Matt Reeves delivers the best movie of the summer with Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.
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| "Alright. Things are about to get a little weird around here." |
Three years ago, director Rupert Wyatt
pretty much accomplished the impossible: Not only did he give us a good Planet
of the Apes film, but in fact, it was so good that it successfully washed
away the nasty aftertaste of the Tim Burton reboot. That by itself would’ve
been enough, but it was also the big surprise of that year. Three years later,
we have been rewarded for our renewed faith.
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes may very well
prove to be the movie of the summer, and is the single best film of the
franchise. It’s hard to imagine it getting better than this. This is not just a
great film for the Apes canon—this is impeccably crafted science
fiction. It’s a film that connects and engages on transcendent levels, a film
that seeks to enthrall as well as excite. Matt Reeves, fresh off delivering the
best American vampire film ever made, crafts sequences so riveting yet
horrific, I would describe him as the anti-Michael Bay. He wants us to feel the
consequences of war and chaos, not marvel at it.
Dawn begins with one of the most
atmospheric pre-credit sequences in recent memory, as news archive footage
explains that a super virus has all but eliminated the human race. Spiraling
across the globe and showing all life coming to a screeching halt, the screen
settles into complete silence and darkness before cueing the title. The note
struck by this opening is simply perfect, and it sets the tone for a grim
dystopia future shot beautifully by cinematographer Michael Seresin (Harry
Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban), brought to life through astonishing
production design and flawless visual effects by WETA Digital.
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| "Touch our bananas and you might get a shot to the face." |
We pick up ten years after the events
that ended the previous film, with a small colony of humans that are desperate
to kickstart an old hydropower dam in the redwood forest. They’re led by Gary
Oldman, swapping out his snazzy Commissioner Gordon specs for a pair of rapist
glasses and a megaphone. There’s only one small problem… Well, actually there’s
a couple hundred of them, and they live right near the hub of the dam. They
scream in tongues, are prone to violent outbursts, have an insatiable craving
for bananas, and yet manage to be smarter than your average YouTube commenter
by a significant margin.
True to his style as a director, Matt
Reeves loves surprising his audience. The funny thing is, he surprises us by
following through with his logic. There are events in Dawn that are
shocking, frightening, or even funny. But Reeves is always playing by the
rules; they just aren’t the same Hollywood rules we’re used to. While most
directors are shaking the camera like it’s strapped to the paint mixer Bart
Simpson used to prank his dad, Reeves isn’t afraid to lock his down and let us
watch events transpire. This technique leads to one sequence involving a tank,
and let me tell you: It’s an eye-popping stunner that leaves you breathless and
begging for more. Reeves has proven with Let Me In and Dawn of the
Planet of the Apes that he is a force to be reckoned with, yet he’s not
afraid to let his talent take a backseat to his characters.
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| "This is Commissioner Gordon. Bane is working in cahoots with a band of apes. We need Batman!" |
Through the magic of motion capture, the
apes in Dawn are compelling and so fully realized as characters that,
despite the fact that they’re all just hairy chimps, it becomes easy to pick
them out based on personality traits alone. Never before have CGI characters
felt so real and integrated into the fabric of storytelling. There is a synergy
of craftsmanship and performance that rises above any and all attempts that
came before it. At the center of it all is Andy Serkis reprising his role as
the lead ape, Caesar. When will someone at the Academy finally notice their
head at their next colonoscopy, perform the necessary removal, and give this
man the award consideration he deserves? From Gollum, to King Kong, and now
Caesar, Serkis has become the one to prove that this is a true performance art
form. If there was Oscar talk for his work in Rise of the Planet of the Apes,
then just give him the award now—his performance here hits more notes and
levels than all of his previous icons combined.
It’s a rare thing for a sequel to surpass
its predecessor. In this year alone, we’ve been given The Raid 2, Captain
America: The Winter Soldier, X-Men: Days of Future Past, and now Dawn
of the Planet of the Apes. It would seem there’s more than just the one
brain being passed around Hollywood after all. I just hope the extra ones
don’t have an expiration date.
-Blake O. Kleiner