Genres

Visitors Review

2012-05-25 22:43:41

Scary, cuz it could happen

This review is from: Rise of the Planet of the Apes (DVD) Got this as a gift for my bro. He thinks it could really happen some day. Why not? The inhibitors in the brain are very similar to those of an ape. ( I'm a human, raised by humans.)

2012-05-25 05:04:07

MOVIE GOOD, MUSIC (Soundtrack) BAD

This review is from: Rise of the Planet of the Apes (Two-Disc Edition Blu Ray + DVD/Digital Copy Combo) [Blu-ray] (Blu-ray) We just saw the movie Rise of The Planet of the Apes on Blu Ray.We were 15 at home facing a 120" screen with a THX Ultra 2 system installed.5 stars for the movie, 1 star for the music.Everybody noticed the same thing, the movie was terrific but the music was really bad, without theme and without any emotion.Just a generic noise like trailer music ( big drums et orchestra efx ).It's a shame that the composer Patrick Doyle missed a wonderful opportunity for this new franchise.The most annoying thing is the interview of him speaking about his composition like he was the new Jerry Goldsmith.Sorry but the movie deserves better.

2012-05-25 01:37:42

THE APES RULE

I must admit I was somewhat skeptical upon hearing of plans to reboot the APES franchise, but this prequel is quite entertaining.The movie focuses on a brilliant young scientist who is developing a drug that may cure Altzheimer's. While experimenting on apes, a dangerous side affect of increased aggression results in the cessation of the project. The determined scientist sneaks one of the baby apes out of the lab and continues the experiment on his own. This ape is "Caesar" who is destined to be the leader of the future rebellion and ultimate "rise."James Franco, Frieda Pinto, John Lithgow and Tom Felton are fine as the humans but it is Andy Serkis' "motion captured" performance that is the true heart of the film. All of Caesar's desires, emotions, reactions are beautifully evidenced and provide the movie's dramatic pulse.The FX are quite good with a dynamic climactic confrontation on the Golden Gate Bridge.RISE is the best APES film since the classic original; I think Charlton Heston would be proud.

2012-05-24 12:55:02

"Apes Are Dumb" ...

... says the wise old orangutan, circus-trained to communicate in 'Sign', to the genetically intelligence-boosted chimpanzee Caeser, in the only moment of this film that drew a laugh from the theater audience. Indeed, apes are "dumb" in the sense of being unable to speak, but they're not half as dumb as film-makers. This is a formidably DUMB movie! Dumb enough to be worthy of its Charlton Heston lineage. And since it's a prequel, I needn't worry about disclosing the conclusion: Homo sapiens rashly develops and releases, because of its greed instinct, a virus that will exterminate most of humanity and allow the genetically modified apes to assume mastery of the planet Earth. No, the apes don't conquer the humans in an anthropoid armageddon; all Caesar and his horde of simians want to do is to escape, to go "home" to the forest. And the emotional climax of the film comes when Caesar, the smart but 'dumb' chimp, suddenly speaks to his H-sap surrogate father, and says "Caesar is home."But "home' is the redwood forest of Muir Woods, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco, an environment where even the smartest ape or human would starve to death in short order. That's hardly the worst improbability in this cartoon assault on scientific endeavor. The genetically engineered brain synapses, in ape or man, develop instantaneously. The Alzheimer's victim (played by John Lithgow) recovers all his faculties overnight after one injection. The apes become adept a hurling spears without a single practice toss; ape shoulders, by the way, are not engineered by evolution to throw a spear or a ball overhand and with accuracy. This is a film that purports to be set in San Francisco, and a battle between the escaping apes and the SFPD is the violent action scene meant to capture the theater-goers. There's also a scene where hundreds of assorted apes charge down the slopes of Twin Peaks toward the City, but how or why they came to the bellevue parking area is utterly inexplicable. And trust me, there are not enough apes housed in the dreary SF Zoo to form much of a fighting wedge.No doubt many people will see this film not only as a prequel to the 'classic' Planet of the Apes but also as a sequel to the recent film Avatar. Both "Rise" and "Avatar" portray a villainous humanity, greed-driven, arrogant, overreaching and bent on self-destruction. I wonder if it's the 2% or so of our DNA that we've inherited from the Homo neanderthalis, whom we extinguished, that causes us to be self-loathing. Me, I'm surely 12.5% neanderthal, with a 40,000 year grudge against H-saps, and I've always rooted for the Indians against the cavalry, for the slaves against the slavers, for the strikers against the bloated capitalists, so there's every reason that I should love this film, right?, however dumb it is ...... but I don't love it. I take it just seriously enough to detest its "message". Make that "messages", since there are several, all subtly offensive. Like Avatar, it is implicitly anti-Christian in assigning 'souls' of intelligence to animals. Since I'm not Christian, that 'message' doesn't bother me. But I do believe in a few things. I believe as much in humanity's faculties of kindness and empathy as in humanity's faults of greed and cruelty. It offends me that the "Primate Shelter', a major setting in the film, is depicted as a hypocritical fraud, all greed and sadism masquerading as benevolence. Are there fraudulent charities in the World? Yes, of course. But there are also sincere humans giving their lives to the causes of environmental activism and species protection. This portrayal is a 'cheap shot' that will satisfy the prejudices of the Ranting Right-eous.Likewise the central portrayal of Science as irresponsible and presumptuous! I am a believer in science. In knowledge, and even in knowledge-for-knowledge's sake. And I do worry about the 'partnership' of Capitalism and Science, whose motives and mentalities are so incompatible. This film, however, preaches a kind of intellectual Luddism, a rejection of human enterprise in addressing our own nature and our mortal limits. What a pious hypocrisy, when "we" have already long committed ourselves to technological dominion over Nature! Hey, fellow H-saps! There's no stopping now. We can't sustain the 1950s into eternity.

