Movie Review #8 - Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014)
A Movie Review by Carter Rutledge for:
A group of scientists in San Francisco struggle to stay alive in the aftermath of a plague that is wiping out humanity, while Caesar tries to maintain dominance over his community of intelligent apes.
MPAA Rating: PG-13
The Good: WOWZA effects, amazing parallel story and phenomenal acting.
The Bad: A couple of meh characters and a surprising amount of bad language.
Why I Watched it:
After I watched the first one, this was a natural next choice.
My Thoughts (no penny needed):
Wow. Absolutely amazing! My favorite feature is the story's parallel. Both the humans and apes have a father/leader, a son, and a betrayer. There are many more parallels like this in the film. The visuals are pumped up from the last film, which I didn't even know was possible! The acting was superb! The pacing was great, the callbacks the first movie were great, and Caesar was amazing as usual!
I sorely missed Will, and I kind of wish he had died in this movie, instead of off-screen. Malcolm was a little too wise to be a main character. I would have liked it if the focus was more on his son, and he played a more passive role. Those battle scenes are breathtaking, and leave you on the edge of your seat! Kobe and Caesar's final battle was so emotional and realistic. The words spoken in that scene have so must levity and weight.
After almost no language in the first film, they suddenly felt the need to include nearly every cuss word! I don't get it...
All-in-all this film was the rare sequel that surpassed is predecessor by a measurable margin.
The Characters:
Caesar: Andy Serkis as Caesar is truly something special. His screen presence is just outstanding. This guy deserves all the recognition in the world.
Koba: Ooo. This character evolves perfectly from Episode I to II. Eerie and perfect.
Blue Eyes: Caesar's oldest son was his moments of weakness, but eventually realizes that all humans are not bad.
Malcom: Caesar's human parallel. Amazing human lead, and his relationship with the human leader was interesting.
Carver: Koba's human parallel. Performs almost the same role ad Koba, except more minor. He betrays his kind because of blindness.
Alexander: Blue eye's equivalent as the forgotten son. His scene with Maurice was the best!
Maurice: My favorite character in the last film was a reduced a lot in this one. He had like, one half an important scene.
After I watched the first one, this was a natural next choice.
My Thoughts (no penny needed):
Wow. Absolutely amazing! My favorite feature is the story's parallel. Both the humans and apes have a father/leader, a son, and a betrayer. There are many more parallels like this in the film. The visuals are pumped up from the last film, which I didn't even know was possible! The acting was superb! The pacing was great, the callbacks the first movie were great, and Caesar was amazing as usual!
I sorely missed Will, and I kind of wish he had died in this movie, instead of off-screen. Malcolm was a little too wise to be a main character. I would have liked it if the focus was more on his son, and he played a more passive role. Those battle scenes are breathtaking, and leave you on the edge of your seat! Kobe and Caesar's final battle was so emotional and realistic. The words spoken in that scene have so must levity and weight.
After almost no language in the first film, they suddenly felt the need to include nearly every cuss word! I don't get it...
All-in-all this film was the rare sequel that surpassed is predecessor by a measurable margin.
The Characters:
Caesar: Andy Serkis as Caesar is truly something special. His screen presence is just outstanding. This guy deserves all the recognition in the world.
Koba: Ooo. This character evolves perfectly from Episode I to II. Eerie and perfect.
Blue Eyes: Caesar's oldest son was his moments of weakness, but eventually realizes that all humans are not bad.
Malcom: Caesar's human parallel. Amazing human lead, and his relationship with the human leader was interesting.
Carver: Koba's human parallel. Performs almost the same role ad Koba, except more minor. He betrays his kind because of blindness.
Alexander: Blue eye's equivalent as the forgotten son. His scene with Maurice was the best!
Maurice: My favorite character in the last film was a reduced a lot in this one. He had like, one half an important scene.
My Favorite Character: Caesar
Final Ratings:
Note: Ratings go up to 10, 1 being the worst.
Villain Scale(Koba): 10
Hero Scale: 9.5
Villain Scale(Koba): 10
Hero Scale: 9.5
Directing: 9
Acting: 9.5
Visual Effects/Animation: 10
Cinematography: 9
Writing: 9.5
Cinematography: 9
Writing: 9.5
The Movie as a Whole: 9.0
Thanks for reading my eighth review, you awesome person!
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