Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)

Rise of the Planet of the Apes

• As the first movie in this series, I was impressed through and through, with the CGI, the acting, the music, and the story. It was really interesting and intriguing watching the early years of Caesar, and seeing him grow up. I went into this movie knowing almost absolutely nothing, and I’m really glad I did. Watching the story unfold really hooks you from the beginning. To me, it almost felt like it had two different story lines, even though they were both within the same one. You watch the growth of Caesar as well as the developments with ALZ-112. They both intertwine, and seeing the progress of the cure as well as the progression of Caesar and his intelligence was really cool to see happen.It provides a story within the story, which was really nice. The acting was absolutely incredible, for both the humans as well as the apes. Although James Franco seemed a little dry to me, everybody else was good. I enjoyed seeing Tom Felton, and even though he plays his typical Malfoy self, I liked seeing him in a non-Harry Potter movie. Andy “The 🐐” Serkis as Caesar was insane. He did such a phenomenal job, and this movie only gives a small taste of what’s to come. The CGI of the apes was incredible, and when you think it can’t get better, it does. Even though you can obviously tell it’s not a real monkey, it is extremely convincing, and the movements of the mo-cap actors give the monkeys a realistic feel. I also really liked this movie because it gives you the introduction to each key monkey, especially the ones you see throughout the rest of the series. The music was pretty good, and though it wasn’t as prominent in a few scenes, there were still key moments where it perfectly made the scene. Overall, this perfectly kicks off a really great series, and I would highly recommend it. This film is officially Berry Approved, so go see it now!