Bollywood_Laxitive 2012-05-22 23:59:55

In simple terms, its entertaining

From the makers of Beyind the Planet of the Apes and Journey to thePlanet of the Apes, comes a new movie called 'Rise of the Planet of theApes', which you can get skeptic about a lot of things, but you cannotdeny that its entertaining. I got to see this in a screening few daysback. The movie is full of explosions, nice special effects, enormousscale of the world, well mixed soundtracks, and fantastic presentation.Every character is likable and sympathetic. The animation quality isunquestionable and it has some nice jokes. It is fast paced, although Ipersonally would have preferred if they made the movie a bit longer;There is a lot of margin for drama and emotional content with the storythey have and also since DWA is really putting good depth in theirmovies lately, I was expecting the same, but they preferred to keep itshort.As I have always seen, one thing chimp movies have in common... theyare entertaining.

Maniac-9 2012-05-22 02:18:25

A proper modern day reboot of the Apes series

I'm normally a big fan of Tim Burton's work but I really didn't carefor his take on The Planet of the Apes. This was a far better way tostart the series over with.A lot of great acting in this movie from James Franco and even AndySerkis in his computer assisted performance as Caesar. Greatstorytelling all around by the writers and directors of this movie. Andit had a nice twist scene at the end of the movie that made a lot ofsense. When Tim Burton's movie ending with an Aperaham Lincoln monumentmade no sense at all to me.Can't wait to see what they do with a sequel since there's a ton ofways they can go with it and it all being fairly plausible.

Marc Davis 2012-05-22 00:28:51

Not a classic, but still a great movie

I think one of the reasons why the original Planet of the Apes in 1968was so good was because back then, special effects were so non-existentthat films had to rely more on plot, deep character development, andthe skill of great actors like Charlton Heston. With that said, I likedthe Rise of the Planet of the Apes, because (while it's no classic likethe original film) it manages to capture some of the old school formulathat made the original so great.I'll admit that this film is rather too slow for my tastes, but it'sslow because it needs to be. Trust me, there's nothing more powerfuland moving than when you first hear a chimpanzee talk, screaming"NOOOOOOOO" to the top of his lungs at a surprised handler at an apefacility. It comes late in the movie, but man, it's worth the longbuild up. You see, while James Franco gets top billing for this film,no human is the main character as in the original Planet of the Apes orits remake in 2001 starring Mark Wahlberg. The star here is Caesar(Andy Serkis), a baby chimp taken in by a young scientist by the nameof Will Rodman (Franco) doing research for a cure of Alzheimer'sdisease. Caesar's mother is killed after an experiment goes haywire,where she's injected with a substance that increases intelligence. Youmight have guested it, the substance is pasted along to Caesar and hesoon develops more and more human-like characteristics. It also helpsthat Caesar is raised in Will's home, which he shares with his parents.As with the original movie, there is plenty of character developmenthere and we actually care about Caesar and his fate, not to mention wedevelop a soft spot for the bound that the chimp shares with Will'sfather (John Lithgow), who if you haven't also guessed it, is sufferingfrom Alzheimer's.The only downsides to this movie are that the various primates in themovie look decidedly digital. I prefer the actual primate costumes thatwere used in the previous Planet of the Apes movies. The ending wasrather abrupt, and only seemed to serve as nothing more than the set upfor a sequel. Also, Franco's role towards the end was pretty muchmeaningless. They could have just as easily written him off the last 20minutes and been just fine. What a waste of a talented actor.

