Wow people still believe in Jesus and what he did 2000 years after the event. But when it comes to going to the moon people are skeptical even while the astronauts are still living. Maybe I’m living on the Planet of the Apes after all.
An unusual analogy maybe? But humor me please.
Planet of the Apes is a 1968 American science fiction film directed by Franklin J. Schaffner, based on the 1963 French novel La Planète des singes by Pierre Boulle. The film stars Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter.
In the 1968 movie Planet of the Apes a crew of astronauts embarks on a journey of discovery to explore a new world and start anew. But the journey ends when they crash on a strange planet of seeming desolation. Soon they discover the planet is inhabited by a civilization of apes with speech and technology while the few humans are systematically rounded up for slavery and experimentation.
Charlton Heston as the astronaut George Taylor befriends one chimpanzee by the name of Zira as well as her assistant Cornelius (Roddy McDowell), but initially can not talk to them because of a throat injury. Instead he tries to communicate with them by writing notes, much to their astonishment. His assertions that he is an astronaut who has arrived in a spaceship are met with skepticism and incredulity. It is explained to him that the concept of flight is a foolish and unscientific notion. But when he makes a paper plane out of notepaper and demonstrates flight to them they look on in horror as if they are viewing something forbidden. The fear of the consequences of scientific heresy is a constant theme. Significantly the ape scientist Dr Zaius walks in on this demonstration picks up the paper plane and with trembling hand crumples it up and drops it on the floor. He is an example of the intelligentsia who are “in the know” but keeping it quiet. When Taylor tells them there are others like himself he is permitted to point out a fellow astronaut (Landon) in a group of rounded up humans but to his disgust discovers that Landon has been lobotomized conveniently to make him mute.
Later on in the movie Taylor makes his first escape and while negotiating the cave like dwellings of the apes chances upon a simian church. A congregation of the devoted are busy paying homage to their creator and prototype Semos, represented of course by a statue of an upright ape. Eventually with the aid of his simian sympathizers Taylor attempts to venture into the “Forbidden Zone”, but is pursued by Dr Zaius. When confronted with the evidence of a previous advanced human civilization Zaius still denies the evidence. Zaius is intent on destroying the site with the ancient human artifacts. He warns Taylor not to go into the Forbidden Zone as he “may not like what he finds there”.
The movie ends with Taylor and his human companion Nova riding off on horseback into the Forbidden Zone only to be confronted by the remains of the Statue of Liberty on the seashore. At which point Taylor realizes that he has in fact arrived back on his home planet Earth. He exclaims bitterly “Damn you! . . . God damn you all to Hell!”. One of the all time famous movie conclusions.
It is a current phenomenon on the internet and particularly Youtube for people to post videos and information exposing the moon landings as a fraud. While an exasperated Buzz Aldrin among other astronauts is pursued by zealous “researchers” and, by one in particular, requested to swear “on the bible” that he did in fact walk on the moon. All attempts by the astronauts to appeal with reason to these people are met with hostility and accusations of deception, lying, treason etc. Anybody who responds to these videos as pro moon landing is met with a flurry of abuse very similar to the ape in the said movie – “shut up you freak, I said shut up!” Is it any wonder that on one occasion when accosted by one of these conspiracy theorists and called a liar Buzz responded by punching him in the face. One can almost imagine him throwing his hands up in the air and repeating those famous words of Charlton Heston in the movie, “IT’S A MADHOUSE…A MADHOUSE!”
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