It's a Madhouse! A Madhouse!

Rating: 6/10 (12 August 2011)

Greetings again from the darkness. As a young kid I saw the original Planet of the Apes at a drive-in with my parents. At the time, I mostly just thought the talking apes were cool and enjoyed the surprise ending, despite having no ability to really process the statement that Pierre Boulle (novel) and Rod Serling (screenplay) were making. Since then, I have had a soft spot for the series, including the Tim Burton version 10 years ago.
As you can tell by the title, this latest version is truly a pre-quel. It is meant to explain the beginnings of how the Apes gained intelligence and created a powerful society that would one day rule humans. It begins in a genetic engineering lab run by James Franco and his team. They are using chimps to test an experimental drug that will hopefully be used to treat and cure Alzheimer's. In fact, Mr. Franco's father is played by John Lithgow, a once renowned musician and teacher, who is now suffering the effects of this horrible disease.
When things go wrong at the lab, Franco breaks most every known law and tests the drug on dear old dad. Of course, it works miracles. The accident in the lab, leads Franco to adopt a baby chimp born to one of the chimps used to test the drug. This chimp quickly becomes the smartest one in the house, neighborhood and city. Named Caesar, his learning curve is off the charts. And yes, after a couple of years, his strength and temper are as well.
After yet another accident, Caesar is put away in a chimp camp run by greedy Brian Cox and sadistic Tom Felton (Draco of Harry Potter fame). Caesar uses his intelligence and the unsuspecting and unobservant nature of the humans to organize a coup. This part is really something to behold.
By far the best acting in the film is delivered by Andy Serkis. Don't recognize the name? You might know him better as King Kong or Gollum in Lord of the Rings. Mr. Serkis is a motion-capture actor-extraordinare. It is sometimes difficult to tell where these effects stop and the CGI begins, but overall the look of the chimps is pretty good and the action sequences are downright amazing.
What hurts the film is the weakness of the human stories. Franco as a genius scientist? Doesn't work for me. Freida Pinto as a primate specialist? The script gives her nothing to work with. Lithgow and Cox are excellent actors, but mere pawns in this story.
Director Rupert Wyatt tips a cap to the original film a few times: tribute names such as Bright Eyes and Dodge Landon, an orange orangutan named Maurice (in honor of Maurice Evans), a quick glimpse of a Statue of Liberty puzzle, horse-back riding, Charlton Heston on TV (as Moses), and a couple of classic lines including "stinking paws".
In what was supposed to be a transition story, this one really belongs to the apes ... and it's teed up beautifully for a sequel just across the Golden Gate.