DragoonKain 2012-05-21 08:53:51

Great execution, but we've seen this movie before

I just saw this movie today and I have to say that it was quite good,but not great. It's basically a retelling of 1972's "Conquest of thePlanet of the Apes", but whereas "Conquest of" had an great premisewith a weak execution, this movie has excellent execution with a blandand overdone premise. The premise was nothing new or original so itdidn't leave an impression on me like that those original five moviesdid.Still, the execution was superb. Andy Serkis's CGI Caesar in particularwas impressive and even outdid even Roddy McDowell's excellentperformance as Caesar in "Conquest of". The plot was also moreplausible. In "Conquest of" we're expected to believe that Apes evolvedinto their human-like form in less than 20 years. I'm forgiving of theolder film because they didn't have the budget or technology to makethe Apes more realistic back in 1972, but still, their appearance couldhave been explained by the arrival of the Apes who traveled back intime in the previous movie, "Escape From the Planet of the Apes".In terms of execution, this film was miles ahead of the older films. Italso had some great emotional moments, in particular when Caesar isimprisoned and has to endure abuse by his keepers and his fellowchimps. I also liked the Alzheimer's plot, which was heart wrenchingand well executed. It managed to capture both the bleak atmosphere of"Conquest of" while still retaining the hopeful spirit of "Battle ForThe Planet of the Apes". The only moment I felt taken out of this moviewas when Caesar said "No" for the first time. It just seemed a littleforced and out of place. Obviously it was done as a nod to the olderfilms. "No" is the word that humans are forbidden to speak, and alsothe first word Caesar is heard saying when he starts his rebellion in"Conquest". Nevertheless, I felt that when he spoke for the first time,the movie had jumped the shark, but it got good again really quick.The biggest weakness of this film was its bland premise. Scientists tryto play god and Evil corporation gets to greedy and we all pay theprice. Meanwhile a subjugated group rebels and overcomes itsoppressors. Don't interfere with nature ... Blah Blah Blah. It wasbasically retelling of the "Conquest of the Planet of the Apes" moviewithout the whole "self fulfilling prophecy" angle that made thoseearlier films so interesting. In a way, one could view this as aprequel to the first two films as long as they act as though thebackward time traveling events in "Escape From" never happened. This ishow things could have happened had Cornelius and Zira not gone back intime and changed the course of history. So this resides on a differenttime-line, or is completely removed from the events of those last threesequels. And though it borrows from the ideas and main premise of"Conquest Of", it's more or less a retelling of that story but has noconnection to the actual events of that story.Either way, it could serve as both a reboot, or a prequel to the firsttwo films since it doesn't contradict anything in 1968's "Planet of theApes" or 1970's "Beneath the Planet of the Apes". I'm sure, however, ifthey continue with sequels, it will eventually forge its own plot toreplace these as well. But, at this point, one could still interpretthis as a prequel. It's kind of reminiscent of X-Men First Class, whichcould work as a prequel to the first two X-Men films, but, depending onthe direction they go with the sequels, could also be used as a reboot.It's actually quite smart to do this, and viewing this film as analternate time-line is thought provoking in itself. Of course, thistheme is never explored in the movie, so it's kind of a moot point.Without offering anything new or original to the premise, the filmlacks the impression that the original five movies made when they firsthit theaters and suffers as a result. B

