Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

IMDB
First time viewed: Yes
Current Release: Yes
Watched With: Tyler

I really really love the original Planet of the Apes series. And I was pleasantly surprised by the recent reboot, despite its more upbeat tone and ending. There's two things I really want from my ape films, apes on horseback and a dark and upsetting tone and message. This film has both in spades.

Matt Reeves is directing this time around and he gets to play with Weta's latest toys. I know fur clumping was a big issue on this one, it'll probably go unnoticed, like a great deal of their work but good lord it's stunning. I'm sure it cost a fortune. They really push the digital characters to the spotlight here, it's their film and boy do they hold up well. As an added bonus, we get some human characters to care about in this one too which is really nice. And because we have characters to care about on both sides this slow decent into conflict is just agonising to watch unfold. As many have already said, it's the only recent action blockbuster film where you want to spend more time with the exposition and stop the action from starting. 

But like the classics, this is a great tragedy and once the wheels are in motion, there's no stopping them. The action is remarkably staged and there's sure to be some new iconic imagery created here. There is a final showdown that seemed a little cliched but I was totally onboard with everything else. 

I have some small issues with Michael Giacchino's score. He might be trying to pay homage Jerry Goldsmith but it felt inappropriate in this environment. Also I think I'm just getting tired of a few of his trademark sounds but that's not something anyone else will notice. 

So if Rise was a lighter version of the original and supremely dark Conquest, this plays like a super successful version of Battle, the least successful of the original series. It's genuinely upsetting for a great deal of the running time. There's action in this that you won't be cheering for, they make it hurt. The realisation of the Ape world is beautiful. I can't wait to see it again and I hope Reeves sticks around for wherever they take the story next. There's no real roadmap from here, not that they've really been following the path laid by the original series but they have stuck to the basic concepts of films 4 and 5. It's all pretty much open now. 

But we'll worry about that later. What's most important to note is that this film is glorious and you should go out and see it in 3D.