Planet of the Apes sequels (1970-1973) audio collection

[jonno]

Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970)

While you might expect the story for the lower-budget sequel, Beneath, to be a bit more straightforward, it has its own quite complicated history. True, the theatrical release was only ever mono, and again this original mix only survived until the earliest days of home video. However, it appears that a true stereo mix also exists for this film - I'll come back to that shortly.

Theatrical mono



As with the first film, the mono soundtrack heard on this instalment's theatrical release only stuck around as far as the very first VHS and laserdisc releases. For my BD-synced preservation, I've used the PAL CBS-Fox laser from 1983 (1013-70) - it's clear and detailed, unlike the equivalent 'mono' on the Blu-ray. Once again, this is the most authentic option.

Pre-release stereo



I need to skip ahead a bit release-wise now. While researching these tracks, I happened upon some forum posts from the sound engineer who mixed Beneath for the initial (2000) DVD release. He confirmed that there had most definitely been a 4-track mix made during this film's initial post production, and (unlike any that might have existed for the original film) these elements survived, in the form of 4-track 35mm mag. This master formed the basis for the Dolby Surround track on that 2000 DVD, making it the rare case of an original mix preserved in excellent quality - and it sounds terrific. Many thanks to @Stamper for helping source this one for my BD sync project!

Chace stereo

I don't currently own a laserdisc copy of this mid-80s mix, only VHS, so I haven't synced it for now. We're not missing much - it's even worse than the Chace remix for Planet, with similarly artificial steering and some elements actually missing. That said, if anyone has the SWE LD (1013-80) and would like to hear it synced, do send it my way.

When the whole series was rereleased on DVD in 2006 (including new anamorphic transfers), Beneath received a 'new' 5.1 track. Predictably, this was closer to the Chace mix than anything else, with variable balance and missing effects. The Blu-ray version goes some way to re-balancing everything, but the quality (on both the 5.1 and folded-down mono) is surprisingly dull. Once again, the laserdisc and DVD tracks are the way to go.

[jonno]

Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971)

With budgets continuing to drop, there was never any likelihood of the next Apes movie receiving any kind of stereo mix during production (at least, none that I have found any evidence for). In its editing and release, Escape was a mono project through and through.

Strange, then, that there was no English home video version of this original mix available until 2000.

Theatrical mono



When the Apes saga had its intial DVD release, Escape had only one audio track: the original mono. This master sounds really strong and clear, especially the music - the mono tracks that subsequently appeared on the 2006 DVD and 2008 Blu-ray are increasingly processed, losing a great deal of energy in the process. This track is my go-to for this film.

Chace stereo



Throughout the 80s and 90s, the English-language home video releases of this film (VHS and laserdisc)* had already passed through the questionable hands of Chace Audio's stereo upmix process. The quality of this one is particularly low - it's noisy, choppy (though that might be more to do with limitations in the video master) and, aside from the opening title, the brilliant music is really buried in the mix - presumably in keeping with 80s tastes. Worst of all, some sounds were left entirely out of the mix, from the annoying (various animal sounds in the zoo at the start) to the absolutely criminal (the final, plaintive 'mama' from baby Milo before the credits roll is gone!) Far from ideal.

5.1 mix

As with Beneath, Escape received a 5.1 track as part of the 2006 DVD rerelease. This one is actually fairly decent, if not much departed from its mono origins - it's well balanced and nothing obviously missing. The same mix carries over to the Blu-ray in DTS-HD. Overall, I'd still recommend the 2000 mono as the truest way to experience Escape.

*Actually, I need to check a 1983 CBS-Fox UK VHS I have to see if it managed to predate the remix stick. It won't sound any better than the DVD but might fill a gap in the timeline!

[jonno]

Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972)

Another purely mono production, part 4 of the Apes saga has had a typically uneven spread of releases.

Theatrical mono



Conquest actually retained its mono track for its initial home video releases in the UK - the PAL VHS and laserdisc from 1983 both had a solid presentation of the theatrical mix, though they're unlikely to have survived in useful shape now (certainly, both my copies of the latter are severely rotted).