davidgee 2012-05-21 01:09:48

Soulful but not suspenseful

No monkey movie (sorry, Caesar!) is ever going to recapture the twosublime shocks in the Charlton Heston original: the first time he (andwe) heard an ape speak, and the electrifying moment when he discoveredwhat planet he was on. RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES has an uphillbattle to dazzle us, just as the 2001 remake of the original did. Yes,the CGI is brilliant (and clearly the whizz-kids deserve most of thecredit for the "motion capture" technique), but there are quite a fewscenes, especially during the Golden Gate sequence, when the apes dostill look like men in monkey-suits, much as they did (and were) in1968.Are we meant to think the Andy Serkis Caesar is the Roddy McDowellCaesar from the original series or an ancestor of his? Rome had manyCaesars; and so may Hollywood if the box office justifies it! Since theinfant chimp learns sign-language whilst still a toddler, we are notgoing to be too amazed if he acquires vocal skills. There goes surprisenumber one. Since we know what planet we're on, an alternative surprisenumber two needs to be scripted, and the ape rebellion is territorycovered in several of the earlier movies. The end appears to rewritethe scenario that led to Charlton Heston learning what was written inthe sand, so maybe we're meant to see this as a reinvention rather thanas a prequel, like Daniel Craig's take on 007 in CASINO ROYALE.RISE OF ETC is fairly predictable and lacking in suspense. JohnLithgow, as Franco's dad in the throes of Alzheimer's, gets more tendermoments than Caesar does, although this is a much more emotional, evensoulful chimp than we're used to. But, overall, this movie is anotherof the summer blockbuster "duds".

2012-05-20 17:06:46

Let the Apes Rise...

This review is from: Rise Of The Planet of the Apes [HD] (Amazon Instant Video) Let the Apes Rise... You, sit back and enjoy this one. While it's not exactly a classic, "Rise Of The Planet of the Apes" is a solid choice for movie night.

eric_canalla 2012-05-20 10:39:35

Drop the leash

While I'm a part of the minority who just f****** liked Tim Burton'sPLANET OF THE APES (considering the hate towards that movie, this islike the bravest thing I will ever write here!), I do want to startthis comment with a very small comparison between RISE OF THE PLANET OFTHE APES and Burton's picture; a comparison that, obviously, placesRupert Wyatt's film (did someone knew this director before 2011?) asthe superior modern version of "Apes". And is all related to the"sometimes the simpler the better" kind of thing. ROTPOTA is as verysimple as effective, awesome and soulful. I guess the very best thingabout it is that it left me wanting MUCH MORE; it's a masterpiece of abeginning in a film series, and I just can't wait to see part two. There's nothing confusing going on here. It goes simply with three mainthings: evolution in a species, coming of age and revolution (itstagline "evolution becomes revolution" is quite accurate!). The keything is certainly the coming of age part of the story; is when thewhole thing becomes soulful and when you get to know the maincharacter: Andy Serkis' Caesar. That someone will not LOVE Serkis'Caesar (or any of the other apes actually – I personally loved thecrazy-looking one that perfectly knows everything related withlaboratories) is something I just can't think in. Or that someone willnot care about him. Such a perfect, and quite bad-ass, lead character(and, at the beginning, very cute too! Your girlfriend will love him!).And what else can I say about the work of Serkis? What else can I sayabout Weta? What they did here is simply a masterwork. Hope they getthe Oscar for visual effects! Last year I took a not-very-famous movie tour in San Francisco,California. They took us to some locations of movies like DIRTY HARRY,and of course to the quintessential San Francisco landmark: the GoldenGate Bridge. Hands down, this movie has the necessary to become a sortof classic San Francisco movie. There's the really nice use of, forinstance, the famous cable cars. I think ROTPOTA is closer than Burton's movie (so yes, here's anothersmall comparison!) to create an iconic image that can function as anequivalent to the beyond spectacular ending of the original PLANET OFTHE APES (even when the ending of Burton's one did go for the shockingelement). As Caesar is unforgettable, many of the scenes are too; goingback to the San Francisco element, the use of the Golden Gate Bridge isfantastic. Is there better action on the bridge than this? I don'tthink so. Yes, as an action picture, ROTPOTA it's just freakin'awesome! And it's, easily, one of my favorites of 2011. *Watched it on January 28 and February 02, 2012 (Blu-Ray). Previouslyon October 02, 2011 (cinema).

