Planet of the Apes: 40 Year Evolution Blu-ray Collection 11/4/08
 

Fox Home Entertainment has announced that they will bring 'Planet Of The Apes: 40 Year Evolution Blu-ray Collection' to Blu-ray on November 4th. The set, which features all five original 'Planet of the Apes' films, will feature BD-50s utilizing 2.35:1 1080p AVC accompanied by a 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio soundtrack.

The five films - 'Planet Of The Apes', 'Beneath The Planet Of The Apes', 'Escape From The Planet Of The Apes', 'Conquest Of The Planet Of The Apes', and 'Battle For The Planet Of The Apes' - have all been specially prepared for this release, including a never-before-seen in the US unrated version of 'Conquest of the Planet of the Apes'.

Extras for this release will all be presented in stunning high definition. They include:

Science of the Apes BONUSVIEW - Scientists, anthropologists and sociologists discuss the facts and fiction of the first film (BD Exclusive)

"Beyond the Forbidden Zone" Adventure Game (BD Exclusive)

"A Public Service Announcement From ANSA" in HD - A mission report from the agency regarding their brave astronauts (BD Exclusive)

"Evolution of the Apes"- HD featurette tracing the apes story from the original novel to the screen (BD Exclusive)

"Impact of the Apes" - HD featurette on how to market a worldwide pop culture phenomenon. The story behind the marketing and merchandising of one of the first ever film franchises and the series' lasting influence on pop culture through the years (BD Exclusive)

HD Making-of Featurette for Each Sequel (BD Exclusive):
Beneath the Planet of the Apes - "From Alpha to Omega: Building a Sequel"
Escape from the Planet of the Apes - "The Secret Behind Escape"
Conquest of the Planet of the Apes - "Riots and Revolutions: Confronting the Times"
Battle for the Planet of the Apes - "End of an Epic: The Final Battle"

Each Apes sequel will have an isolated score track in 5.1 DTS Master Audio (BD Exclusive)

Commentary by Composer Jerry Goldsmith
Commentary by Actors Roddy McDowall, Natalie Trundy, Kim Hunter and Makeup Artist John Chambers
Text Commentary by Eric Greene and Author of "Planet of the Apes as American Myth"
Behind the Planet of the Apes Documentary - Includes all new interactivity and timeline
Behind the Planet of the Apes Promo (1988)
Planet of the Apes Makeup Test with Edward G. Robinson (1966)
Roddy McDowall On-set Footage
Planet of the Apes Dailies and Outtakes (No Audio)
Planet of the Apes NATO Presentation (1967)
Planet of the Apes Vintage Featurette (1968)
A Look Behind the Planet of the Apes (1972)
Don Taylor Directs Escape from the Planet of the Apes
J. Lee Thompson Directs Conquest of the Planet of the Apes
Six Original Theatrical Trailers
Original Sketches by Costume Designer Morton Haack
Photo Gallery
Planet of the Apes Timeline
Interactive Pressbooks
Vintage Apes Newspaper Galleries
Advertising and Lobby Card Galleries
Behind-the-Scenes Galleries

Source: blu-ray.com

Soooooooooo glad I never bought that big ape head! :D

Count me in. I want it for $60.

I got the ape head and all I want is the first on Blu-ray.

I hope this trend of not releasing films individually doesn't continue with the studios.

Unless they've added even more footage, this is already on the SD DVD that came in the second boxset.

EDIT: I'm wrong, I'm thinking of Battle, this is new stuff.

Me, too! This sounds incredible! (Still wish it came in a big ape head, though).

But this is missing, at the very least, the TV series, the cartoon series, and the newest movie that the ape head has.

I'll be glad to have both.

I just came.

Holy shit I can't wait to have this.

No, that was the extended version of BATTLE (the final film). What's new here is an alternate version of CONQUEST. It was rumored that Fox had located the preview version of the film recently, hopefully that's what is included inthe Blu-ray set and not some sort of new reconstruction. CONQUEST was considered too violent in tone after preview screenings and was re-edited at the last minute. The final speech by Roddy McDowall was looped over existing footage in post; the original ending was bleaker.

excellent! :thumbsup:

It will be mine. Oh yes, it will be mine.

Oops, you're right. I'll amend my post. Hope there'll be a SD single disc release of this new cut of Conquest then, I'm still not ready to go Blu.

-wink- Good luck with that. This is a Fox release which means it's gonna list for over $100.

OUCH!!!!!!!! i just saw the the list price is $179.95 so I figure $120ish at best.

damn I just bought the Legacy set for $25 recently...this pricing is ridiculous.

Oooooh damn... glad I sold my ape head on ebay recently. Conquest has become my 2nd favorite in the series (after the first). I'm all over this set.

Darn, another double dip for me. Just watched my SD set this month, I love this series.

This set sounds great, but the published specs aren't quite right:

The new Unrated version of CONQUEST is touted as "never before seen in the US". If it's the preview version, it wasn't released anywhere in the world right other than Fox test screenings, right?

The specs do not confirm the extended version of BATTLE is included. This version was in the most recent anamorphic set, but the original DVD release only included the 86 min theatrical version. One of the DVD sepcs I saw on another site gives the running time of BATTLE as 86 mins. Hmmm.

Hopefully, the set will include both the theatrical and preview screening versions of CONQUEST, and both versions of BATTLE also. If they end up doing only the theatrical version of BATTLE and leave off the extended version which is already on DVD; this will be a huge mistake.

Fox needs to clarify the specs.

I've got the ape head but I would be interested in this at the right price. I'm not paying anywhere near a hundred for it though.

The price on this set will be high ($180 list price) at first. Fox knows how this works and likes to lower the price over time. Those rabid for this will bite at this high price.

Personally, I can wait for this to dip to <$60 (I know, I'll be waiting a long time -- so be it!). It's a nice cycle of films, and makes for a great little marathon. :)

-beebs

It's actually an SRP of $159.95. The $179.95 figure you saw was for the re-release of the ape head set on DVD (day and date with the Blu-ray). So much for those ape heads being "limited," huh?

I'm more disturbed by the collectible packaging of the set... Where the hell do I put it?

Frickin' collectible boxes.

fitprod

I waited on the Alien Quadrilogy until I got it for $20 from Amazon last year.

I figure I can wait until this set hits $50 or $60. It IS a great set, though!

Maxflier, please don't use came and shit in the same sentence. Ewwwwww . . .!

I really hope that they release the first film all by itself at some point in the future. I've never been a fan of any of the sequels or the dreadful remake; the first one is a classic, and the only one for me.