Acrobatically balancing stunning visuals and chest-pounding action sequences with real depth in contemporary themes and characters, the second instalment of this rejuvenated franchise evolves what Rise of the Planet of the Apes started, with confidence and a fresh boldness of vision.
After a concise and artistically crafted opening, outlining the destruction of the human race due to the spread of Simian Flu – the by-product of the Alzheimer’s treatment, ALZ-113, being developed in the previous film – we’re reacquainted with Caesar (Andy Serkis); the highly intellectual primate who, in Rise…, grew from an eerily gifted chimp baby to ape-revolutionary. Now, ten years on, he has forged an idyllic and fully-functioning community in the Redwood forests of Northern California. But when Caesar and co. discover that there is a renegade group of human survivors, taking refuge in dilapidated San Francisco and in need of a hydro-electric dam in their forests, Caesar must fight to prevent inter-species war and protect both his biological and communal family.
The greatest triumph of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is its ability to draw you, without any reservations or reluctance, into its uncompromisingly bleak, rain-sodden tone, whilst simultaneously keeping you wholly enthralled. There is little room for humour and light-heartedness amidst the multitudes of serious social subtexts; most notably western cultures dependency on fuel and the violence it provokes. What’s more, the narrative manages to paint a vividly harrowing picture of the prejudice and ignorance which justify the act of war for such resources. As a result, the movie plays out, like all great science-fiction should, as a stark and brilliantly realised analogy of present-day concerns, but without ever being didactic or burdensome.
This is heavily due to the brilliant motion-capture performances and digital rendering of the apes. The accomplished naturalism of the performances by Serkis as Caesar and Toby Kebbell as Caesar’s ally-turned-antagonist Koba, only serve to make the picture all the more absorbing. Coupled with the superb CGI, which adroitly blends the real and computerised to a standard beyond anything James Cameron could conjure, the outcome is the uncommon occurrence of non-humanoid characters being truly compelling and relatable.
That said, the less fur-covered mammals – or humans, as they’re sometimes referred to – are slightly overlooked. Although Jason Clarke’s Malcolm is initially fleshed out as the good-guy family man, trying to establish trust and cooperation with Caesar, his story gradually fades away as the apes take centre stage in the block-busting final act. Similarly, Gary Oldman as Dreyfus, the fear-mongering founder of the human refuge, flourishes briefly but is given hardly any time to develop into anything more than a gun-loving madman. Though, that really is just nit-picking.
In short, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is that rare commodity; top-quality popcorn entertainment which also gives you something for your brain to chew on. Who’d have thought that talking monkeys could have been at the heart of the smartest blockbuster of the summer?
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is currently showing at all Nottingham cinemas.
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