Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
Let me just say that this one of the better sequels that has come out in a while. In fact, if this movie doesn’t win some special effects awards this year, something is very wrong!
The basic premise is that the human race has been pretty much wiped out by the virus from the first movie and the apes are living in peace when a few human survivors find them in the search for electric power from a nearby dam smack dab where the apes have made their home.
Caesar (Andy Serkis) tries to make peace with the humans and allow them access to the dam but Koba (Tony Kebbell) decides to betray Caesar because of his lack of trust of humans. The rest is a political story that very much incorporates the ideals and revelations of our present day society.
The acting of Serkis and the amazing CGI in this movie is SO well done, you don’t even think twice about the fact that apes are running around on horseback wielding machine guns everywhere! In addition, the emotions and actions portrayed by Serkis as an ape are really something pretty astonishing to witness. If you have never seen a behind the scenes on how the CGI is done for these movies, take a look at it on the Rise of the Planet of the Apes DVD and you will see what I am talking about.
That all aside, the script is very well done and William Shakespeare himself would be proud…Themes of Loyalty, Betrayal, Family Values, and an ape named Caesar after all!(Just to scratch the surface.) The movie as a whole is very engrossing and not many dull moments to speak of. Kudos to director Matt Reeves for balancing story with special effects – something not easily done these days for sure.
All in all, I found the movie very thought provoking and thoroughly entertaining! A solid 9 out of 10 stars.