2012-05-19 20:02:43

Good apes, bad writing

The screenplay seems like it was manufactured by copying all characters out of a cliche book--greedy corporate executive, cruel/crooked animal handlers, misguided scientist trying to help a dying parent. Sadly that may be the reason the apes are more believable than the human characters. Just because the budget was "only" $93M doesn't mean we can't expect a good movie. E.g., Hobo with a Shotgun was made for $3M, and had more believable people/plot in it. I think they spent $50M too much. In sum, if you can get pass the annoying humans characters, it could be a good background/airplane movie.

Danny Montana 2012-05-19 11:15:53

An enjoyable movie, but the lack of action left me with a sour taste

I really enjoyed this movie. It is definitely a nice way to lay outthis amazing subject - apes taking over the earth. However, during themovie I have waited for something to happen. The action must start! Andin the end it has, but in my opinion it was too little, too late. Themovie focuses more on studying the emotional and rational side ofCaesar, the leader of the apes. I have really enjoyed his evolution, Iloved the character. It's a good movie, but in the end, when the apesreach the red oaks, I expected the human army to go after them and tryto annihilate the ape revolution. It is practically impossible forthings to end this way in real life. Sure, it's a movie, but this onekept it's realism until this. However, it will not be a movie to talkabout over the years if it will not be continued with a more actionfocused second part, which is my guess for it. If it will be so, Ithink it will be a great accomplishment in the history ofcinematography.I recommend it for all ages, for all tastes. It's a good movie,especially if you are not expecting too much visual effects and manybattles between humans and apes. So, go for it!

2012-05-18 19:44:13

Serviceable, but not great

I remain a fan of the original Planet of the Apes movies, which, asidefrom the first one, were slightly cheesy, but remain one of the mostinventive franchises yet. I loathed Tim Burton's abortion from severalyears ago, and had washed my hands of any further attempts to revivethe franchise, thinking perhaps the films were, and perhaps ought toremain, firmly rooted in their sociological place in time. But I kepthearing murmurs that this was a good film (one friend called it "thebest movie he'd seen all summer") and, well, okay, when it came out Ibroke down and checked out a copy.They changed the story little; this is really a revamp of the thirdmovie, Escape From the Planet of the Apes, explaining the genesis ofhow intelligent apes came to be among us (the original version featuresa delightfully impossible cause-and-effect loop where intelligent apessprang from… a pair of intelligent apes who traveled back in time). Ina nutshell, Dr. Rodman (James Franco) is working on a cure forAlzheimer's when he discovers a concoction that heightens cognitivefunctions in chimps. When he tests it on his ailing father (JohnLithgow), it displays enormous promise, but not as much as it does withlittle Caeser, a chimp born of their most promising test case. Theoriginal batch of super-goo proves unstable, however, and Franco issacked. Fast-forward a few years (and throw in Frieda Pinto as a loveinterest, because, hey, she is really really beautiful), and Caesar isnow adolescent sized, and incredibly smart. An incident with a snottyneighbor lands him in what is essentially an ape jail (run by Brian Coxand the dude who played Draco Malfoy, so you know it's a bad joint),and Caesar, by dint of his intelligence, takes over the place. Fromthere it's just a hop, skip, and a jump to the apes running the planet,although we'll be saving that for future installments (watch thecredits, you'll see what I'm referring to).The Apes movies in their initial run were really more about what humansfeared, and apparently in the Seventies what we feared is that we wouldscrew things up and wreck the world and someone else would take ourplace at the top of the evolutionary ladder. Now that most of that hascome to pass (save for the top of the ladder bit), it turns out what weare most afraid of now is that in trying to avert some horribledisease, we will… screw things up and wreck the world and someone elsewill take our place at the top of the evolutionary ladder (well, again,in the next movie they will portray the actual taking our place bit).Whereas in the earlier version of the saga we shot ourselves in thefoot with nuclear weapons, here we shoot ourselves in the foot becauseof greed and big pharma, which again, is a tad more realistic (thoughnuclear Armageddon was not so far-fetched in 1970). The story approachis different, but the underlying fears remain.Much like in the original, the human actors are almost completelydisposable; we spend a lot of time with Franco, but he could be anywell-meaning shmuck, and Lithgow, while he's very good, is merely amaguffin to create the super-ape serum (the rest of the humans, eventhe radiant Pinto, are utterly forgettable). The take on the apes isdifferent – here they look much more ape-like, and less like humans inprosthetics, although honestly I loved the 60s/70s apes (and so didOscar, they won an award for inventive make-up). The guy who playedGollum played Caesar as an adult, and of course he's crazy good andconvincing in his movements; that helps sell the believability of thefilm. But even with flawless effects, I felt there was somethingmissing from this version of the story, some element that sold me onthe other, admittedly lower-tech and cheesier version, that did notsell me here. Maybe it was the casually boring treatment of man beingmean to lower animals, or maybe it was just that it took way the helltoo long to get things going; but this movie, while technologicallyimpressive, has no heart. We don't bond with Caesar the way we bondedwith Roddy McDowall's version of him; he seems a cold and cunningconqueror, almost more of a villain than a hero (while he rejects theevil humans, naturally, he also rejects the embrace of the one wholoves him, which I understood from a plot point but nonetheless foundcurious). Caesar is less a protagonist to root for than a warning thatit will likely be some innocent bystander we hardly give a secondthought to who will eventually topple our way of life. He was far toocallous for me to embrace. I also didn't care for the slapdash ending,where the apes find temporary sanctuary after besting a squad ofpolicemen. So? The next day they'd simply be gassed, end of story (orit would be if not for the financial allure of potential sequels, whichis why they keep trying to revive this franchise).I didn't find it a bad film, but I did find it an oddly cold andsterile one, and admit to being a tad perplexed as to why,technological achievements aside, everyone seemed so taken with it;granted, we humans are simply living high on the hog in an epochbetween glacial periods (most likely), but I don't really find thenotion that we will be displaced one that deserves much cheering. Ifind the whole premise kind of creepy, myself. Maybe without McDowall'shumanity underneath it all there's some spark lacking in these new apes– one I would label empathy. You'll certainly be impressed by theeffects in this film, but I was left cold by the story.

