# 554 - DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES (2014)

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES  (2014 - SCI-FI / ACTION / THRILLER) **** out of *****  OR  8 out of 10

(Further proof that the world is going to the monkeys...)

 

CAST:   Gary Oldman, Andy Serkis, Jason Clarke, Keri Russell, Toby Kebbell, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Nick Thurston, Terry Notary. 

DIRECTOR:  Matt Reeves

WARNING:  Some SPOILERS and more reasons to both fear and embrace the simians - straight ahead....

 

IT'S LIKE THIS:   In 2011, we reviewed RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES (review # 409).  In that awesome flick we followed Dr. Will Rodman (James Franco), as he tried to find a cure for Alzheimer's by testing an experimental drug on some lab apes, including his special pet ape, Caesar (Andy Serkis).  If you'll recall Dr. Susan McAlester (Saffron Burrows) tried to do the same thing in DEEP BLUE SEA (review # 144) - except her test subjects were, um, genetically-enhanced vicious mako sharks.  Anyone who saw DEEP BLUE SEA knew that Dr. McAlester's fiddling around with mother nature ended badly when said souped-up mako sharks developed human-level analytical skills and proceeded to decimate the good doc's team. 

And anyone who saw RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES knows the same thing happened - but even worse: not only did the test apes become super-smart (for apes), but a deadly virus from Dr. Will's lab also got out into the open and began spreading like wildfire throughout the world.  I should also add the apes were immune to the virus, and with their numbers growing and humans the world over all getting sick, it was fair to say the balance of power between us and them was about to shift considerably. 

Flash forward to 2014 (well, in the movie it's actually 2026), and we find ourselves in DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES - approximately 15 years after the apes first went Mensa on our asses and the Simian Flu decimated said asses.  The human population of the Earth is extremely small and is living a hard-scrabble, hand-to-mouth existence.  The one sliver of good news is the survivors have developed an immunity to the Simian Flu that wiped out 95% of the world.  The huge-ass chunk of bad news is the super-apes (still led by Caesar who is still played by Andy Serkis) have multiplied considerably.  Yes, folks, in case you were still thinking the decks were stacked in favor of the humans, allow the sight of thousands of apes rampaging through the redwoods of Northern California to be your much-needed wake-up call. 

This spells bad news for the human colony in what is left of San Francisco, led by the de facto leader, Dreyfus (Gary Oldman).  Dreyfus wants to try to restore power to at least part of the city to keep his survivors from descending into anarchy.  Unfortunately, he is told by his lead scientist, Malcolm (Jason Clarke), that in order to get the grid going again, they have to try to fix a geothermal dam across the Golden Gate bridge which is also deep in - wait for it - the redwood forests.  Do you see where this is going? 

Sure enough, during a scouting mission with his team, Malcolm encounters top ape Caesar, his rage-filled second-in-command Koba (Toby Kebell), Caesar's impressionable teenage son Blue Eyes (Nick Thurston), and a whole forest-load of other apes.  Even though Koba wants nothing more than to reduce the humans to crimson stains on the ground, the more peacable and strategic Caesar asserts his dominance and allows them to leave.  Koba is none-too-pleased about Caesar putting him in place, and if his secret glares are any indication, this is not the end of the discussion - not even close. 

Back in the shithole that used to be San Francisco, Malcolm and his hottie partner, Ellie (Keri Russell) convince Dreyfus not to send in armed troops to wipe out the apes because Malcolm thinks he can appeal to Caesar to let them fix the dam without any bloodshed.  Dreyfus is clearly eager to get his trigger on, but gives Malcolm and Ellie a few days to pull off their plan - and if there are still no results by then, he's going to wipe out all them damn dirty apes clogging up the redwoods. 

Malcolm, Ellie, Malcolm's son Alexander (Kodi Smit-McPhee), the loathsome Carver (Kirk Acevedo), and a few others head across the bridge and into the woods to negotiate with Caesar.   Will they succeed?  Will Caesaw allow them access to the dam in the middle of his ape colony?  Why should he help these humans whose own kind abused and mistreated him in the last film?  And even if Caesar works with the humans, how can he be sure that the volatile Koba won't fuck up everything?  And whose side will Blue Eyes choose?  His dad's?  Or Koba's?  Can the redwoods, er, San Francisco, er, the Planet be saved?  Will all this monkey business finally end? 

Four words: don't bet on it.

 

BUT SERIOUSLY:   Summer 2014 has been a season of good-to-excellent sequels.  We were first greeted by the thoroughly engaging likes of CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER and THE AMAZING SPIDERMAN 2 in early summer.  Then, mid-summer brought us HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON 2, THE PURGE 2: ANARCHY, and 22 JUMP STREET.   Now, we have the very worthy follow-up to the great "Planet of the Apes" reboot, RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, from 2011.  As with the other solid sequels this summer, DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES carries the themes from the first movies - and then uses them as a springboard to branch off down new paths. 

What made the emotional center of RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES was the relationship between Andy and his caretaker, Dr. Will Rodman (James Franco).  The scene towards the end of the movie where they had to part was easily the film's most powerful moment.  While the story ended on a decidedly bleak note (the virus spreading across the world) it was also an exciting one that promised more of Caesar and his developing role of Ape Leader in future films.  DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES resoundingly delivers on that promise. 

Whereas the human-ape connection between Will and Caesar was the heart of the first film, the core this time is Caesar's relationship with his own ape tribe, to include his treacherous number two, Koba, and his rebellious son, Blue Eyes.  Andy Serkin is just as terrific here playing Caesar, as he was in the first film.  Toby Kebbell and Nick Thurston hold their own as Koba and Blue Eyes, and their relationships with Caesar is the engine that powers DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, more so than Caesar's interactions with the humans led by Malcolm and Ellie.

Speaking of the humans, they take a bit of a backseat to the apes and, just like in the first movie (and just like their ape counterparts), are a mix of the noble and idealistic (Malcolm, Ellie, Alexander), the conflicted (Dreyfus), and the downright malicious (Carver).  As the lead couple of Malcolm and Ellie, Jason Clarke and Keri Russell prove to be just a tad less dynamic and vivid than James Franco and Freida Pinto from the first film, but they get the job done reasonably well.  Kirk Acevedo is appropriately hissable as the slimy, underhanded Carver - who sees the apes as all the same: the enemy.  The versatile Gary Oldman, on the other hand, gives us a more nuanced villain - one who clearly was a very different man before the virus decimated the Earth, and now must adapt to his new environment and become ruthless to keep the peace. 

Ultimately, though, this film belongs to the apes.  We spend just as much time among them as we do with the human characters - perhaps even more.  The beginnings of  a hierarchy and social system that we saw in RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES takes full bloom here, and its clear that Matt Reeves and his writers intend not to show that the apes are better than humans or vice vera.  Rather, they are exactly like each other: both groups have heroism and courage, sacrifice and kindness, villainy and treachery, simplicity and complexity.  The characters like Caesar, Blue Eyes, Malcolm, Ellie, and Alexander who recognize this are the ones best-equipped to survive the crisis.  The ones like Koba, Carver, and Dreyfus who don't are the ones who are not. 

In the end, DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES wonderfully grows the seeds planted in RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES three years ago.  We can't wait for the next installment in the APES saga.  If this trend continues, it will be awesome.