Dawn of the Planet of the Apes // Review
This month we look at Dawn of the Planet of the Apes; the sequel to Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and the second film of the rebooted franchise.
This month we look at Dawn of the Planet of the Apes; the sequel to Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and the second film of the rebooted franchise. The story starts ten years after Rise of the Planet of the Apes and humans are now endangered following a very nasty plague. The apes, however, are doing marvellously and before they can say “hey, hey, we’re the monkeys,” the fight for dominance begins.
As a rule I hate reboots. They’re never as good as the original and the 1968 Planet of the Apes is, after all, a classic. Great plot, an awesome twist at the end and Charlton Heston. I do have a confession however. I thought it was shit! Don’t start, it’s not my fault. It looked like a bunch of people in monkey masks. The kind I’d seen for sale down Regent Road in Great Yarmouth. After all in my defence, this was in 1993 and I’d just seen Jurassic Park. Sue me for not being impressed.
Skip forward 30 odd years, and this film makes the T-Rex in JP look like Barney the Dinosaur. It’s not just the effects that make the film either; director Matt Reeve (Let Me In) has set the tone of the film dark - very dark. The cast are amazing (humans and apes both) and in fact it is the brilliant Toby Kebbell who steals the show, even from motion capture king Andy Serkis, as the evil ape Koba who, in terms of sinister, is on a par with Heath Ledger’s Joker. See it, love it, just don’t get so carried away that you throw your own faeces around – no one likes a damn, dirty ape.
Smiley