EdGibbs_FilmCritic 2012-05-18 05:15:07

Chimps go ape in this impressive return of the much-loved franchise

TEN LONG YEARS have passed since Tim Burton's dark, brooding twist onApe-dom. Here now is a prequel, from filmmaker Rupert Wyatt (best knownfor the Brian Cox yarn THE ESCAPIST), which boasts an even moreimpressive amount of CGI. We're also treated to a fine series ofscientific melodrama.Notable for not being shot in 3D – and just as visually arrestingwithout it – RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES proves to be something of amixed bag. James Franco, as Will Rodman, is typically reliable as thesuper tech determined to rid the world of Alzheimer's. We soon discoverthe reason for his laboratory testing on chimps: Rodman's father(played by John Lithgow) is deteriorating at home, rapidly. Soon enough, Rodman is growing emotionally attached to the apes. Whenone goes, erm, ape – like the Incredible Hulk, their eyes turn green,with the serum that's being tested on them – smooth-talking boss StevenJacobs (David Oyelowo) orders the lot to be terminated. Naturally,Rodman finds one to rescue: a baby chimp, which soon grows up to be apet-of- sorts, named Caesar (Andy Serkis). Rodman's serum appears to not only reverse the brain-wasting diseasewhen he tests it on his father, it even improves brain function. ButCaesar grows restless being cooped up inside and ultimately winds up inan enclosure, having wreaked havoc down Rodman's street. Once inside,the dynamics shift between the caged apes, and Caesar cottons on toboosting his fellow chimps' intelligence: steal the serum. Once it'sunleashed, all hell – literally – breaks loose.Director Wyatt does a fine job with the chimps, their laboratorytesting, the drama within the lab, and the chimps' rebellion insidetheir enclosure. Less convincing are the sub plots and supporting cast.Roman's romance with a similarly chimp-obsessed medic named CarolineAranha (SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE's Freida Pinto, pictured above, with Francoand Serkis) feels like an after-thought, in spite of Pinto's screenpresence. Similarly, a father-and-son tussle between enclosure ownerJohn Landon (Brian Cox) and his son Dodge (an over-the-top Tom Felton,freshly released from HARRY POTTER) is hinted at, but not developed.Dodge merely acts as the villain who, inevitably, will get hiscomeuppance.As with Burton's 2001 remake, this highly anticipated prequel feelssomewhat overburdened by the legacy of the 1968 original: a film thatspawned a series of highly successful TV- focused follow-ups thatcontinued throughout the 1970s. It is no coincidence that CharltonHeston's turn in PLANET OF THE APES is spotted on a TV set – nor thatDodge gets to holler the immortal line, "Get your filthy paws off me,you damn, dirty ape!"And, as with Burton's feature, this latest effortdoes, if nothing else, introduce a whole new generation to thefranchise in an intelligent fashion. Visually, it is very impressiveindeed – and Wyatt couldn't have asked for a more appropriate lead inFranco. One wonders what could happen, were the original not to loom solarge in cinematic history. RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES Stars: James Franco, Freida Pinto, JohnLithgow, Brian Cox, Tom Felton, Andy Serkis, David Oyelowo. Directedby: Rupert Wyatt. Critical Rating: 7/10. Rated: M. In cinemas: August4.ED GIBBS | Senior Film/Music Journalist and Critic Follow me on Twitter@EdGibbs Follow the blog: http://plasticsouls.blogspot.com

