Roddy McDowall

Planet of the Apes (1968)

Planet of the Apes (1968)
Rating: ★★★★
Apr 17, 2001Planet of Talking Apes
The film that started it all. This takes what could have been a jokey premise and delivers it in bold, exciting stokes. What elevates the film is Rod Serling’s script. filled with embittered soliloquies that become a biting commentary on the human condition, before the film reaches one of the great cinematic twist endings
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Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971)

Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971)
Rating: ★★★★
May 17, 2001Planet of the Apes Sequel/Time Travel
Third of the original Planet of the Apes films. This is an enjoyable take that brings the talking apes back in time to the present-day and where the emphasis is more on comedy
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Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972)

Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972)
Rating: ★★★
May 22, 2001Planet of the Apes Sequel
The fourth of the original Planet of the Apes films, this cuts back on the humour and makes a stark parable for the Civil Rights movement with the apes rebelling against humanity in a revolution
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Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973)

Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973)
Rating: ★★
Mar 26, 2000Planet of the Apes Sequel
The fifth and final of the original Planet of the Apes films. After four well worthwhile entries up to this point, a tired air infects this production as it assembles the elements in a haphazard clutter
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The Black Hole (1979)

The Black Hole (1979)
Rating: ★★
Jan 3, 2000Lost Spaceship/Mad Scientist/Journey into a Black Hole
Disney's attempt to join the post-Star Wars SF boom proved a flop that flounders in bad writing and ponderous pretensions. On the other hand, it is almost worth watching for the stunning design and effects
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The Return of the King (1980)

The Return of the King (1980)
Rating: ★★½
Oct 11, 2022J.R.R. Tolkien Adaptation/Animation/Epic Fantasy
Way back before Peter Jackson, there was another whole era of Tolkien adaptations, including this animated adaptation of the third book, which is a peculiar oddity if nothing else
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The Martian Chronicles (1980)

The Martian Chronicles (1980)
Rating: ★★
Aug 12, 2012Human Colonisation of Mars/Ray Bradbury Adaptation
Ray Bradbury's book about the human colonisation of Mars is an SF classic for its wistful, nostalgic poetry. This tv mini-series adaptation is killed by a lumbering director who over-explains Bradbury's imagery in the most literal ways
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Fright Night (1985)

Fright Night (1985)
Rating: ★★★
Jan 28, 2001Vampire Next Door Neighbour
Slick well made film that successfully transplants the vampire to modern suburbia. Made with a top-drawer arsenal of effects, including taking a leaf from An American Werewolf in London and showing a detailed man into bat transformation
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Behind the Planet of the Apes (1998)

Behind the Planet of the Apes (1998)
Rating: ★★★
Jan 1, 2009The Making of the Planet of the Apes Series Documentary
A documentary about the original Planet of the Apes series (made before the modern reboot series) that examines the making of and behind the scenes in all the detail that any fan could want
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