Rise of the Planet of the Apes

"I love chimpanzees. I'm also afraid of them. And it's appropriate to be afraid of them." - Caroline

release year: 2011
genre: sci-fi/drama
viewing setting: home Bluray, 1/29/14

synopsis: Thanks to a virus that makes non-human primates more intelligent, one thing leads to another and apes run wild.

impressions: This was fairly entertaining. It started off innocently enough, but ended up being one of those perfect storms where the main ape was just smart enough, and treated just badly enough, to cause him to lead a rebellion. The turning point was at 1:02, when he chose to remain in captivity so that he could eventually free the other apes. The next forty minutes was a whirlwind of violence and destruction. I thought it was cool how there were subtle links to the 1968 movie, such that this one's events actually could lead to the events of that one.

acting: James Franco is the nice scientist-guy. Freida Pinto is awfully cute as his veterinarian girlfriend. David Oyelowo is a greedy corporate type, Brian Cox is the owner of a primate shelter where the apes are mistreated, and Tom Felton is his son, who's the main mistreater. John Lithgow is the main guy's aging father. Andy Serkis is the chimp Caesar.

final word: Good sci-fi/action.

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