15.10.14

REVIEW: Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

This smart reinventing of the original Apes was given a strong start by Matt Reeves in Rise…, and this follow-up lives up to its strong origins. Dawn… sees Caesar and his band of apes, orang-utans and chimps abandoning the now wrecked civilisation of mankind, and retreating to the forests to  build their own harmonious society. When a band of surviving humans need to access the monkeys’ territory to get to a generator, the two species must make a pact of faith in order to co-exist, a pact which is shattered, and so begins the war between ape and man; the annihilation of the species. Although a good film, and a strong effort to continue the story as left off in the Rise…, there is not so much fun to be had here, and the oh-so-serious overtones detracted from the overall product, perhaps taking itself a little too seriously. Admittedly, the effects and mo-cap talent on show is superb (especially the orang-utan), and both Serkis and Kebbell excel as the lead apes, but I can't help feeling it could have been more enjoyable if it didn't take itself so damn seriously. [3/5]

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