This movie has one of the most chilling endings in science fiction history

Spoilers – Warning, the article below reveals potential spoilers. If you do not want to know the content, please do not read the following …

Adapted freely from a novel by Pierre Boulle (its conclusion was slightly different), Planet of the Apes is still considered a staple of science fiction cinema today.

Directed by Franklin J. Schaffner in 1968, this unique saga, constantly immersed in a bizarre and frantic atmosphere (largely inspired by Jerry Goldsmith’s disturbing score), follows the adventures of three missing astronauts on an unknown planet. After traveling in hibernation for an entire year (the equivalent of two thousand Earth years), they have actually landed in a world inhabited by civilized apes, and where humans are reduced to the state of cattle.

While Planet of the Apes was later explored again – in Tim Burton’s wildly forgettable 2001 adaptation, and then in the excellent Andy Serkis-led trilogy from 2011 – this very first installment remains distinctive and poignant, even 55 years after its release, thanks to its sequel. Unforgettable final.

If you haven’t discovered the Franklin J. Schaffner movie yet, we strongly recommend that you don’t continue reading this article, and only come back after watching the movie.

Twentieth Century Fox

In the final minutes of the feature film, while several particularly disturbing details confirm the idea that ape society is keeping a terrible secret from him, Taylor (the astronaut played by Charlton Heston) manages to escape, and continues his quest. to get the truth.

While he was carelessly strolling along the ocean coast, he suddenly stopped, his gaze terrified, and after a few seconds of stupor, he began to shout angrily:

“Criminals! Set them off!”he exclaims as the viewer, on the contrary, discovers the origin of his misfortune.

Twentieth Century Fox

Already before him are the remains of the Statue of Liberty, terrifying proof that his journey did not lead him to the end of the universe, but rather to his starting point, two thousand years in the future.

Therefore, the Planet of the Apes is simply … Earth.

This memorable final revelation, which remains one of the most famous in cinema today, is not quite the same as in Pierre Boulle’s novel.

At the end of the original work, the main character (named Ulysses) had already managed to leave the “Planet of the Apes”, which was therefore not Earth, and return to her home planet. Landing in Paris 700 years after his departure, he is then surprised to be greeted by a gorilla, noting that monkeys used to dominate the land as well.

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