It's all about the ape's baby

Rating: 8/10 (8 August 2011)

I went into this movie with the wrong impression. Based on the trailers, I was expecting a horror/thriller about helpless humans being attacked by crazed, savage monkeys.
Boy, was I wrong.
This is the tale of Caesar the orphaned chimp, and it is told very well. The human characters are mostly flat stereotypes with clichéd dialog (many of whom are a bit too conveniently evil/sadistic), but the acting of the CGI apes (yes, I said acting) is top-notch, and Andy Serkis certainly deserves credit for making us feel Caesar's pain. Thanks to mankind's blind allegiance to science, he's a lost soul who is neither ape nor human, but something in between, and when circumstance ultimately leads him to an unjust imprisonment, you can't help but root for him to outsmart the humans and lead a revolt.
Unlike Tim Burton's 2001 remake, fans of the original series seem to be mostly embracing this with open arms. Though it contains LOTS of easter egg nods that won't be noticed by newcomers, it's a well-made reboot along the lines of the recent Star Trek, and has little else in common with the originals outside of the basic concept.
James Franco as Caesar's savior/caretaker is less than stellar. I can't help but wonder if he was chosen simply as a nod to the actor who played the lead in Beneath the Planet of the Apes, James Franciscus. Fortunately for us, his character isn't the main focus of the film.
Without giving it away as a spoiler, I will say that there's one line in the movie that is destined to go down in film history as a classic. If you've already seen it, you probably know the line of which I speak. It's making audiences gasp, and it's a moment that still sends a chill down my spine when I think about it.
One final note: STAY FOR THE CREDITS. You don't have to stay long, but in my packed theater, many were in a rush to get out and didn't catch a crucial scene that helps complete this chapter and set us up for the next one.