Despite the repetitive, awkward title, Rise of the Planet of the Apes is an action-packed film that simultaneously tugs on the heartstrings. Starring well-known actor James Franco, and Andy Serkis (you may recognize him from yet another special-effects hidden role; Gollum from Lord of the Rings), Apes is a tale of friendship, betrayal, and the relationship between a man and an ape.
The movie starts off in a laboratory, where pharmaceutical scientist Will Rodman (Franco) is presenting his cure for Alzheimer’s disease, labeled ALZ-112, which he has been testing on chimpanzees. The chimps, which are shown being captured in the opening scene of the film, are genetically mutated by the treatment, giving them a human level of intelligence. As Will plans to show Bright Eyes, the most successful subject, she interrupts the meeting by going on a rampage. She is shot down, and Will’s treatment is denied funding immediately. When he learns that she had just given birth to a baby chimp, and was simply being protective, not hostile, Will takes the baby chimp home. Here, we learn that Will is taking care of his father (played by film veteran John Lithgow), who has fallen victim to Alzheimer’s, himself. His father takes an interest in the chimp, and names him Caesar, after the famous Shakespeare play.
As Caesar grows, Will observes that the ALZ-112 was genetically passed onto the chimp by his mother. He immediately displays signs of intelligence beyond normal human levels. The film quickly fast-forwards to five years after Caesar’s birth.
He can now sign entire conversations, and understands virtually everything going on around him; which causes him to question where he came from. After an explanation from Will, an accidental rampage of Caesar’s lands him in San Bruno Primate Sanctuary, which is run by a cruel handler named John Landon (Brian Cox) and his son, Dodge (Harry Potter star Tom Felton).
As Caesar concludes that Will is not coming back for him as promised, he forms alliances with the other caged apes, steals Will’s ALZ-112, exposes the apes to it, and manages an escape from the “sanctuary.” The group of now highly intelligent apes proceed to rampage across the entire city of San Francisco, causing the citizens to panic, and allowing the apes to show retaliation from cruel punishments and being treated as inferiors for so long.
Although the film concludes with a fairly predictable ending, it leaves the audience feeling satisfied. Apes takes James Franco out of his normally comedic comfort zone, and successfully adds another great performance under his belt. As a film overall, it breathes a breath of fresh air into the original late 60’s to early 70’s franchise, and plays on many different emotions of the viewer.
It is not directly related to any of the plots in the original movies, but has done just fine on it’s own; it grossed $19,534,699 on its opening day, August 5, 2011, and within the entire opening weekend, grossed $54,806,191, making it the fourth highest-grossing August opening ever. It continues to have a pulse in the box office, grossing nearly $169 million to date. Apes offers spectacular special effects, a heartfelt plot, and heart-pounding action; a little something for everyone.