2011's sleeper hit

Rating: 8/10 (22 March 2012)

"Rise of the Planet of the Apes" is a movie that, upon its release, I had no interest in. I'd seen the Charlton Heston original, but none of the sequels. So I wasn't invested in the series, as a whole. But "Rise" is actually pretty flippin' good. Which is both surprising and a pretty impressive feat, seeing as it's a film that keeps you emotionally invested in CGI primates.
James Franco's corporate scientist seemingly perfects a cure for his Alzheimer's-afflicted father (Jon Lithgow), using chimps as test subjects. The unexpected offspring of one of his subjects (eventually named Caesar) genetically inherits the cure, and after being taken in by Franco, thrives in a domesticated realm and develops mentally at an exponential rate. But an accident leaves Caesar's protective instincts misunderstood, and the chimp finds himself consigned to a primate shelter.
It's here where the film itself really thrives. Caesar goes from domestic bliss to the cold steel and cruel zookeepers of the shelter, and we enter into our "primate prison movie". Here, "Rise" deals with themes of captivity, animal cruelty and the general mistreatment at the hands of man - the emotional core of the film that creates sympathetic characters out of computer effects and and actually make its audience think twice about how protected (read: captive) animals are treated.
Left to his own devices (and now self-aware enough to know that humans are just another breed of animal), the super-developed ape bands his prison inmates together, usurping the bonds of the animal shelter and makes good his escape, through the streets of San Francisco and to the wilderness beyond.
"Rise" is clearly a movie that, through telling a prequel story, seeks to restart an ancient franchise, and spur a brand new series of sequels. After Abrams' success in this field with "Star Trek", it was inevitable that Hollywood would go this route with other brands. But "Rise" works best (for me) as a stand-alone movie; one that's not connected to Heston's film. Seeing one of the bad guys watching "Planet of the Apes" on TV makes for a nice shout-out, but hearing Draco Malfoy utter Heston's trademark line ("Get your stinkin' paws off me, you damn dirty ape!") just feels like a cheap reminder that this is ultimately a reboot.
Regardless, it's a film that had me glued to the screen, and definitely an unexpected gem from a disappointing Summer.
And kudos to both Andy Serkis and some incredible motion-capture work that make Caesar one of the most sympathetic characters I've ever seen.
8/10