Review of Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) by Jacob M — 31 Jul 2013

When thinking of a film like Rise of the Planet of the Apes, you think of the original 1968 film Planet of the Apes, a film viewed as a sci-fi classic starring Charlton Heston. There was a franchise that eventually died off, and Tim Burton's 2001 remake didn't help either, with many viewing it as a disaster. Now with Rise of the Planet of the Apes, director Rupert Wyatt creates a part-reboot, part-prequel to the original, and in the end, makes a highly entertaining sci-fi preboot.

Will Rodman (James Franco), a scientist, is working on a drug that he hopes will get rid of Alzheimer's, mostly cause his dad (John Lithgow) has the disease himself. In order to make the drug safe, Will raises a chimp named Caesar (Andy Serkis in motion-capture technology) and tests the drug on him. The drug makes Caesar smarter, but eventually, the ape becomes more smarter than the human, and soon enough, Caesar is viewed as a menace and is taken to an ape shelter. Believing that Will has betrayed him, Caesar makes friends with the other apes, drugs them, and leads an ape revolution, starting the rise of the Planet of the Apes.

Also, Freida Pinto plays Caroline, a veterinarian who falls in love with Franco, David Oyelowo plays Franco's boss, Brian Cox plays John Landon, the cruel owner of the ape shelter, and Tom Felton, in his first role post-Harry Potter, plays the son of Brian Cox's character.

Now I have to be honest; I was never a big fan of the original Planet of the Apes. I thought the story was too creepy and far-fetched for my tastes, though I appreciated the impact it had in the sci-fi world. I have never seen any of the Apes sequels, or the so-called "horrific" Tim Burton remake. But with my viewing of Rise of the Planet of the Apes, I was impressed, I actually give it a higher rating than the original.

What helps about Rise of the Planet of the Apes is that it has a backstory. In the original, Charlton Heston goes off into space, finds a planet filled with talking apes, and goes crazy. Here, we actually get to see how the Planet of the Apes got started, and I highly enjoyed the backstory. Unlike in the original, I actually cared for the apes and rooted for them when they revolted. Humans, the moral of the story is : Don't abuse apes or attempt to make them smarter, or this happens.

OK, let's get to the acting. Well, for starters, James Franco is fine as the lead actor playing the one behind the chimp drugging. Franco has never been that great of an actor, but he does his best and his performance is likable. Freida Pinto as the love interest is a bit of a miscast, and the hinted romantic angle comes out as weak. John Lithgow is good as the Alzheimer's father and does fine at playing a sick man. Brian Cox is always brilliant as the cruel ape shelter owner and Tom Felton is memorable as the son. I liked that he used the famous Charlton Heston line from the original ("Get your stinkin' paws off me..."). But out of all the cast, who is the true star of the show? It's Andy Serkis as Caesar the ape. The motion-capture technology is spectacular and Serkis does a powerful job at playing an ape. Serkis will go down as the "King of Motion-Capture." Man, he should have won an Academy Award for this.

Unlike most action films, the action here takes it's time to develop. The first half focuses on the development on Caesar's abuse and tests, while the second half deals with the ape rebellion. When the ape rebellion shows up, I wasn't disappointed. The CGI delivers and Rupert Wyatt's unique direction creates an ape rebellion worth seeing, particularly in a climatic battle on the Golden Gate Bridge.

Patrick Doyle, known for scoring epic music in films like Thor and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, doesn't disappoint here. The score tugs at the heartstrings at the moving moments and wows at the epic moments. Another great score, Mr. Doyle.

For once, a remake delivers more over the original, and Rise of the Planet of the Apes is that film. It's more enjoyable, less far-fetched, and leaves an eye-opening cliffhanger that sets the stage for the upcoming sequel, which I can't wait to see, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.