Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Having yet to see the original, this film was watched from the point of view of a start to a story rather than a prequel to it, therefore some aspects of the films continuity may be lost upon me at this point.

This was a good film, a very good film in fact. I was surprised that a story about an ape could hold my interest for quite that long, but as I sit here typing this I'm practically itching to watch 'Planet of the Apes' to indulge myself in more of the storyline, the bottom line being whatever the cast of 'Rise' did, they did it well.



The many varieties of Ape seen throughout the film all have their own look and personality, meaning there is little confusion as to which animal is which ( usually throughout animal based films I forget what the main character looks like etc) and allowing for true development of their character.

Presenting Caesar with the ability to sign allowed for communication between him and other characters throughout the story, which prevents the character becoming too boxed in, but also takes the strain of the visual effects department, as they don't have to convey everything Caesar is trying to say through his looks ( a feat that would be almost impossible).

I was concerned that the trailer for 'Rise' was so well done that they had quite simply showed you all the story had to offer, from the best scenes to the actual storyline. However I must say while it's possible to obtain the gist from the trailer, there was more than enough unseen content to prevent me from ever feeling as though I had witnessed a whole scene of the story before.

The action in the film is rather short lived but it was certainly in my opinion a good move to spend more time focusing on the emotional side of this story, as this helps build up the bond with the animals you feel toward the end of the story. you end up literally willing them on! ( Think the end of King Kong and you'll get the idea)

The end of the film is not what I expected from it, however I feel it was a good place to end it, and is left wide open for another film set between 'Rise' and 'Planet', but equally could seamlessly follow onto 'Planet' if the franchise was left.

So in all the film had surprising emotional impact, the CGI was seamless, the action scenes were truly edge of the seat stuff and it allows for the Apes side of the story to be told as to why they did what they did.

Definitely worth a watch. If you've seen 'Planet' before, you can re-watch the original with a different approach, and if you haven't seen it, this is the perfect excuse to enter the world of the Apes.

Oh and as a last note, make sure you stay after the end, just for a few minutes, and all will be explained as to what really happened to us humans in this reality.

-James