Disc Details
Special Features:	Widescreen Letterboxed Box set. THX Digitally remastered picture and sound. Photo Gallery. Planet of The Apes web link. Planet of The Apes interactive game trailer. Self contained Web site. Includes the following films: (1) Planet of the Apes (1968) (2) Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970) (3) Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971) (4) Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972) (5) Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973) (6) Behind the Planet of the Apes (1998): Two-hour documentary hosted by Roddy McDowall .
Video Format:	Widescreen (2.35:1)
Languages:	English (Dolby Digital 5.1) English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono) French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround) French (Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono)
Captions:	English, Spanish.
Casing:	6-Disc Keep Case

PLANET OF THE APES:
Astronaut George Taylor (Charlton Heston) leads a space mission. His craft crash lands on a seemingly prehistoric planet. The crew discovers that the planet is inhabited by primitive humans. While the cynical Taylor muses over the possibility of ruling the planet his crew is astonished by the appearance of mounted and armed gorillas. The apes hunt down the humans for sport. Taylor alone survives from among his crew. A bullet in his throat prevents him from speaking. While in captivity he is subjected to examination by Dr. Galen (Wright King) and his psychologist partner, Dr. Zira (Kim Hunter). Zira finds Taylor unique because of his intelligence. She speaks about him to her fiancee, Cornelius (Roddy McDowell). When it becomes apparent that Taylor is intelligent, the two defend him against extermination by Dr. Zaius (Maurice Evans), the chief scientist and defender of the faith. With the aid of Zira and Cornelius, Taylor escapes with his sexy mate, Nova (Linda Harrison) into the forbidden zone. The film ends with pursuit by Zaius and the gorillas and a shocking finale which still packs a punch today.

BENEATH THE PLANET OF THE APES:
Astronaut Brent (James Fransiscus) is the sole survivor of a rescue mission sent to find Taylor and his crew. Brent finds Nova and the two begin a journey which leads to the Ape City and the underground Forbidden City which is inhabited by a race of telepathic human mutants. The film ends with Brent finding Taylor in time for the two to take part in a climatic battle between ape and mutant.

ESCAPE FROM THE PLANET OF THE APES:
Just prior to the nuclear destruction of their planet, Zira, Cornelius and Dr. Milo (Sal Mineo) escape their planet in Taylor's repaired space craft. They arrive in 1972 Los Angeles. The chimps win over the hearts and minds of most humans. The President (William Windom) is pressured by his science advisor, Dr. Otto Hassilinn (Eric Braeden) to prevent Zira from giving birth to her baby. Hassilinn fears a rival race of intelligent beings who will threaten human domination. With the help of a couple of scientists (Bradford Dillman and Natalie Trundy), Zira and Cornelius are hidden at a circus run by Armando (Ricardo Montalban). The forces of darkness close end, but the ape child is saved by the sympathetic Armando.

CONQUEST FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES:
20 years after the death of Zira and Cornelius, the world has become a fascist state. A mysterious virus has wiped out all cats and dogs. Apes were taken in as pets until it became apparent that they had more value as slave. Milo (Roddy McDowell) has been raised by Armando in the country. On a trip to the city, Milo witnesses first hand the brutality meted out upon his fellow primates by man. He screams out in outrage. He escapes but Armando is captured. After Armando is killed, Milo decides that he must take a stand. He hides among other apes and becomes a slave. Ironically, he is allowed to pick a new name by pointing randomly at a word in a dictionary. The intelligent Milo deliberately chooses the name Caesar, and thus a king is born. He leads a revolt which results in Ape dominance.

BATTLE FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES:
It is several years later. A nuclear war has occurred. Caesar rules a settlement of apes. Humans are treated with compassion. Caesar’s biggest rival is general Aldo (Claude Akins) who wants a military dictatorship. Aldo believes compassion is a quick death. The ape settlement come under attack from the mutant humans living in the radioactive fall-out of the forbidden city. While the film tries to end on a positive note, the viewer knows that peace between ape and man won't last. John Huston has a cameo as The Lawgiver.

Picture Quality: 10/10
Fox took great care is preparing the set. I didn't notice any pixilation on any of the 6 disks. Excellent contrast between colors. Nice flesh tones (especially Nova's). The last two films have a cheaper look to them, but this is due to the low budget imposed by Fox during production.

Sound Quality: 10/10
Jerry Goldsmith's score is one of my favorite of all time. I wonder how he would score the old Tarzan films. The sound quality is excellent through out the 6 disks.

Menu: 7/10
Not as creative as it could have been. It is easy to navigate though. It makes good use of Jerry Goldsmith's score.

Extra Features: 4/10
There really aren't any extras unless you consider the feature length documentary which makes up the 6th disk as an extra. The documentary is excellent and includes a very detailed account of Arthur P. Jacobs journey bringing the film to fruition. I especially enjoyed the early test reel made to convince Fox that the movie could be made with out becoming laughable. On the test reel, we see Heston acting with Edward G. Robinson as Dr. Zaius and James Brolin and Linda Harrison as Cornelius and Zira. The other extras include a picture gallery and theatrical trailers. The documentary rates a 10 but I don't include it as an extras as it has its own disk.

The Final Word:
All in all, this is a great boxed set for fans of the genre. Fans will want to own the set even though the last two films were weak entries in the series. Make this a permanent addition to your library.

Rusty White