There is a kind of notion of the noble, wild, primate of nature who cannot possibly win out against civilization. On the other side of the fear is this romantic notion of nature and its power, but it's also a story about how it'll never win against civilization.

Planet of the Apes fit right into that ... it's a kind of overturning of the contemporary society. The film overtly deals with prejudice because you have the prejudice against the white males, the humans.