Later, the Chace remix was the more common variant (more on that in a moment), with the original mono not reappearing until the 2006 Legacy set DVD. This is a decent replication of a pretty rough original mix.

Chace stereo



Chace applied their usual stereo process to this one for its 1985 VHS release, and the same mix was used on the 2000 DVD (perhaps a serviceable copy of the mono couldn't be located in time?) It's not their worst effort by any means, just a little dull sounding.

5.1 mix

Conquest's 2006 DVD also included a 5.1 remix. As with Escape, it's solid if unspectacular (though the fidelity is notably better than the Chace version). The same mix carries over to the Blu-ray in DTS-HD (with additional tweaks and extensions for the unrated cut). Overall, the 2006 DVD mono track is the way to go.

[jonno]

Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973)

And here we are at the bitter end. In this final instalment, where no expense was incurred at any level of production, it's surprising that enough budget was scraped together for even a single channel of audio. Anyhoo, here's the frustrating story of its audio on home video.

Theatrical mono



Battle didn't get a UK laserdisc and I haven't yet been brave enough to run my 1983 UK VHS through a player, so this is all based on the more readily-found releases.

A mono track for Battle didn't appear until the 2006 Legacy disc, and with a significant caveat. This disc only included the extended version, with an additional 10 minutes spread over 27 segments. The audio has been fully reworked for these parts of the mix (including music cues), meaning that simply cutting out the new material doesn't work well (believe me, I tried!) Add to this the fact that a new 5.1 mix was prepared at the same time, and it seems very likely that this mono track is some distance from the real deal.

Currently, this only leaves the Blu-ray mono as a serviceable option. It actually sounds near identical to the 2006 DVD track, suggesting that either it's genuine theatrical mono rather than a downmix or, more likely, they both derive from the 2006 assembly (at least on this iteration, you can also opt for the theatrical edit).

Chace stereo



This stereo mix, found on VHS, a THX laserdisc and the initial 2000 DVD, is truly dreadful - weak, muffled and barely any separation to speak of. I guess they either couldn't find better resources or simply ran out of time - either way, it's a sorry end to the grand 80s stereo Apes project.

5.1 mix

It may be that my expectations are already at rock bottom where this film's audio is concerned, but the 5.1 mix (found on both the aforementioned 2006 DVD and the Blu-ray) is actually pretty good. It's nice and clear, well separated and even has a bit of heft during the big(gish) fights. Not bad at all (and available for both theatrical and extended cuts on the Blu-ray).

[PomSpitz]

That 5.1 mix on the Blu Ray is possibly the worst remix I've ever heard. There was a scene where Brent & Nova explore the underground caverns - before any dialogue begins - there are sound effects of water trickling - which they looped and played repeatedly in the rear speakers for the entire length of the scene - and you can clearly hear THE HARD CUTS to the sound effect each time the loop begins again. Just awful.

[jonno]

Sounds about right. This film seems to attract bad judgement, for some reason!

[BDgeek]

Hi jonno!

Thanks a lot for this great effort!

Do you think the 1982 JP LD is worth it?
https://www.lddb.com/laserdisc/45033/FY5...f-the-Apes

Are you able to capture it? If you're interested, I could try to get it to you.

[BDgeek]

Doing a bit of a resarch now, I saw there was a 1999 THX LD release with PCM mono, since the THX DVD with the 2.0 track came just a year later, it's a good bet this could be the DVD track in PCM.

[jonno]

Updated with info for Escape - see second post.

[BDgeek]

Hi Jonno, don't know if you saw my post above. But if you're interested in syncing it, I can get this LD [0582885] captured. I believe it might have the DVD 35mm 4-track mag mix in PCM.

Edit:

Do you think the 1999 Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971) [0582985] has the mono audio in PCM, despite what those lddb specifications?

I could try to get this one too, if it's worth it.