Momentously riveting.......10/10

Rating: 10/10 (3 September 2011)

I was anticipating this movie along with a few others as must-sees this year. I used to watch the old Planet of the Apes series with amazement, the story of a seismic reversal of civilizations. The Tim Burton rendition of Planet of the Apes has been slated, sure it has many many faults, holes, inconsistencies and unlikelies. However, in fairness as an entertaining movie I thought it was fair, especially with Mr. Wahlberg who usually turns in a solidly genuine performance in whichever film he appears.
To Rise we come. As an origin story I wanted to see what Rupert Wyatt's team could do to reboot the series, as seems to be the fashion nowadays in Hollywood. I was utterly carried away by this film. First of all, if we turn to the plot of how the seeds of this global upheaval were sewn. It is not simply a clichéd model of man experimenting beyond bounds with it all blowing up in the face. Even though, that fundamentally is the case. The brilliance of Jaffa and Silver's script weaves an enthralling story of how a benevolent search for a cure slowly turns into something unpredictable and ultimately self-destructing. Within all of this, it deals with the emotions and drama of a family life from innocence to adolescence and beyond.
Next to the character performances, and they really are that. In my books, John Lithgow's rendition of a man suffering from Alzheimer's who is cured but then relapses back again is worthy of recognized awards. You felt like you were Will, watching as your own father seesaws from despair to ecstatic recovery and back again. I have been a fan of John Lithgow since the days of Third Rock and even his performances from such films as Cliffhanger. I was not left wanting. James Franco is another whose performances are enjoyable and watching him and Mr. Lithgow team up as father and son was incredible, they worked so well together. Add into the mix, an innocent little chimpanzee named by his adopting grandfather 'Caesar' who we come to almost think of as our own family member as he grows, learns and develops into an adult ape. This part of the story, how Will reluctantly takes him in and how he then becomes a part of the Rodman household is pure drama and you forget at times that you're watching an ape, instead witnessing a member of a family.
Amongst the genius of this movie is the parallel relationships between Will and his father and that of Will and his adopted child, Caesar. It's striking that Will tries to control both what happens to his father and the progression in this world of Caesar, both realities ultimately crashing up against his good intentions and fruitless efforts. In addition to this also, two fatherly relationships, although not mirroring each other, still provide a comparison of each other within the greater family framework. This film is also an insightful study of humanity and what it means to be human, how we treat nature and how we treat each other.
The journey that we are led on with Caesar is something that once you watch this film, you won't forget. It truly is a brilliant story within the wider one. The way he is forced from the protected family life of the Rodman household to the harsh reality of being just another ape and then within all of this developing his intelligence all the time as a result of his treatment was humbling to watch. It struck and impressed me the way in which at the primates shelter he meticulously developed a social hierarchy amongst the apes. This is what makes an origin story a truly brilliant result in the image of the Batman Begins saga. Not to simply throw a couple of elements together and say, yes, this is how it all happened. No. Rise carefully develops with all the vehicles at its disposal how this Rise came about and it makes you respect the way it transpired. The special effects are also to be massively applauded. Yes it all started with Gollum and Kong, but WETA have used all that and expanded on it further to create a masterful result in Serkis' Caesar. It was a joy to watch, as Andy Serkis explained in an interview, it's not just a mindless animal being captured and touched up by the SFX, which in themselves were so good that I couldn't tell whether it was a real ape or CG. There is a whole personality and backdrop to Caesar that needed to be fleshed out in every twitch, every blink, every movement of this creature and not in isolation either, it had to be done within the context of something entirely new: an ape being treated by intelligence enhancing drugs. A difficult job, but who else than the Serkis to live up to it!!!
The screenplay, together with the actors' magic and Andy Serkis' dynamism as Caesar all should be studied by students of film. Rarely does a film truly take you on a journey of discovery from start to finish holding your hand every step of the way, as you gasp and sigh in amazement, despair, joy, rage and excitement. To help with all of this is a simply magnificent soundtrack that threads out every single emotion and colour of what's taking place on the screen in front of you into notes, chords and bars of breathtaking, majestic and flawless music.
There are very few films in my lifetime that I have seen in which there have been genuinely heart-stopping moments, true storytelling greatness that makes your heart miss a few beats with an expression of incredulity upon the viewer's face. Dear Readers, the one or two such moments in this film (you know of what I speak if you have seen this) are in themselves worth the fares of repeat viewings.