2012-05-17 15:10:00

An instant classic. Masterpiece. One of this year's best!

This review is from: Rise Of The Planet of the Apes (Amazon Instant Video) The first thought in mind after watching this was "that's it? I remember seeing parts in the trailer I didn't see in the movie. What gives? And then also thinking this movie seemed incomplete, short, and as good as it was just lacking something." Until I found out it's only the first of a trilogy. I was like "oh well then, that explains it. If this is the first of a trilogy I understand why it left me wanting more. But for the prequel to the rest of the movies THIS MOVIE ROCKED SOME HARDCORE APE BANANAS! I am so impressed and just love this movie. And am glad I bought it. For anyone wondering if it's anygood. OMG it most definitely is awesome, but only if you know that it's the first of many more (at least 2). Didn't really see anything bad. James franco was awesome but sometimes it seems like he could use some coffee or more sleep? Anyway I loved it. Merry Christmas and Godbless. Praise Jesus~Shaun's movie review

ptb-8 2012-05-17 07:41:50

Citizen Kong

And, It's terrific! RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES is a very goodaction film that is good science fiction and not science preposterous.Emotionally engaging and with a constant wow-factor and an excellentuse of CGI, the result is a major new franchise of intelligent APEmovies (hopefully with James Franco) and a sequel run that is as wellthough and planned as this. I had no idea it would be this good. Otherson this site will tell you the story and salivate accordingly overvarious actors and details, but the ultimate factor that sets this newfilm above the years CGI action output is that this film has a strongheart and a very plausible storyline. Scenes of Apes amok in San Franare a major jolt, only lurching into silliness occasionally (Gorilla vshelicopter). I saw it in a digital presentation on a huge screen in agood cinema with excellent sound, and I hope you do too.

2012-05-16 14:30:59

Visually Nice Film Lacks a Convincing Story

The film's long title "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" is sort of a spoiler. It virtually tells you all about the film. "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" centers on a young scientist Will Rodman (James Franco) and a chimpanzee Caesar (Andy Serkis). Will learns that a new gene therapy drug, originally developed to cure Alzheimer's disease, has enhanced the intelligence level of the chimpanzee the drug is given. Being a reboot of the series, the new film ignores some of the aspects of the Charlton Heston classic made in 1968 (especially political elements). Instead director Rupert Wyatt focuses on the relation between Will and Caesar, as well as how Caesar exercises his leadership among the apes. The film also provides several nice action sequences and Andy Serkis did a great job as Caesar as always.But I was not impressed. Beside the fact the most viewers know how the story will end (yes, humans are on the losing side), "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" suffers from several flaws: stereotypical characters (Freida Pinto's primatologist Caroline, level-headed but uninteresting; David Oyelowo's arrogant and greedy boss, who somehow didn't fire Will when his first experiment went wrong); and some incredible coincidences (lucky for apes, unlucky for humans).The film is arguably much better than Tim Burton's re-imagined "Planet of the Apes," but frankly I still don't know "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" really deserves the positive reviews it has received from the critics.

