Almost every newspaper review has panned the film more or less and only one mentioned the music as being one of the few good things in the film (aside from the admittedly impressive ape makeup). I'm not quite sure which copy he saw, but I can't say Elfman's score was particularly engaging outside of a few choice moments. The Main Titles are admittedly impressive, with a building structure that echoes his original Batman titles, but in the more typical recent Elfman style of very basic few note motifs occasionally quoted amongst swathes of percussion. About the most recognisable theme is an unusual ascending percussion motif, but otherwise it's more the martial and brutal soundscape than the melody that is notable. After a brief foray into Basil Poledouris style space music (quite an unexpected turn up) with Deep Space Launch, the style of the titles returns for The Hunt. One of the few scenes in the film to be genuinely thrilling, the athletic camerawork is mirrored with some equally athletic writing and a superbly brutal musical attack.
The problem with a loud score like this is that you really need quieter moments to give a little balance and allow some breathing space. Unfortunately, Planet of the Apes suffers from some fairly mediocre low key scoring which meanders its way to no particular point and is lacking in any memorable melodic material. It is welcome, but cues such as Escape from the City - The Legend become fairly uninteresting fairly quickly. Things pick up with a stoic march in Ape Suite #2 (did these cues not have titles at the scoring stage?) and The Battle Begins is fairly thrilling with plenty of percussion, screaming brass and running strings going all out to make a somewhat unexciting sequence in the film halfway thrilling.
The original film may not have been an absolute classic, but Jerry Goldsmith's original score certainly was and as a study in providing alien musical soundscapes, it's hugely memorable, albeit not easy listening. I would guess that someone like Elliot Goldenthal might have written something more experimental than Elfman's effort, which seems to be a by-product of the film being more a mainstream thrill ride than an edgy and scary science fiction satire which it could have been. Elfman's score seems to take more of a crash, bang, wallop approach as it thunders its way towards the Rule the Planet Remix - not quite a dance version of the main title, but a lame excuse to sample some bits of dialogue and drum beats over Elfman's music. A score not entirely without merit, but not as engaging as their previous Sleepy Hollow. I suspect it will please Elfman fans, but others might find they couldn't give a monkeys long before the end. Yes, I've been waiting to do that joke all week. Sorry.
Rating ~ Total Time ~ 58:27
While not quite in the same leagues of stupidity as re-making Psycho, "re-imagining" Planet of the Apes was always going to be a shaky idea. The original Charlton Heston starring film isn't quite a classic (certainly not up to Schaffner's best efforts such as Patton and Papillon), but is certainly a great sci-fi movie with plenty of socio-political comment. Burton's version on the other hand is an average sci-fi action flick and while it attempts to be engaging, never really is. Mark Wahlberg is bemused rather than terrified by the apes and several potentially interesting issues, such as a suggested spark of romance between Wahlberg's space man and Helena Bonham Carter's chimp and whether they could have consummated the relationship, are discarded. Wahlberg ends up sleep walking until the dumb, hopelessly tacked on and unnecessary finale. For a better remake, I'll stick with Planet of the Apes: The Musical as featured in The Simpsons.
Remix by Paul Oakenfield