Rise of the Planet of the Apes
I
got into the Planet of the Apes franchise
for about a minute and a half in college. I can’t remember exactly when it was,
but I can only assume it was sometime in 1998. That was the year of the 30th
anniversary of the movie series, and I think AMC was running the movies and
various specials almost nonstop. I watched the first movie, really liked it,
and was excited to delve into the series. After watching the second movie,
though, I thought it was an extremely sub-par sequel and I lost interest. It
also didn’t help that I could get the gist of the series by the AMC specials
that basically walked the viewer through all the movies and the TV show.
When
Rise first came out, I thought it
looked good, but I didn’t have a big desire to see it. I’m not the biggest
James Franco fan. I don’t like him as an actor, but he seems like such a
likeable guy that you can’t help but wonder what type of character he’s going
to take on next.
I’m
enjoying a Cinemax free for three months, and I noticed this movie was
available On Demand, so I thought what the hell.
There
are enough talented actors in this movie to make up for my ambivalence for
James Franco, specifically John Lithgow, Brian Cox, Taylor Labine, and a
surprising appearance by Tom Felton. I wonder if his tenure as Draco Malfoy
typecast him as a dick, because he sure does a good job here.
I
like this origin story better than the one given in the original series during Conquest of the Planet of the Apes.
Medical miracle works better for me than baby of future apes. I’m also amazed
at how the combination of Andy Serkis’ acting and some incredible CGI really
brings Caesar to life. Watching this ape grow from a baby into the leader of an
ape rebellion is amazing. I care more about his struggle than the human drama
unfolding between Will Rodman (Franco’s character) and his dad or the romance
that develops between Rodman and Caroline Aranha (Freida Pinto).