abigail546 2012-05-14 19:33:14

Eeh- Depends on your taste

For starters, I have never seen the original Planet of the Apes, or the2001 re-make, so this could be influencing my opinion. When the trailerfirst came out, I didn't want to see it, but I wouldn't have gone outof my way not to see it. I had no expectations for it. But I wasplanning on going to see a movie, with no preference, so I saw thatthis movie had, at first received a 7.8/10.0, and then increased to an8.0/10.0. So, I thought I might actually enjoy it, given that themajority of movies I have seen with an 8.0/10.0 rating on IMDb werequite good. However, I was not that impressed with the overall movie.The plot summery was well thought out, I don't know if the explanationas to how the apes had grown so intelligent in the original film ornovel, but I felt it gave a solid reason for the apes later advancedcivilization. However, some parts just seemed just too unoriginal forthe depth of, how I felt, the film was aiming for. This may have beento help attract a larger audience, but I just didn't believe a fewparts fit. I felt as though it could have just been scripted to havemore emotion and depth, and that the director and writers didn't fullyachieve this. While the director and writers did approach this verywell, I just felt like more could have been done. Overall, if you'renot looking for every aspect of how a film comes together, and mostlyonly trying to catch a random good movie, this is probably What youwould enjoy.

david-sarkies 2012-05-14 03:33:58

A movies that explores the back story to the original Planet of the Apes

This film is sort of a remake of the prequels to the original Planet ofthe Apes. Some have suggested that it was based on Tim Burton's film,but after watching his version of the film and now having seen thisversion, it has become quite clear to me that it has respectfullyignored not only Tim Burton's films, but also the sequels to Planet ofthe Apes where the apes come back in time, give birth to an intelligentApe, and then start off a war between the humans and the intelligentapes.This film is quite different and begins in a research lab where ascientist is attempting to develop a drug to cure alzheimers. Itbecause clear that this is no attempt to save the world, but rather itis because his father has alzheimers and he wants to find a cure forit. Anyway, one of the apes goes wild, breaks out, and tears up theboard room where the investors are meeting to discuss the proposal, andafter this exhibition, they decide to can the program and kill all theapes.However, they find a baby ape, who had been born after one of the apeshad been given the medicine, and it becomes quickly obvious that thisape, who is given the name Ceaser, is much smarter than the averagechimp. However, problems happen and Ceaser is locked up in a primateholding facility, where he uses his intelligence to become the big kidon the block.Ceaser is the main character in the film, and it is obvious that he isthe first of these new breeds of apes. He is incredibly intelligent,and is able to get himself out of his cage, but he doesn't escape, butrather uses his freedom to free the rest of the apes. He does thisfirst by stealing the medicine and releases it in the compound, andthen, once the other apes have developed an intelligence, escapes thecompound, and flees the city to hide out in a nearby forest. Thus,while the film is not about an Ape revolution, it is about thebeginnings on of, and the apes succeed in that they are able to escapethe city and flee into the wild. Once they are free, there will be nostopping them.The apes aren't the only concern that humanity has to face. Themedicine has a very nasty side effect, and that it is deadly to humans,and it is also contagious. On an outward appearance it seems as if itis a bad case of tuberculosis, however, by the time that the scientistis discovered who initially contracted the disease, he is dead, and ithas already spread.The film hearkens back to the original film a number of times. Theopening scene, where the apes are running through the jungle beingchased by humans, is reminiscent of a similar scene in Planet of theApes. The line 'get your hands off me you damned dirty ape' is quoted acouple of times, and a newspaper article about a rocket carrying thefirst manned mission to Mars disappears. All of this points to theoriginal movie.Finally, I should say that this film is a tragedy, and the tragiccharacter is our scientist. He is so obsessed with curing his fatherthan he inevitably changes the world in a way that he did not intend tohappen. He has caused the apes to evolve, and in turn, has damned thehuman race to destruction. Anyway, we do empathise with the apesbecause the prison, and the guards in the prison, do not make life easyfor them, and we are already empathising with Ceaser as we know that heis special. However the film makers do not turn him into a bad guybecause he always intervenes when an ape attempts to kill a human. Heonly wants to be free, and he wants his cousins to be free as well. Hedoes not want to kill humans nor does he want to be a killer. One thuswonders, in the end where he lets the corporate executive fall to hisdeath, whether he has change, but one must remember that it is not thathe kills him, but rather turns his back and does not save him.