Planet of the Apes (1968)

The original ape movie that started the hairy ball rolling.
Charlton Heston is our guide. He's the everyman; albeit an everyman with a cynical disposition, a will of iron and some well-groomed chest-hair.
The story isn't just just sharp social commentary (including powerful observations on such topics as the crippling consequences of having a government that places science and religion in the same bed, and the murky moral waters that too much pride can place a people in), it's also cold, hard science fiction that holds a mirror up to modern life.
The retail DVD box has perhaps the most spoilerific cover ever created; someone needs shot for that. Just because it's old doesn't mean that everyone's saw it - someone, somewhere has yet to experience it.

4½ tennis ball lips out of 5