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Rise of the Planet of the Apes

A reasonably packed house for this screening at Mint Kobe OS Cinemas. I had been pretty excited about seeing this for a few months and I wasn't disappointed. I'd watch it again tomorrow and I can't say that about too many other films.

The human actors are all fine (perhaps with the exception of James Franco - he's OK, just miscast, I reckon) but the strength of the film lies with the apes. It actually seems like a breakthrough in motion capture performing, it's certainly the most realistic I've seen to date. Andy Serkis as Caeser gives a more nuanced, heartfelt performance than anything Tom Cruise, for example, has ever tried. There's a scene where assorted apes walk past Caeser and he looks into their eyes to check 'something' (I don't want to step into spoiler territory) and it's just a brilliantly realised moment.

In fact, this film is full of really exciting, satisfying set pieces. Without giving too much away, I'm thinking of young Caeser swinging through Franco's house, leaves falling in a street, nearly every scene in the primate sanctuary and, most impressively, the bridge sequence. I'm getting a bit ape-like now just remembering these scenes (some people may not be too surprised to learn that I've been refining my ape walk since yesterday).

Coming after the original five films - Planet of the Apes in 1968, then Beneath, Escape, Conquest (on which this film is loosely based) and Battle following in quick succession - plus a slightly camp, run-of-the-mill remake of Planet in 2001, you might think there was nowhere to go with the franchise. But the new technology coupled with a fairly smart script and taut direction makes this a stand-out. Roll on Ape Dominance or Ape Supremacy or whatever the next one will be called. Hmmm, why stop there? Is it too late to digitally replace Cruise for Mission: Ape-possible 4?

[Oh, I almost forgot. There are a few neat little nods to the original Planet of the Apes, one of which is central to the story. They're just the right side of self-referential and they don't look out of place.]

Not to be missed.

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