A*P*E
(1976)Director: Paul Leder
Image Entertainment
A*P*E
(1976)The original KING KONG is not out on DVD yet, but that's OK 'cause we have A*P*E. Made in 1976 to cash in on the success of Dino De Laurentiis' successful remake, APE was shot in Korea by the man who gave us I DISMEMBER MAMA, and presented by Jack H. Harris (who also did the same for John Landis' SCHLOCK). It's terrible, but it's terribly fun at the same time. The film's poster promised all sorts of sensational thrills, but in the first few minutes, a guy in gorilla suit escapes the prison den of a toy boat, only to do battle with (or actually dance with) a lifeless shark in a dark swimming pool.
He them makes his way to the shores of Seoul, crushing cardboard buildings, terrifying a bunch of hoodlum kids breaking into an amusement park, tossing a harmless snake (in order to live up to the poster's promise of "vanquish a monster reptile") and disrupting the shooting of the latest cheapo martial arts flick. In the meantime, Hollywood actress Marilyn Baker (Joanna de Verona, later known as Joanna Kerns of "Growing Pains" fame) is in town to make a movie, but is literally swept off her feet by the overstuffed monkey so she can scream at the top off her lungs and do her best Jessica Lange impersonation ("be gentle big fella").
Soap star Rod Arrants plays a macho reporter who wants to marry Joanna, and the late Alex Nicol (he directed and starred in THE SCREAMING SKULL) is Colonel Davis, a cranky American military man stationed in Korea. Nicol (seen mostly yelling on the telephone) shouts lines like "...kill that hairy son of a bitch" and "Lets see him dance for his organ grinder now!"
You wonder if the movie is meant to be a spoof or if they just added snickers at the last minute, realizing how shoddy this was going to turn out. The ape flips the bird to the military and a director in the film (played by Leder) is called Dino (get it?), but that's not nearly as funny as hundreds of Asian extras running (from nothing) through the streets of Seoul (reminiscent of earlier Japanese Toho romps), the ape peeping through a window at a Korean prostitute and her American businessman John, and pitiful rear projection that makes the ape resemble a giant ink blotch. The film was originally shot in 3-D, so that's why the Tonka tanks, boulders, shooting missiles, etc., hurdle toward the viewer (on highly noticeable wires) in an erratic manner.
Image Entertainment has released A*P*E on DVD in a deservedly bare bones presentation, not in the miracle of 3-D. The film can finally be seen widescreen, as it's letterboxed in the odd 2.00:1 aspect ratio, and 16x9 enhanced. Except for some slight wear, the image looks pretty damn good, but the film will always have a cheap look to it. The sound has a minor flaw in the form of a "popping" noise that is evident from time to time, but otherwise works fine for this effort. This is the uncut PG version, not the edited version that recently aired on American Movie Classics. (George R. Reis)