An Epic Rise....

Rating: Null/10 (18 August 2011)

At the fag-end of summer's super-hero mayhem, an unexpected prequel to a popular series storms into the August box-office, with all credit to WETA's special effects team that enabled the Apes to become the year's biggest stars. This origin story of Caesar, the Ape that led the revolution among simians, is enriched by Andy Serkis' astounding hybrid performance. A biotech company's greed led to rash genetic experiments that caused a widespread contagion for humanity but resulted in enhanced intelligence in the species that simply desired freedom from human oppression. Through the performance-capture techniques of WETA ('The Lord of the Rings', 'Avatar'), Rupert Wyatt's origin story of the rebellious Apes, truly rises to epic proportions.
After years of research in San Francisco's Genentech, Will (James Franco) achieves a breakthrough based on the observations of a Chimp. As the team plans to showcase their invention, the Chimp goes out of control and what was to be a cure to Alzheimer's disease, ends up as an unpredictable, risky drug. The Apes in the facility get euthanized,but Will saves the wild Chimp's infant and raises him at home while managing his father's treatment with the same drug. The Chimp grows up to be Caesar, an Ape with an extraordinary intelligence and emotional quotient but whose animal instincts also make him precariously dangerous. The story takes its time to develop through this stage but just as Caesar's animal instincts of loyalty cause some neighbourhood disturbance, he is sent to an Animal shelter where, through his interaction with the other Apes, we witness the rise of a rebellion. The ensuing 90 odd minutes are serious monkey business as Caesar silently and meticulously crafts an uprising under his leadership. The richly developed characters and the plot's intensity set the tone for an epic outbreak and clash against humans as the Apes escape to their freedom.
The special effects by WETA are exemplary. The numerous apes charging down San Francisco's landscape and the stand-off on Golden Gate bridge are some of the brilliantly depicted sequences. But beyond the locations and band of rebels, WETA's adroit capabilities are hidden behind the scenes in a technique they truly excel at. Performance-Capture has been the magic behind their films that include 'The Lord of the Rings', 'King Kong', 'District 9', 'Avatar' and 'X-Men:First Class'. This ingenious technique animates real actors who perform in body stocking covered with sensors to portray realistic action and emotion. The detail achieved is simply mind-blowing. However, just as the action wouldn't have been so much fun without WETA's involvement, Caesar's origin story wouldn't have been so engaging without the surreal performance of Andy Serkis in his suit. Serkis will be remembered as the most under-rated actor of our times after being Gollum in the 'LOTR' trilogy and playing King Kong and now, Caesar the Chimpanzee. His comprehension of Caesar's sufferings, inquisitions, emotions and eruptions is truly remarkable. It is the combined effect of WETA and Serkis who create some sensational moments. Watch him get enraged at the neighbor as he protects his family, his disbelief on being separated from Will, his joy among the giant Reds, his longing for home, his defiance to authorities and as he becomes the leader of the rebels. Some of the iconic image also include the Apes riding atop the trolley and of Caesar charging against the Police on horseback.
Director Rupert Wyatt almost gets everything right except for Freida Pinto. While he takes time in building up the story with Will and young Caesar, Serkis takes charge of audience engagement for the rest of the film. Through Caesar's rise, we witness ape-fun, gorgeous scenery, dejection, defiance, destructive action and the fight for liberty while a scientific breakthrough lays the seeds for mankind's bane. Wyatt throws in some astounding moments in the film that reflect the contrasting effects of Genentech's drugs on Apes and humans and adroitly portrays the beginning of the end for our race at the very end.
As the 7th installment of the Planet of the Apes series, Rise of the Planet of the Apes is an intriguing back story that shocks those who went with little expectation. WETA's special effects with Andy Serkis behind the very realistic Ape and Wyatt's direction of an engaging plot have managed to provide us with the most fulfilling sci-fi movie of the year. In terms of its emotional quotient, Serkis obtains a higher-than-expected level for the film, thus making his performance, Oscar worthy. Only one species will gain control and the rise of the survivors is not to be missed in this epic of a film.
8.911 on a scale of 1-10.