When Planet of the Apes was getting ready to open back in the late 60's, no one really knew what to expect. After all, the idea of a picture featuring talking gorillas sounded absolutely crazy. Of course, the film went on to become a huge hit and even spawned several sequels and a television series. Well, it's taken over thirty years and several directors to get a updated version made. James Cameron was just one of the big directors once attached to the project. Ultimately, it was visionary Tim Burton who would finally helm the movie, and he prefers to call it a re-imagining as oppose to a remake.

In this re-imagining, Mark Wahlberg plays Leo Davidson, an air force pilot who finds himself marooned on a strange planet where apes rule and humans are their slaves. Before long, he finds himself leading a revolt against the primates.

I really enjoyed this picture, but I must say that of all the Tim Burton productions, this one felt the least Burtonesque. In most of his pictures, Burton has at least one character that is perceived as an outsider or a social outcast. And while Helena Bonham Carter's Ari could be considered that character, she's hardly an Edward Scissorhands or Ed Wood. Not that this is a bad thing. Burton still shows a sure hand with his craft, not only creating an obvious take on racism, but a statement about "animal rights" as well. This film always seems to straddle the line between satire, seriousness, adventure, and flat-out comedy with the greatest of ease. And while Burton isn't always perfect in his execution of the action scenes, he is great with his actors, particularly the one's buried beneath Rick Baker's breathtaking make-up.

Obviously, the film is called Planet of the Apes and not Planet of the Humans, therefore, Burton hasn't really seen it fit to flesh out the human characters in this piece. Similarly, Mark Wahlberg isn't able to breathe much life into this heroic character. Let's face it, the guy is no Chuck Heston, especially where this material is concerned. Hell even Chuck Heston is no Chuck Heston these days. And while we're on the subject, Moses himself makes a drop -dead hilarious cameo in Planet of the Apes. I won't go any further into that because it would just ruin the surprise.

The rest of the actors portraying the underdeveloped human characters in this movie are completely forgettable. The real powerhouse performances are supplied by Helena Bonham Carter, Tim Roth, Paul Giamatti and Michael Clarke Duncan. Bonham Carter is fantastic as Ari. She's smart, funny and surprisingly sexy in the role. Roth is chilling and purely evil as ruler Thade. Duncan is commanding as Attar while the hilarious Giamatti gets most of the comic relief as slave trader Limbo. You know it's a good performance when you forget the actor you are watching, and while the make-up does have something to do with that, a lot of credit goes to these fabulous actors. They walk the walk and talk the talk in some of the best acting of the year.

Although Planet of the Apes features some outstanding performances and sure handed direction, the true star of the picture is Rick Baker. The guy has been around for years and I've always been a huge fan. I've seen An American Werewolf in London several times and I'm always amazed by it. With all the recognition and accolades already to his credit, Mr. Baker has reached a career high-point with his amazing work in Planet of the Apes. He hasn't merely created one simple design, but rather a library of primates, giving each character distinct looks based on the likeness of gorillas, chimps, baboons and orangutans, just to name a few. This could possibly be the greatest make-up effects ever put on display in a single film. Congratulations to Mr. Baker.

While Planet of the Apes does have flaws, it's so damn entertaining as a whole, that it's completely unnecessary to point them out. And you may have heard much debate about the ending. Let me just say that Burton is far more intent upon mind-bending fun, than he is concerned with matching the shock value of the original. It worked for me and reminded me of some of the crazy goings on in Back to the Future 2. It is apparent that Fox may be interested in turning this Planet of the Apes into a franchise.

You know, I really feel like I've been reviewing on a curve this summer. Although there have been really good movies, nothing has been absolutely overwhelming. In a really weak summer, this movie seems all the better. In the summer of 1989 (which saw the release of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Lethal Weapon 2, UHF and Burton's own Batman), this may not have been a four star movie, but amid the mediocrity of the summer of 2001, it's an absolute Godsend. Tim Burton has saved us all.