Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

The return of Caesar, the return of the stunning visuals, the return of the brilliant Andy Serkis; the return of the rebooted Planet of the Apes franchise. I must freely admit to having made a classic film faux pas as I have only very recently seen the original film, which I loved, but I did love the 2011 reboot all the more, and this second outing well and truly blew me away. Not a massively "in your face" impact from the start, but hugely dramatic, and lucidly powerful and emotive throughout, to the point that by the end I was well and truly bowled over. This is easily the best Apes film I have seen by far, and all I shall say is - we've come a long way since Charlton Heston shouting at those "damn dirty apes".

Much more so that the first in this reboot series, Dawn of just seems to come together so much more, so effortlessly and so wonderfully.

Origin stories are always difficult (see what I was saying about Captain America a few days ago if you want to read more of my ramblings) and rebooted origin stories even more so. Don't get me wrong, I feel Rise of was still a great film and they pulled it off, but only just. On one hand they did take quite a while in getting to the crux of the matter and whilst solid, I didn't feel James Franco did quite enough to carry the film home. On the other hand though, they did in that film instead concentrate on some beautiful emotive and unique sequences, they showcased some spectacular effects, and showcased the superb Andy Serkis as Caesar.

In this barnstorming, blistering sequel those last two are back and back with a vengeance. No matter what is on screen in this film, it is always stunning to look at. Terrifying villains, chilling moments, beautiful scenery or apes, touching emotive scenes or all out war; it is just beguilingly dazzling to look at. We are of course very used to all sorts of CGI effects being able to create literally anything on screen these days, but the unique and tailored techniques used in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes just make everything look so heightened and pure in a way that I have never seen before.

We must also of course, mention Andy Serkis, the star of the last film and even more so of this one. He is of course no stranger to perfectly inhabiting and creating CGI enhanced roles (King Kong and Gollum to name two) and again as Caesar he comes alive. Not only as Caesar, but as a clearly defined and evolved Caesar in this film. It is one of those occasions where I am truly struggling to describe a performance; I urge you just to watch Dawn of for Andy Serkis if nothing else - he is perfect.

Another ape to mention, is Caesar's second in command turned nemesis Koba, played by relative unknown Toby Kebbell. Chilling...truly chilling. It has been a long time since I have seen a film villain fashioned, created, honed (over the space of two films) fleshed out and then presented to marvellous effect. Just the look of Koba on screen is frighteningly excellent, but when teamed with Kebbell's truly and deliciously sinister voice; the result is a visually and audibly equal character to Caesar.  

Let us now turn to the human side of things, as they are an important aspect of these films too. Like James Franco (who does get a welcome cameo in this one) in the first film, I feel Jason Clarke as Malcolm could have done a bit more to carry his character and role in the film. Having said that I can completely see why he was cast and he has enough of an individually raw approach to see the film through. Keri Russell is his opposite lead and generally I love her as an actress, my only complaint being that for whatever reason we don't see more of a developed role for her. Aside from the simian side of things, the star performer for me is Gary Oldman as Dreyfus, the leader of the human colony. His role itself is perhaps quite predictable (a hint of villainy but broadly just fanatical) yet he does it justice entirely, being incredibly watchable every second he is on screen.

What I love about this film, alongside its predecessor now, is probably what a lot enjoyed with the original films; they have found a very unique and captivating way of telling an evolving, well-crafted, brilliant story. Again, clichéd though it may sound, this is a startling rarity as the Dawn of sequel is in my opinion a far greater film than Rise of. It is truly wonderful to behold. Visuals, music (composed by the rapidly ascending star that is Michael Giacchino) the acting and the overall stunning finished product. I have no doubt that Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, like its original predecessor of so many years ago, shall go on to become a cinematic classic.

*Oh and as a brief aside, it has come to my attention that this is actually my 100th blog post! Thank you so much for your readership and support, hope you have enjoyed it so far!*