Review of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) by Dmitri M — 17 Mar 2015

Top Movies of 2014 - #1.

Going into 2014, I never expected the sequel to Rise of the Planet of the Apes to be so close to the top of the list, let alone grab the top spot. But here we are March 2015, and its standing there, leader of the pack. In 2014, no movie experience was as captivating as Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.

What made the movie great was the plot, which was fantastic and memorable. What starts off really slow is really just a way to build tension. The humans are attempting to fix a hydroelectric dam in ape territory after a virus kills most of humanity. Both sides hate each other for the actions caused prior to the outbreak. The first half builds a lot of tension in that each side is ready to kill each other if anything goes wrong. It's those moments of celebration between apes and humans that really have you thinking that humans and apes could live together. The second half of the movie is the release of all this tension when the war eventually breaks out and many humans and apes are killed. It's exciting yet terrifying, and contains a lot of the movie's best moments.

What makes the plot so great is the movie's cast of characters, and by extension the amazing CGI put into the film. Not only are the environments suitably bleak and there's a dark depressing atmosphere as is expected from a post-apocalyptic world, but also the CGI of the apes. The apes are made using motion capture of Andy Serkis and his team, which gives the ape characters loads of personality. They're more human like and expressive and even better characters than the human characters.

The first character is Caesar, who represents the moral centre of the ape faction. Due to his experience with good humans in the last film. Caesar allows the humans to enter ape territory to repair the dam. He believes that apes and humans can work together. Caesar is also forgiving as seen when he gives the humans a second chance after their mistake in the first half of the movie.

The second character is Malcolm, the moral centre of the human faction. Instead of killing the apes and retaking the dam as suggested by the human leader, he tries to negotiate with Caesar about fixing the dam together. He, like Caesar, believed that humans and apes could work together, and in another world, he and Caesar would've been good friends.

The third character is Koba, the antagonist of the film. Having been experimented on by humans before the outbreak, Koba hates humans with a passion, believing that they are what's wrong with the world. Disgusted by Caesar's decision to help the humans, he decides that the humans need to be eradicated. He steals a human gun, shoots Caesar and leaves the gun to frame the humans for his murder. Koba convinces Blue Eyes, Caesar's son, to help him avenge his father. He burns the ape village claiming the humans did it to get the apes to join him. He leads the charge on the human settlement, getting hundreds of apes killed, but he eventually controls the settlement. He imprisons the apes that do not obey him and executes Ash, another ape. Koba's quest for revenge leads to him getting his brethren killed, their home destroyed and his becoming crazy with power. What makes Koba such an amazing villain is that we could indeed sympathize with his situation, but we also know how flawed his reasoning was. He claimed that humans were evil, but in actuality, he was even worse.

The fourth character is Blue Eyes, who was misguided and truly showcased how amazing the motion capture effects were. Blue Eyes joined Koba to avenge his father, he believed he wanted war. But when the fight actually happened, he saw his friends being gunned down on his sides. He saw Koba, the man who led him into battle, kill his best friend all for his desire for revenge. One of the best moments of the film was when he sees Malcolm, who he believed killed his father, and there's this look of pure agony in his eyes. The war that he wanted caused him to lose so much, he wanted to avenge his father, but now that he had the chance to, he realized it wasn't worth it. Then when his face lit up after hearing that Malcolm found and saved his father, there was so much expression in his face without a word being said. It was a scene that really stuck with me.

Speaking of amazing scenes, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes was filled with those. When an orangutan named Maurice and Malcolm's son were reading a book together it brought a warm feeling that showed how the world would've been like if the factions could cooperate. Another was during the charge to the human settlement, where Koba single-handedly took control of a tank and lead it into the base. Another was later in the movie where Caesar watches a video of him and James Franco's character from the last movie, reminding him of the human who would've done anything for him. Finally there was the final fight scene between Koba and Caesar, which was suitably epic and a great way of ending the film.

So in summary, what gave Dawn of the Planet of the Apes the #1 spot for the year? It was the tense first half, the exciting second half, the unforgettable characters, the fantastic special effects that brought the characters to life, the atmosphere of the movie and the numerous memorable moments found throughout the movie. For this Dawn of the Planet of the Apes earned the #1 spot on my Top 10 Movies of 2014 list.