Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970)

Directed by Ted Post, Beneath the Planet of the Apes (1970) is an American science fiction film written by Paul Dehn and based on a story co-written by Dehn and Mort Abrahams. Time-displaced astronaut Taylor and his companion Nova journey through the Forbidden Zone’s desert in search of a new life free from Ape City. Unexpectedly, fire erupts from the earth and crevices open up around them. Perplexed, Taylor investigates a cliff wall and vanishes through it, leaving Nova behind. Meanwhile, another spaceship crashes onto the Forbidden Zone while searching for Taylor and his team. The sole survivor Brent finds himself in the year 3955 but believes he has landed on a different planet. As he buries his fallen crewmate Skipper, he encounters Nova wearing Taylor’s dog tags.

Hoping to find Taylor alive, Brent travels with her to Ape City, where he is stunned to discover the advanced simian civilization. Despite objections from orangutan Dr. Zaius, gorilla General Ursus leads a rally to conquer the Forbidden Zone and find a new food source for the apes. During the chaos, human Brent is injured by one of Ursus’ soldiers and is rescued by Nova, who takes him to the home of chimpanzees Cornelius and Zira. These chimpanzees have a connection to Earth’s past through their time with Taylor. However, Brent and Nova’s escape from the city is short-lived as they are captured by gorillas. Surprisingly, Zira helps them escape just as Ursus orders them to be used for target practice.