Bonham Carter: Easy being an ape

RADNOR, Pa. (AP) - Helena Bonham Carter says learning how to be an ape is easy. Faced with mastering the bowlegged, stiff-hipped ape walk for the new "Planet of the Apes," Carter and other cast members were sent to "ape school." Director Tim Burton arranged the training sessions with Terry Notary, a former Cirque du Soleil performer who has studied simian behavior. "Ape school was very illuminating," Carter says in the July 28 issue of TV guide. "At first I flunked, because I was way too hyper. But there are lots of things in finding your inner ape that can be quite useful to one's real life."
The cast and crew soon got used to the surreal sight of apes lounging around and eating lunch. The problems came when the actors were out of costume. "You work with them all day, but you don't know what they look like out of costume," actress Estella Warren said.