This is my review of the film: Rise of the Planet of the Apes (3.5 stars)
This film has been out for at least a few weeks, and it only caught my attention about a week ago when I came to learn that there were people involved with Rise of the Planet of the Apes who were also involved with Avatar. I guess I thought it might be James Cameron.
Upon researching this rumor, I can’t seem to find much about it, other than the fact that 20th Century Fox was involved with both. In my humble opinion, that doesn’t actually mean too much though, as 20th Century Fox is involved with loads of films. In these cases, they at least were the studio for Rise of the Planet of the Apes and the distributor for Avatar.
Besides that initial misunderstanding, I enjoyed the film. I didn’t think it was as good as the reviews had made it out to be. Maybe I was expecting too much?
The graphics were great, and the acting was good, but not remarkable. The story was decent, but let’s face it - the story has had decades to brew - why simply reboot it? The general “updates” and unique characteristics of this version, including the character developments of the neighbor (David Hewlett) and the no-good zookeeper (Tom Felton) just weren’t good enough for me.
The best part, of course, was the primates - the apes, the chimps, the orangutans, and the giant gorilla.
Here are more details about the film:
- Directed by Rupert Wyatt
- Stars John Lithgow, Freida Pinto, and James Franco
- It cost almost $100 million to create, yet earned almost $400 million in the box office
With regards to action, I felt the film boasted much but delivered little. It felt to me like the director was torn - was this a drama or an action movie? There were some really terrific action scenes, especially the one that took place on the Golden Gate bridge. Unfortunately it really wasn’t enough to carry the film the rest of the way. Not only was it over too quickly, but it was overshadowed by the dramatic grief shown by the main character’s relationship with his dying father, as well as the questions of humanity posed to the audience about science, nature, and emotions. The science fiction surrounding the ALZ-112 virus from Gen-Sys, but I felt they only scratched the surface of a factor with so much potential.
The cinematography and CGI were this film’s saving grace. The views from atop redwood trees in Muir Woods, views of San Francisco atop the primate “sanctuary”, and the beauty of the Golden Gate Bridge all helped make this film worth viewing on the big screen. The CGI graphics were great too - almost unnoticeable!
While I probably would not pay to see this film knowing what I know now, I’m hoping that a sequel will follow that will push the envelope in terms of action, adventure, and science fiction. I believe there will be sequels. Think about it - there have already been numerous renditions of this property. My only question is when?
All in all I’d give this film about three and half stars. I might even be biased because I like Muir Woods so much.
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