Going Bananas: A Review of RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES

Expected grade: 8/10

Actual grade: 8/10

(For a full explanation of my grading system, check out this post.)

It took me a bit longer to get around to seeing this movie than it usually does, so I had already read many of the overwhelmingly positive reviews, and was therefore expecting a solid movie. I know from his previous roles as Gollum and King Kong that Andy Serkis and his motion capture work are always moving and fascinating, so I was excited for that. I was excited to see a dead franchise get a kick in the pants. And I was excited to see apes battle helicopters on the Golden Gate Bridge. This film is all of that and much more.

Nothing will beat Gollum for the title of most captivating, well-acted, well-animated motion capture character. But Caesar the ape, the main character of this movie, comes in a close second. Caesar is smart, he's curious, proud, loving, scared, strong -- he's a richly layered, fully-developed character, all the more impressive in that his role is silent. He doesn't get Gollum's multiple personality voices to express his complex emotions. But thanks to Serkis and the animators, he doesn't need them. Every action, expression and emotion is captured perfectly. I have heard talk of Andy Serkis (possibly in conjunction with the animation team) landing the first Oscar nomination for a motion capture performance this year. I think it's a stretch to believe that the Academy will recognize a performance not done in flesh-and-blood, but that's a fault of the voters, not the performance. Caesar is far more compelling than most real-life actors this summer -- I would rank him closest to the equally proud Magneto, who also ends up leading his own band of "freaks" against humanity.

While Caesar is the main attraction, several of the other apes are similarly fascinating. There's Maurice, the friendly circus orangutang who communicates with Caesar through subtitled sign language. There's Buck, the fierce and powerful gorilla who becomes Caesar's strongest ally. There's Alpha, Caesar's threat in his new home at the zoo. And there's Koba, the sinister ape who undergoes experimental treatment and ultimately gets his revenge. These all felt like fully-fleshed-out characters, and it was a joy watching them develop. In fact, this film's biggest fault is that all of these apes are far more interesting than any of their human counterparts.

While lavishing so much attention on its amazing apes, this film seemed to forget that the humans are supposed to be complex and have arcs as well. This is the one place the film fell short. James Franco phones in his performance as the scientist who makes the apes smarter. Freida Pinto is beautiful but does nothing much as his girlfriend. Brian Cox is utterly wasted as the keeper of the apes at the zoo. Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy in his first post-Potter role), as the ape keeper's assistant (and son), is inexplicably mean to the apes. And David Oyelowo is blandly villainous as Franco's boss. Only John Lithgow is even remotely interesting here, playing Franco's father, who has Alzheimer's. We see him both suffering from this terrible illness and, briefly, the brilliant man he used to be. It is the only human performance in the film with any sort of layers or emotions. As bland as most of the humans were, it didn't actually detract that much, because this film belongs to the apes.

My one fear going in was that this film would consist mostly of apes going crazy and slaughtering humans and inexplicably overcoming the police and military forces to gain control of San Francisco and, ultimately, the world. As cool as that might have been, it would have reduced it to just another summer action movie. In reality, there is very little actual action until the climax. This film is surprisingly more of a drama than I was (and I'm guessing a lot of people were) expecting. But when we do get there, the action is exciting, adrenaline-pumping, and, because we care about the apes, compelling. As eye-popping as the action in TRANSFORMERS was, who can say that they truly cared about any of the characters involved? This film doesn't suffer that hindrance. You as the audience care about the apes so much by the end that you will probably find yourself rooting for them and against your fellow humans. Kind of an unsettling experience.

There are a few clever references to the old franchise, as well as some very subtle seeds planted for a sequel. Unlike CAPTAIN AMERICA, which didn't shy away from the fact that the whole film was simply a teaser trailer for THE AVENGERS, this film lays the ground carefully for a continued story based on its characters and its story, not simply as a marketing ploy. This makes me much more interested to see further installments. Especially if they continue to be as thoughtful and thought-provoking as this one, and as long as Andy Serkis returns as Caesar. Because, ultimately, this movie was his vehicle and his first starring role. How much more impressive that you never even see his true face. Many actors attempt to "disappear" inside their roles. Here, thanks to the ever-evolving technique of motion capture, Mr. Serkis gets to do just that. And the result is breathtaking.