Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
2014  PG-13  SCIENCE FICTION  2h 10min
CAST— Andy Serkis, Jason Clarke, Gary Oldman, Keri Russell, Toby Kebbell, Kodi Smit-McPhee
MUSIC— Michael Giacchino  DIRECTOR— Matt Reeves

     More like Dawn of the Best Planet of the Apes Film, Ever. A surprisingly human view of those damn dirty apes and their dealings with humans long after the decimation by the so-called simian virus. A relatively small remainder of San Francisco’s population are nearly out of fuel. They send a small band of experts to a dam deep within Muir woods, hoping to restore hydroelectric power to their homestead. Whom do they chance to meet other than Caesar, the ape who orchestrated the original uprising (see Rise of the Planet of the Apes [2011]). He presides over a large family of fierce and devoted apes of all shapes and sizes. When they encounter the humans Caesar declares that the humans may finish their work in peace. But Koba (an anti-human ape if ever there was one) uses this as an opportunity to usurp the simian throne and wage war against the human stragglers. When watching an Apes film the general idea is to root for your fellow man, but here the majority of sympathy tends toward the ape, whose humanity outshines most of the humans by a furry mile. Dynamite direction showcases touching drama offset by fearsome warfare perpetrated by petrifyingly primal primates. Though never physically seen onscreen Caesar’s performance (as delivered by CG actor extraordinaire Andy Serkis) ultimately steals the show. Watch movie now.
OUR RATING— *** ½
PRECEDED BY— Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)
FOLLOWED BY— War for the Planet of the Apes (2017)