With Dawn of the Planet of the Apes coming out in a couple weeks, I thought it was time I finally saw Rise of the Planet of the Apes. The trailers to Dawn of the Planet of the Apes make it look really cool, and I was already excited for it, but now, having seen Rise of the Planet of the Apes, excited does not even begin to describe my anticipation.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes is a prequel/reboot to the Planet of the Apes franchise, which showcases how Earth came to be overrun by apes. And the first thing off the bat that sells this movie to me is the script.

This movie is unbelievably unique, and I consider it an origin story. My favorite origin story of all time, just narrowly beating out Batman Begins, is actually 2012’s Chronicle starring Dane DeHaan. This movie reminded me of Chronicle in the sense that it was the origin story that’s so different from others, and has a darker feel to it, making it really cool to watch. And speaking of the dark tone, this movie had a lot of elements that reminded me of some scenes in The Dark Knight Rises, and actually took their own twist. When you can take elements from Chronicle and The Dark Knight Rises, two of my Top 10 films of all time, and make them even more unique, that is a tip-of-the-hat to you my friend.

And I guess that tip-of-the-hat really goes to Rupert Wyatt who directed this movie. The directing of this movie is very intriguing and is especially showcased to me through the visual effects. I know that motion-capture is used for the apes, and for a director to make these effects so great is very impressive. There are also very stylish shots of direting, like some really cool-looking landscape shots and my favorite personally, which is a time frame of five years passing, and it shows Caesar, the main character and a chimpanzee, swinging through these trees as he gets bigger and the weather drastically changes every swing. Very cool.

And then the story and actors are great in this movie too. So the main character of the film is not James Franco’s character, it’s actually his chimpanzee Caesar. And Caesar is able to hold this movie unbelievably well. He’s likable to the point where I want him to eradicate the human race, and that is a compliment. Like I said, I consider this an origin story and Caesar originates for sure in this movie. He’s such a changed ape by the end of this movie, it’s just fantastic filmmaking. And then we have James Franco and John Lithgow in this movie too as supporting roles. I think John Lithgow was absolutely great in his role, but James Franco’s character I feel could’ve been played by any early 3-something in Hollywood. Like I could have seen Joseph Gordon-Levitt in that role just as well. But anyway, supporting characters can be really hard to write for, yet their actual characters had enough layers to feel as relevant as Caesar!

If I absolutely had to knit-pick one issue out of this movie, it might be that James Franco isn’t in the third quarter that much, but that isn’t even really an issue since we’re so intrigued with Caesar.

This review may have felt very generic, but that’s just because I wasn’t sure how to fully express my thoughts on this movie. But guys, looking back, there is a fantastic storytelling method that mixes ideas from The Dark Knight Rises, Chronicle and 2014’s Godzilla, that are directed by a guy who clearly knows what he’s doing, and has actors who are clearly talented. Guys, not only is this a good movie, this is a great movie, and of course, Rise of the Planet of the Apes is…

a 5/5.

I am now counting down the days until Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and hopefully it will not let me down.

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Alright guys, those are my thoughts on Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Have you seen this movie, and if so, what are your thoughts on it? Let me know down below, and as always, thanks for reading guys.