TIM BURTON, LIKE A MANIACAL MONKEY, FLINGS CRAP ON THE SCREEN

Films have lost their magic. And I blame it on STAR WARS. Well, not exactly, but I'll use it as a reference point.

I am not a fan of the blockbuster special FX movie. I don't think I really ever was either, which is surprising since I grew up craving every creature feature and adventure sci-fi flick I could bulge my feasting eyes upon. The simple difference between then and now? No more magic. Nowadays we'd sooner look behind the curtain to unveil the magicians trick, rather than watch it. We no longer believe in magic.

The line between then and now, for me, was drawn when STAR WARS came out. With all the press and exposure that the film received before the actual release, which told every little secret, and revealed every little bit of trickery, the less magical the film became for me. From there on in, much to my dismay, filmmakers became all consumed with outdoing the last one, and creating the next blockbuster hit. The FX became more abundant, and then they got bigger, and then better, and more sophisticated, until "making a film" no longer meant presenting a story, but designing a technically visual display.

With this increased use of technology in the movies comes this ridiculous notion that today's audiences have become too "sophisticated", and need to be challenged more. On the contrary, the audience of these blockbusters have become more dumb, and less pragmatic, needing every little bit of detail in the story laid out before them in order for them to understand. Or maybe that is just how the audience is perceived by the film's makers, since they are the ones presenting the dumbed-down stories. Either way these blockbuster special FX films have become merely colorfully explosive pieces of eye candy that present not a solitary challenge to it's audiences.

The king of the hill, who reigns over this vast heap of wondrous and trifling films, is Tim Burton (at least for now he is, and who knows who will be next, maybe Sam Raimi with his upcoming SPIDERMAN) with his remake - or re-telling, or re-imagination, or whatever silly term he wants to put on it - of PLANET OF THE APES. The burning question is - why did the original PLANET OF THE APES need to remade? Yes, movie technology is far more advanced than it was back in the 60's, and we can utilize more impressive bits of trickery than we could back then. But making something bigger, and more fantastic does not mean that it's been improved upon. And if you can't improve upon a classic, just leave it alone.

The original PLANET OF THE APES came out at a sedately tumultuous point in our country's modern history. Middle class America was settled in quite contently in their suburban homes, with their 2.5 kids and a shiny new automobile in the drive that took mom to the grocery store, and to her bridge club, and took dad to his job, and the local Elk's Club. Everything they needed was nestled into their beautiful bucolic neighborhoods, and they needn't worry about what lies beyond their elm-lined streets. But the TV news brought in the upsetting reality of the rest of the world through images of the racial tensions that played out violently on city streets, and even more horrible were the pictures of a ravaging war that our young men were fighting in a foreign country. Going to the lush movie theater to see some great adventures seemed to be a viable escape from all the madness that had invaded our self-satisfied lives.

It was at the movies that some of society's superficial walls began to crumble. The more magnanimous side of Hollywood was putting out films that subtly asked Americans to ponder some important social questions by using this perfect blend of action, adventure, drama and comedy, mixed with relevant social satire or commentary. The audience was presented with issues without being preached to, or even asked to respond to. PLANET OF THE APES (1968) was one of these pictures.