Planet of the Apes (2001)

### Rating

**Planet of the Apes** is a UK VHS/DVD release by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment on 18th February 2002 and 5th August 2002.

## Description

VHS Special Feature:

Includes a 23 minute "Making Of" Documentary.

## Cast

* Mark Wahlberg as Captain Leo Davidson

A United States Air Force astronaut who accidentally opens a portal to another world inhabited by talking human-like apes and is captured by them. Leo leads a rebellion of the planet's humans. Wahlberg had backed out of a commitment to Ocean's Eleven to take this role in Planet of the Apes (Matt Damon was eventually cast in the Ocean's Eleven role). Whereas other actors contending for the Leo Davidson role wanted to see the script before signing a contract, Wahlberg signed on after a five-minute meeting with Burton. To avoid evoking associations with his previous work as an underwear model, Wahlberg did not wear a loincloth, even though Heston had worn one in the original film.
* Tim Roth as General Thade

A sadistic chimpanzee military commander who wants control over the ape civilization. Thade also intends to marry Ari, but she dismisses him. Roth turned down the role of Severus Snape in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone because of his commitment to Planet of the Apes. Alan Rickman was eventually cast as Snape. Roth rewrote some scenes to give his character a more frightening presence.
* Helena Bonham Carter as Ari

A female chimpanzee who protests the way humans are treated. She helps Leo lead the rebellion, and also develops a romantic attraction to him.
* Michael Clarke Duncan as Colonel Attar

A gorilla military officer and Thade's closest associate and second-in-command. Djimon Hounsou had turned down the role because of scheduling conflicts with The Four Feathers.
* Estella Warren as Daena

A female slave who, like Ari, develops a romantic attraction to Leo.
* Kris Kristofferson as Karubi

Daena's father. Karubi is killed by Thade while trying to escape. Kristofferson had immediately agreed to be cast. "The director Tim Burton is a hero of mine. I have eight kids and we've seen all of his films from Pee-wee's Big Adventure to Sleepy Hollow many times."
* Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa as General Krull

A gorilla and former military leader whose career had been destroyed by Thade. Krull became a servant of Senator Sandar and assisted the humans in their rebellion.
* Paul Giamatti as Limbo

A comical orangutan who works in the trade business of human slaves. Limbo is caught in the conflict between humans and apes and tries his best to simply survive. Giamatti drew inspiration from W. C. Fields for his performance. While his prosthetic makeup was being applied, Giamatti watched episodes of Ultraman and various Japanese Godzilla films.
* Jonah (uncredited) as Pericles

A trained chimpanzee in a US Air Force program in 2029, working with Leo on the space station to fly space pods. He is launched on a mission that involves traveling through an electromagnetic storm. He appears in only a few scenes, interacting mainly with Leo and in the ending scene with Ari.
Small roles include David Warner (Senator Sandar), Lisa Marie (Nova), Erick Avari (Tival), Luke Eberl (Birn), Evan Parke (Gunnar), Glenn Shadix (Senator Nado), Freda Foh Shen (Bon), Chris Ellis (Lt. Gen. Karl Vasich) and Anne Ramsay (Lt. Col. Grace Alexander).

There are also cameo appearances by Charlton Heston (uncredited) as Zaius, Thade's father, and Linda Harrison (the woman in the cart). Both participated in the first two films in the original series, Planet of the Apes (1968) and Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970) as George Taylor and Nova, respectively.

## Opening (Rental 2002 Re-release)

* 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment Warning Screen
* 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment Ident (2000-2004)
* Video Piracy Warning (20th Century Fox) [announced by Peter Dickson]
* Moulin Rouge trailer [announced by Ringo Starr]
* Legally Blonde trailer [announced by Ringo Starr]
* Bandits trailer [announced by Ringo Starr]
* The Fast and the Furious trailer
* Jeepers Creepers teaser trailer [announced by Ringo Starr]
* Coming Soon to Cinemas (silent)
* Minority Report trailer
* Thunderpants trailer [announced by Dave Benson Phillips]

## Closing (Rental 2002 Re-release)

* 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment Warning Screen

## Trailers and info

1. Moulin Rouge
2. Legally Blonde
3. Bandits
4. The Fast and the Furious
5. Jeepers Creepers
6. Minority Report
7. Thunderpants