I was extremely skeptical of watching these new Planet of the Apes films. Even though I have become more tolerant of remakes in recent years, the original Apes movie will always have a special place in my heart because of my genetic connection to its director, Franklin J. Schaffner. Needless to say that, once again, I was proven wrong. Rise of the Planet of the Apes is quite an enjoyable film that has powerful themes within the story line.
Rise of the Planet of the Apes is the first installment of this new, reinvented Apes film franchise, and is the story of a brain-repairing substance that makes chimpanzees super-intelligent. I have to say that I worry about the future of humanity when I see film that makes us seem like the bad guys. Not that there is anything wrong with that. In fact, it is one of the main reasons this film is so compelling. We see how evil the human race is at its core right from the beginning of the movie. Instead of breeding the apes in captivity, and testing Substance 112 on them when they reach the right age, the humans go out into the jungle and capture them. Also, when the substance has an adverse affect on Bright Eyes, instead of tranquilizing her or putting her down in a peaceful way, she is violently shot in front of dozens of witnesses. The saddest part about this particular sequence is that she was just being protective of her son Caesar (Andy Serkis) which, of course, the humans were too reactionary to think about. The most important part of this film, as far as realizing the evil of humanity goes, is when Caesar is taken to a primate shelter after protecting Charles Rodman (John Lithgow) from their violent neighbor. We see that Caesar does not understand why he is being punished. After all, he is not the bad guy. He was just doing what he was taught to do by his master, Will Rodman (James Franco). Caesar sees the human race as primitive, and the apes as the superior, and more intelligent, race. Perhaps this is why Caesar leads the apes into the redwood forest at the end of the film: to wait for humanity to catch up to their intelligence level so that they do not react in a violent way, which of course is something that we begin to see. This is quite an enjoyable film that has a powerful message: some things are not meant to be changed. However, there are a couple of minor plot holes that I need to address. At one point in the film, I believe we see a picture of Will and his father. We are to understand that this picture was taken earlier in the film, and yet we do not see this happen. Also, later in the film during the sequences at the primate shelter, it is revealed that owner of the shelter is actually Dodge Landons' (Tom Felton) father. I think that this could have been revealed at an earlier time because, as it stands, it feels somewhat forced. These are EXTREMELY minor plot holes that in no way detract from how good this movie is. This movie proves that, if you get the right creative people involved, remakes/re-imaginings can actually be great films.
Andy Serkis plays Caesar. I truly love the way Caesar is portrayed by Serkis. The range of emotions that are portrayed on Caesar's face is nothing short of extraordinary. There is a beautiful moment in the film where Will opens the back door of his truck to let Caesar in, and Caesar refuses, instead choosing to ride in the back seat like a typical human being. The look on his face when he asks Will, "Am I a pet?" is the perfect combination of anger and confusion. I also love Caesar as a character because, even when the ape uprising starts, he feels strongly about not killing any humans unless absolutely necessary. He feels that killing makes them no better than the savageness of humanity. This groundbreaking role is a major reason why Serkis has become the godfather of performance capture.
Rupert Wyatt is the director of Rise of the Planet of the Apes. As I mentioned before, I enjoy the themes that this film deals with. Specifically, this movie shows how cruel humanity is at its core. When the humans realize that the apes have the potential to be better than them, both physically and mentally, they react in a violent way. That being said, I was actually quite surprised at how little violence is in this film. The violence does not escalate until the climax of the film, and it is only after the apes present a serious and legitimate threat. The action scene on the bridge is well shot and thrilling to watch. This action scene also shows the cruelty of humanity once again. The humans are the ones who instigate the violence, and the apes are responding in self-defense. The apes rarely kill any of the humans because they realize that doing so would mean that they are no better than them. This scene is exciting, and it also sets up the extremely violent second chapter in the Apes trilogy. Wyatt does a wonderful job of setting up the journey of Caesar. The sequence where we see Caesar grow up and develop is quite moving to watch. This is an epic and emotional film, and that is due to the tone that Wyatt set with this film.
I love being proven wrong about films. Rise of the Planet of the Apes breathes new life into this franchise while also reinvigorating my love for all of the previous films. All I can say is that if you are skeptical about watching this reinvention of the Apes franchise, as I was, I urge you to take a chance on it.
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