Examining the trailer for Rise of the Planet of the Apes

Luke Owen on the first trailer for Rise of the Planet of the Apes...

Anyone who knows me or has spoken to me about films in general will know that I have a rather deep-seated hatred for remakes / reboots / prequels to old movies / rehashes etc.

Just today I have read news about remakes of John Carpenter’s cult classic They Live (directed by Matt Reeves of American remake Let Me In fame) as well as Bruce Campbell announcing The Evil Dead remake script is complete and ready for production. A clear indication of Hollywood executive’s just throwing darts at their DVD racks to choose which film they make next.

Which brings me to today’s release of the trailer for Rise of the Planet of the Apes – another reboot to a series that a lot of people have forgotten about or have never seen. Now, I like the Planet of the Apes movies. While the sequels didn’t hold a candle to the brilliance of the first movie, they were fun B movies that at least entertained. Except for Beneath the Planet of the Apes – that movie is no good at all.

When the announcement was made about a possible Apes reboot, I reacted with abject apathy. Not only was I tired of getting angry about the laziness of Hollywood, we’ve already had a terrible “re-imagining” from Tim Burton 10 years ago that failed to capture the genius of Rod Serling’s script. So, I let the film slip under my radar.

However, when I discovered that it was going to be an origin story that went back to the apes' original rise, I have to admit my interest was piqued. Much like Rob Zombie’s Halloween detailed Michael’s childhood, I don’t believe it this is a story that needs to be told (plus, it spoils the ending of the first film for audiences – even though the DVD artwork did that for them). But, I was at least intrigued by the notion of seeing how man destroys itself.

You see, I love horror and sci-fi films where man tries to play God or devise technology that can help only to find it hinders. From David Cronenberg’s brilliance of The Fly to Steven Spielberg’s family fun classic Jurassic Park, man playing God is an interesting concept that never fails to entertain me.

But, I wasn’t going to get my hopes up. Until I saw the trailer.

We open with James Franco giving a presentation about a drug he has created that can repair brain tissue. Through experiments on monkeys, they quickly discover that it not only helped their brain matter, it improved it. What follows are awesome shots of the apes escaping and essentially “rising”. And then it ends. Leaving you wanting more...



While I feel they’d have been better served not showing a lot of the apes taking over to heighten ambiguity (see J.J. Abrams' Super 8 – the less you see, the scarier it is), the trailer did a great job of getting me pumped about the movie.

If there was one other thing I would criticise about the trailer (and perhaps the movie in general) is that the CGI apes didn’t always look impressive. I’m not suggesting that they should have stuck with actors in suits, but the “team behind Avatar” don’t look like they’ve got their facial reactions and movements quite right. However, I am only judging this on less than 20 seconds worth of footage – so I could be incredibly wrong.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes looks like it could be a really fun movie. James Franco looks very impressive from the short clips as a tortured genius whose one brilliant discovery brings about the end of mankind and the action sequences look genuinely entertaining. Plus, the notion of a breed of super smart apes rising above the humans that created them is a very captivating premise.

I am not suggesting that Rise of the Planet of the Apes is going to change the way I view reboots / remakes, but the trailer seems to be a step in the right direction.

Along with Franco, Rise of the Planet of the Apes also stars Andy Serkis (King Kong) Freida Pinto (Slumdog Millionaire), John Lithgow (Terms of Endearment), Tom Felton (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows), Brian Cox (X-Men 2) and David Hewlett (Stargate Atlantis). The film, which is directed by Rupert Wyatt (The Escapist), is scheduled to open in the U.S. on August 5th, with a UK release date yet to be announced.

“You are right, I have always known about man. From the evidence, I believe his wisdom must walk hand and hand with his idiocy. His emotions must rule his brain. He must be a warlike creature who gives battle to everything around him, even himself.” – Dr. Zaius (Planet of the Apes, 1968)

Luke Owen