Home Video with Abe: Rise of the Planet of the Apes (Capsule Review)

Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Directed by Rupert Wyatt
Released August 5, 2011



Unexplained, unanticipated prequels to movie series aren’t necessarily bad. This reviewer’s first cinematic experience with highly intelligent apes was actually rather enjoyable, turning what could have been a highly silly and laughable story into an engaging and energizing one. It’s the kind of film where, appropriately enough, the humans aren’t entirely significant, and the story of the ascent of Caesar, the child of a genetically-modified ape, is what’s much more interesting. Andy Serkis continues his domination of motion capture by embodying the rather human role of Caesar, raised by the kindly Will (James Franco) before being incarcerated due to his animal instincts. The setup of this particular plot is similar to that of “I Am Legend” in its non-sci-fi sense, explaining the drug testing on apes as a way to cure Alzheimer’s disease, and tying that into Will’s storyline. The film’s most memorable moments come in its latter half when Caesar, and his legion of apes, finally do take control, as inevitably would be the case, and the effects are quite impressive. This film is entertaining while it lasts, and a good summer action flick to catch on DVD in the winter.

B

Tuesday’s Top Trailer: Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Welcome to a weekly feature here at Movies with Abe, Tuesday's Top Trailer. One of my favorite parts about going to see movies is the series of trailers that airs beforehand and, more often than not, the trailer is far better than the actual film. Each week, I'll be sharing a trailer I've recently seen. Please chime in with comments on what you think of the trailer and how you think the movie is going to be.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes – Opening August 5, 2011



I’m coming at this prequel entirely blind. I’ve never seen any of the films related to the famous apes and planets, and I didn’t have any interest at all in seeing this one. Yet the trailer, which showed before "X-Men: First Class" this past weekend, surprised me, and I find myself considerably more intrigued than I might have expected. This looks like a pretty fun movie, with a good mix of scientific mumbo-jumbo and full-on action involving those awesome apes. I really like the casting of Andy Serkis, best known for playing Gollum in the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy, as Caesar the main ape, and the shot in the trailer of him looking like he’s finally getting really smart is incredibly cool. Brian Cox makes for a great nemesis for these rising apes, and I’m pleased to see people like David Oyelowo, James Franco, and Freida Pinto in the cast as well. Ultimately, though, this is movie about human evolution, and it looks like an action-packed blast. Revolution stories are always the most interesting parts of big sagas like this, and positioning humans as, in part, the bad guys is a decently thrilling idea. I’m not trying to say this is going to be a terrific film, but I do think that it could be a good bit of summer fun.