Rise of the Planet of the Apes is a great way of bringing new and exciting life into a classic franchise. It’s emotional, intense, action-packed and filled with a terrific visuals and stunning performance from motion capture pioneer, Andy Serkis What should have been a huge loss for Fox, Rise of the Planet of the Apes was so much better than it should have been. It took a silly and very goofy concept, and found a way to make it beautifully grounded in reality.
Our main story focuses on Will Rodman (James Franco), a scientist in San Francisco, is experimenting with a drug that he hopes will cure his father’s (John Lithgow) Alzheimer’s disease. After his work is deemed a failure, Will becomes the guardian of Caesar, an infant chimp who was exposed in-utero to Will’s drug. Caesar displays unusual intelligence, and Will decides to continue his experiments secretly. But as Caesar’s intellect and abilities grow, he comes to represent a threat to man’s dominion over Earth.
Tim Burton’s Planet of the Apes (2001) was a complete misfire from every lens. You had great talent surrounding that entire movie, and while the practical makeup was convincing it was a charmless and derivative experience. Plus, when it’s being compared to infamous and classic Planet of the Apes from 1968 starring Charlton Heston, then it’s a painful movie. Rise of the Planet of the Apes was a project that was in development for awhile, but once the marketing and promotion was coming out, people were still iffy on the idea of Hollywood going down this path again because people still had a bad taste in their mouth from the previous Tim Burton movie. Rise of the Planet of the Apes could be considered the perfect reboot ever created in Hollywood because there was something seamless and unique about how this movie goes about. Rise of the Planet of the Apes might also be considered a prequel because it’s not remaking anything, due to the fact it’s exploring new material and older events, mainly with how the apes took over the planet.
The best aspect of this entire movie is the character of Caesar, who is so wonderfully portrayed and developed in this origin story. Andy Serkis is the king of motion capture for a reason, whether it’s as work as Gollum from the Lord of the Rings or from his work in Peter Jackson’s King Kong (2005), he brings a lot more to the table with his level of performing. His performance as Caesar should he recognized through all cylinders because the range of emotion he brings to Caesar is tremendous. What’s even more incredible is Serkis is performing as an actual ape, in the sense is speaking and moving as an actual ape. This is digital makeup, yes, but the physical performance that Serkis brings out of Caesar is beautiful and a testament to being a performer.
The action in Rise of the Planet of the Apes is quite intense and extremely visceral. The movie, while featuring non-stop action throughout and through, what really was impressive was how well paced and how intense the action truly was.The action set piece that takes place in city of San Diego is quite honestly one of my favorite action sequences in film history. Now, one might argue “Just get a bunch of cops with guns and it shouldn’t be a problem, right?,” but what this movie brilliantly succeeds in doing is that in convinces the audience that this could happen. Apes are the one animal that are similar to the human race, biologically speaking, and the idea of apes taking over a city is quite probable and also extremely terrifying.
Something that this movie also does brilliantly is that it manages to be a great commentary on Apes and how they treat each other, but also how humans interact with them. The idea here is similar to another film that also deals with animals, Jurassic Park, where the idea is that you can’t control nature and that life will always find a way. Rise of the Planet of the Apes isn’t beating you over the head with the idea of animal captivity, but it’s a striking a commentary on how apes are physically capable of being aggressively violent and can essentially take over a city. Other than ]humans taking a control of nature, it also shows how brutal and sadistic these animals really are towards one another, and that’s where parts of this movie get quite tense and chilling. It’s great subject matter that elevates the movie.
One aspect that really raises the emotional weight of the movie is the relationship Caesar shares with James Franco’s character. James Franco is well respected and Oscar nominated actor, and his role in this movie really enhances the movie. His relationship with Caesar is genuine, sweet but it also gives each character a great understanding. James Franco is trying to be a father figure for Caesar, while also taking care of his father, played wonderfully by Jonathan Lithgow. While the human elements are strong pieces in the movie, Rise of the Planet of the Apes is all about the apes, and that’s why the movie never loose its main focus.
Patrick Doyle’s score for Rise of the Planet of the Apes might be one of his best, and my personal favorite, scores to date. It’s a diverse score of music, yet it still stays consistent to the themes and others pieces of the entire movie. From the smaller moments to the big ones, the music in this movie is filled with adventure and small but impactful character moments, that work as a beautiful companion piece to the narrative and the characters journeys. Director Rupert Wyatt really should be given a lot more credit for rejuvenating a beloved franchise. The amount of focus he spends on the Apes is really why this movie laid a great foundation for the sequels we got after this one.
Rise of the Planet of the Apes is the reboot that’s done right. It focuses on character and story, and it works superbly. Rise of the Planet of the Apes works because it’s telling it’s own story and doesn’t even bother by focusing on setting up a franchise because all of it felt contained. Caesar is a great focus for this entire series of movies. The action is scary and intense. Doyle’s music is beautiful and the visuals are out of this world.
My grade for Rise of the Planet of the Apes: A
Zane's take at the Cinema's 