Why Does Planet of the Apes\u2019 Twist Ending Work So Well?<\/p>\n
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It\u2019s undeniable that the twist in Planet of the Apes is huge and completely reframes the entire movie once you\u2019ve seen it, and part of what makes it work so well is that it actually works on multiple levels. Perhaps the most notable thing about the twist is the visual element. The final shot of the Statue of Liberty destroyed and half-buried in the sand is shocking. As one of America\u2019s most recognizable symbols, the visual alone communicates nearly everything you need to know but also packs a massive emotional punch. In addition to that, the twist also plays on subtle clues and foreshadowing in the film itself. While the film presents things to where the viewer believes that Taylor has landed on an alien world, we see Cornelius with human artifacts that are easily recognizable to the audience as items from our everyday lives. Dr. Zaius also reveals that he is aware of ancient human civilization and, before Taylor leaves, warns he may not like what he finds in his search for answers.<\/p>\n
The film quietly sets things up without giving too much away too quickly \u2014 most of the clues about human civilization come closer to the end of the movie \u2014 and then confirms the truth without actually saying it in as many words. The audience is left to process the massive revelation in much the same way as Taylor is, leaving everyone horrified in the process. It\u2019s masterful, and it hasn\u2019t been topped.<\/p>\n
Many Have Tried, But Planet of the Apes Still Has the Best Twist<\/p>\n
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Planet of the Apes wasn\u2019t the first film to employ a twist ending and it certainly wasn\u2019t the last, but almost sixty years later, that moment on the beach still stands as the greatest. After Planet of the Apes, twist endings started becoming more common, particular with sci-fi films and now, it\u2019s almost a requirement for there to be some sort of unexpected twist in sci-fi for the story to be effective. There have been plenty of films that have successfully implemented the idea, too. 1973\u2019s Soylent Green, which coincidentally also stars Charlton Heston, stunned with the revelation that highly processed food wafers that the majority of the population survives on in this dystopian, overpopulated world are made from human bodies. More recently, 2017\u2019s Get Out has the horrifying twist<\/a> that wealthy white people are using the bodies of young Black people to gain immortality in a genuinely twisted way.<\/p>\n There\u2019s even a twist that has come close to being as solid as the one in Planet of the Apes. 1999\u2019s The Sixth Sense stunned audiences with the revelation that Malcom Crow (Bruce Willis) had been dead the entire time and was really just a ghost working with young Cole (Haley Joel Osment). Similarly to Planet of the Apes, it\u2019s a twist that is subtly foreshadowed throughout the film but you don\u2019t notice it until it\u2019s fully put in your face. It also established M. Night Shyamalan as a master of the movie twist<\/a> \u2014 but while it\u2019s iconic, it still doesn\u2019t quite beat that final moment in Planet of the Apes. There\u2019s just something about the drama, the horror, and the dread of that moment that will forever reign supreme in movie history.<\/p>\n