relation to more activist propaganda media from certain now-famous organizations) but insistent demand upon the audience to recognize the value of every life on earth.
