Planet of the Apes as American Myth : Race, Politics, and Popular Culture

By Eric Greene

Book Overview

How do political conflicts shape popular culture? This book explores that question by analyzing how the Planet of the Apes films functioned both as entertaining adventures and as apocalyptic political... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0819563293
• ISBN13: 9780819563293
• Release Date: August 1970
• Publisher: Wesleyan University Press
• Length: 286 Pages
• Weight: 0.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

The "Sacred Scroll" for serious Ape-o-philes!

I can count on the fingers (and fully-opposable thumb) of one hand the number of books that have impressed, entertained, and inspired me as much as this one. It doesn't hurt that I grew up as a hardcore Ape-o-phile. Still, had "Planet of the Apes as American Myth" been a mere nostalgic retrospective, it would not have riveted me as it did. Something strange happened as I read Greene's lucid, insightful and cogent commentary. I came to understand, finally, just why the Apes series and the world it evoked had, during my pre-teen and teen years, intrigued me on so many levels at once...and why the series' admittedly outlandish sci-fi premise always had to it the ring of truth. Reading this book, I felt vindicated. It was as if the author said, "You were right all along, Paul. These films really DID matter -- and here's why." Like the final scene in the original 1968 film, Greene's book forces you to look back at all that preceded it (in this case, the POTA films & TV series) in an entirely new light. For Apes fans this is, quite simply, a MUST-READ. (Paul McComas is the author of UNPLUGGED, TWENTY QUESTIONS, and the upcoming comedic coming-of-age novel PLANET OF THE DATES.)

Engrossing, intelligent, and eminently readable

Greene also does the text commentary on the 35th anniversary DVD of the original PLANET OF THE APES movie, and you can see why he was chosen. His deep insights into that film, and the ones that follow, are an absolute joy to read. If only the producers of the dismal remake of PLANET OF THE APES had read Green's book, they'd perhaps have understood how deeply symbolic and profound the original was. Although this is a scholarly work, it is also just a whole heck of a lot of fun. Five stars.

Planet of the Apes as an American "Animal Farm?"

As far back as Aesop, the creative community has realized that talking animals can be especially effective surrogates for making social commentary. This book is an extensive treatment of this issue and therefore is especially for those interested in the mythical and social aspects of the Planet of the Apes series. Needless to say, if you want to know more about the movies as movies or you're interested in an apes price guide, you should probably look elsewhere. However, those looking here will not be disappointed with Greene's spot on ability to weave social analysis from the various naunces of the apes movies. From 1968 to 1975 the apes series produced five movies and two separate television series. This is a very prodigious production rate commensurate with the series' ability to key into the American psyche. Much like the Simpsons today, the apes series gave its writing staff a chance to touch on issues like the war in Vietnam and race relations from an artistically safe vantage point. Like our fast food the Planet of the Apes series was a uniquely American foray into the land of Aesop. It was, perhaps our American "Animal Farm."

Intelligent and Entertaining

Movies are, more often than not, more of a comment on the times in which they were made than the times they represent. Rod Serling and Michael Wilson established their incredible careers writing stories about how human beings treat one another. So it's no coincidence that the futuristic Planet of the Apes films reflect the turbulent times in which they were written and produced - the late 1960s and early 1970s. At the height of the civl rights movement and the dawn of the Black power movement there was alot to say about how people treated other people with different colored skin. And while there are certainly other social issues being addressed in the Apes films, Greene has placed his finger squarely on the pulse of, perhaps, the major ideological force behind the films and their popularity. And he does so with a great sense of what makes a book of this sort entertaining as well as informative. I found the pacing to be excellent and the presentation far from dry. This is no textbook or dusty college paper! In fact, Greene educates and illuminates while giving lots of juicy stories, interviews, and backstage politics. He insightfully diagnoses each film for its symbolic content (both subtle and blatant) and for my money, he's spot on - from the casting of Charlton Heston in "Planet", to the use of School busses in "Battle." It has increased my enjoyment of the films many-fold. Read the book, then watch the films again and you will experience Planet of the Apes with a fresh perspective - one you haven't had since the first time you saw them. Personally, I am glad someone took the time to write about a body of work that means so much to so many people. I look forward to the update after Tim Burton's version debuts.

Insightful, readable, enjoyable--the ultimate Apes book.

From beginning to end this is the study of the Planet of the Apes series that everyone of the series' fans have dreamed of and that academics who never took the series seriously will learn from and hopefully teach.In addition to being an enjoyable read, Greene has a politically-minded scholar's insight that helps lift the series from trivia into concrete seriousness. I think it is a model for future works of film scholarship and appreciation.