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As a toddler and taken to the jungle by his parents, he was orphaned by
a tribe of savages, the plant people, but his mother had sense enough to
drop him into a canoe before her inevitable death so he could float to
safety. He was soon found by gorillas who gave him the proper jungle
education. As a kid in his early teenage years, the boy, now known as
Ape, starts to notice more and more that he was different from his gorilla
family, so when he meets a neighbourhood cannibal (they just tell us he's
a cannibal, he isn't seen eating anybody - we know) about his age out to
kill a lion, he is overjoyed. The two of them soon became close friends,
and when the cannibal fails to kill a lion, he decides to bring Ape back
to his tribe - but seeing too many people all at once, Ape freaks out a
bit and just runs away never to return. Years later, Ape is all grown up
(and played by Hugo Stiglitz). A scientist wants to track him down to
prove he's the missing link, but he dies from the bite of a tsetse fly, so
his daughter Eva carries on in his stead. Then her whole expedition is
killed by the plant people, only she is saved by Ape, who first scares her
shitless. Then though she learns to respect, even love him, and while
she's a bit disappointed he is not the missing link, she still decides to
stay with him to have his child. Years later, Ape's boy is in his early
teens, when Doctor Livingston comes to the jungle to track down Ape and
prove the existence of the missing link. Taking a page from Eva's dad's
book, he has also brought his daughter, Betty (Edith González), a girl
about the age of Ape's son. Doc Livingston tries to hunt down Ape by hot
air balloon, but only manages to capture Eva and Ape's boy. In his
desperation, Ape kidnaps Betty and threatens to kill her if he doesn't get
his family back. Reluctantly, Livingston wills in, and when both of them
welcome their loved ones with open arms, they realize they are not
different at all, and all become friends. Livingston offers to take
Ape's son to civilisation to get him an education, and the boy agrees,
desperate to see the "civilized world" ... but the very last
minute he has a change of heart and remains in his jungle paradise with
mom and dad ... Normally, I am a fan of jungle movies, the
cheaper the better, and if they've got men in unconvincing gorilla suits -
perfection ... and yet, El Rey de los Gorilas had no appeal for me
- basically, because it's really poorly written, most of the film's story
just deals with the hero's Tarzan-like
origins, which are of a disappointingly a-dime-a-dozen nature and hold
very little interest - especially the scenes about Ape's youth that lack
any and all narrative tension and lack any and all significance to the
later plot. Actually, the film doesn't at all catch on until Dr Livingston
hunts Ape and family per hot air balloon, but quite frankly, that's too
little too late. Rather a waste of time, actually!
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