Resumo[]
A*P*E is a King Kong Ripoff released in 1976 that tried to cash in on Dino De Laurentiis's remake. It, as any Kong ripoff failed miserably due to bad acting and horrible effects. Even though it sucks I feel I should talk about it here. an unrelated sequel of Ape vs. Monster released in 2021.
Plot[]
The movie begins at night where an oil tanker is sailing out the coast of Korea. The captain and first mate are talking about the ape they just captured from an island. At first they believed the gas that put the ape to sleep should keep him asleep for another 5 days or so until they hear rumbling, they turn and spot the ape's arm bursting out, the first mate cried: "Oh S-" and the ship escapes as both the first mate and captain fall off. The 36-foot-gorilla escapes from an oil tanker off the coast of Korea. After battling with a giant Great White Shark, the ape reaches land and destroys several buildings as well as attacking a giant Python before finding and kidnapping an American actress named Marilyn. The military eventually corners and kills the ape, prompting one observer to comment, "He was just too big for a small world like ours!"
Staff[]
- Directed by Paul Leder
- Written by Paul Leder, Rueben Leder, and Richard Leder
- Produced by K.M. Yeung and Paul Leder
- Music by Bruce Mac Rae and Chung Min Sup
- Cinematography Tony Francis and Daniel L. Symmes
- Edited by Paul Leder
- Production Design by Bong-seon Lee
- Assistant Directing by Mimi Leder
- Special Effects by Park Kwang Nam
Cast[]
Actor's name on the left, character played on the right.
- Rod Arrants as Tom Rose
- Joanna Kerns as Marilyn Baker
- Alex Nicol as Colonel Davis
- Nak-hun Lee as Captain Kim
- Yeon-jeong Woo as Mrs. Kim
- Jerry Harke as Lieutenant Smith
- Larry Chandler as First Mate
- Walt Myers as Seaman
- J.J. Gould as Soldier in Jeep
- Charles Johnson as American Tourist
- Paul Leder as Dino
- Choi Sung Kwan as Film Producer
- Bob Kurcz as American Actor
- Jules Levey as Reporter
- Josh Luckritz as School Child #1
Home Video Releases[]
It was released on DVD a couple of years back which was then followed by a 3D release a few years later considering the tagline was "See A*P*E in 3D!" both of these releases along with all of it's original cover included "Not to be confused with King Kong." so the creators didn't have to go through the crazy Kong ripoff cluster that was going on back in the 70's
Reception[]
A*P*E has been widely panned by critics, even appearing on the cover of The Official Razzie Movie Guide. Much of the commentary on A*P*E focuses on the film's low-quality special effects. For example, John Wilson claims that the ape suit used in the film "looks more like your grandmother's lamb's wool coat collar than an actual simian." He also remarks that "a five-year old could spot the [model buildings and vehicles] as phony."[10] Other critics have noted that the size of the ape appears to change throughout the film, and that the ape actor's T-shirt is visible through holes in his costume.[11]
The film suffers from other problems besides poor special effects, however. The Korean extras, who are supposed to be fleeing in terror, can sometimes be seen with smiles on their faces, and the film's dialogue is occasionally chopped off by poor editing. Wilson even describes the film's music as "one of the worst movie soundtracks of all time."[10]
In a scathing review, monster movie critic Mike Bogue states that "A*P*E may not be the worst giant monster movie ever made, but it would have to chart high on any Top Ten Worst list." Citing such things as the ape vomiting and the ape dancing to the film score, Bogue states that "as the genre magazine Castle of Frankenstein used to say in its movie reviews, this one is so bad it has to be seen to be disbelieved."[12]
In reviewing A*P*E, along with other King Kong parodies, Roy Morton states that the film "is extremely cheesy" and that while it "begins with a reasonably serious tone," it "quickly degenerates into a dreadfully campy spoof." He speculates that on realizing the low quality of their production, the producers deliberately tried to make an already bad film worse in the hope that moviegoers would laugh with them, instead of at them. To that end, Morton states that while cinematically inferior to The Mighty Peking Man, A*P*E does have an "it's so bad it's good" cult film appeal the aforementioned film lacks. Nevertheless, he closes his review stating that a scene where the titular ape turns around after a victory to give the audience "the finger" sums up the entire film.
The one thing you need to see right now![]
[1] Please click it, I promise you it's the greatest thing you'll see. If you're wondering it's a hilarious clip from A*P*E, so go ahead and please watch it.