Life, Liberty and Pursuit on the Planet of the Apes

Life, Liberty and Pursuit on the Planet of the Apes is the fourth TV movie made from combining episodes of the TV series 'Planet of the Apes together. In this case it was the instalments 'The Surgeon' and 'The Interrogation' that were used. It opens with one of the human protagonists already shot and then being smuggled into an ape hospital for treatment. The second half has the other main character captured and made the victim of brainwashing techniques by the apes.

Both parts are linked I guess by their plots being underpinned by the finding of ancient human books. In the former it's an anatomy reference book and in the latter a book about brainwashing procedures. But other than this, the episodes are as clunkily combined as all the others. In fact, I would say that this one is in a tie with the final film Farewell to the Planet of the Apes as the absolute worst. Not that the others are exactly stellar by comparison you understand. I think the films sort of make you realise why the series was so unsuccessful and was cancelled. While the ape characters are quite interesting, the human ones are poorly conceived and rather dull. These two episodes are also damaged by having particularly unexciting story lines. At least some of the earlier films had a bit more tension and thrills in them.