Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970)
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A second spacecraft arrives on a planet ruled by apes, leading to the discovery that the simian civilization is not the greatest threat.
The story
Time-displaced astronaut Taylor and the mute Nova travel through the desert of the Forbidden Zone in search of a new life away from Ape City. After Taylor mysteriously disappears through a cliff wall, a second spaceship crash-lands in the area. The sole survivor, Brent, believes he has traveled to another planet. After encountering Nova, he travels to Ape City, where he discovers a simian civilization. While the gorilla General Ursus leads a rally to conquer the Forbidden Zone, Brent is wounded and taken by the chimpanzees Cornelius and Zira, who mention their previous time with Taylor.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Astronaut Taylor and the mute Nova are searching for a new life in the Forbidden Zone when Taylor disappears through a cliff wall. A second spaceship crash-lands, bringing Brent to the planet. Brent meets Nova and travels to Ape City, discovering a civilization ruled by apes. General Ursus wants to conquer the Forbidden Zone for food, opposing Dr. Zaius. Brent is wounded and taken by Cornelius and Zira. While attempting to flee, Brent and Nova are captured by gorillas but helped by Zira to a cave—the ruins of a New York City subway station. Brent realizes he is on Earth in the post-apocalyptic future. He finds a population of telepathic mutants in the ruins of St. Patrick's Cathedral who worship a nuclear bomb. The mutants use mind-control to interrogate Brent about the apes' march. As the apes invade the subterranean city, the telepaths prepare to detonate their 'Divine Bomb.' Brent is separated from Nova and finds Taylor in a cell; a mutant forces them to fight. Nova breaks the concentration, allowing them to kill the mutant. Taylor recognizes the bomb as a doomsday weapon. In the chaos of the ape invasion, Nova is killed. Taylor and Brent reach the cathedral as the telepath leader Mendez is killed. Taylor pleads with Zaius, who refuses to listen, decrying humanity's violence. After Brent kills Ursus, Taylor is mortally wounded and collapses, hitting the detonation switch. The bomb explodes, destroying the planet.
- First release year
- 1970
- Runtime (minutes)
- 95
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Ted Post
- Writers
- Paul Dehn · screenplay; Paul Dehn · story; Mort Abrahams · story
- Cast and characters
- James Franciscus · Brent; Kim Hunter · Zira; Maurice Evans · Dr. Zaius; Linda Harrison · Nova; Charlton Heston · Taylor; Tod Andrews · Skipper; James Gregory · General Ursus; David Watson · Cornelius
- Genres
- science fiction; adventure; war; dystopian
- Themes
- Nuclear warfare; Post-apocalyptic survival; Religious fanaticism; Humanity's self-destruction
- Tone and mood
- Dystopian; Serious; Action-oriented
- Premise and plot tags
- Time travel; Space exploration; Mutants; Apes; Nuclear holocaust
- Source material / true-story basis
- Planet of the Apes (1968) film
- Franchise connections
- Planet of the Apes
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews from critics, with some praising its imagination and others panning it as hokey and substandard.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 37% · review count: 30; Metacritic · score: 46 · scale: 100 · review count: 9
- Production trivia
- The budget was reduced from $5 million to $2.5 million due to underperforming big-budget films.; Charlton Heston agreed to appear only if his character was killed and his pay went to charity.; The sets of the mutants' council chamber and the temple of the bomb were redresses of sets from Hello, Dolly!
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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