‘Dawn of the Planet of the Apes’ Review

In “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” we reunite with the main protagonist of the first installment. Cesar is no amateur ape now; he has matured and carries over his shoulders many responsibilities as the leader of his community. His character in adulthood is that of a charismatic leader and a compelling individual as father, spouse and head of his family. It is so well crafted and so stunningly interpreted by Andy Serkis that you can appreciate his many layers, feel his pain, his doubts and fears as he weighs in his options.

It tells you something when you’re able to connect with a non-human character, when performance and script are solidly coherent that it makes you care about him as much as any other human character (survivor of a cataclysmic pandemic) or more, to the point where you can empathize and sympathize with his struggle and their journey becomes the central story. From the start, the roles are somewhat inverted, it’s the vulnerable humans that need the apes’ help.

As in any post-apocalyptic scenario, “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” has a somber tone. But thanks to outstanding visual effects and development of all the main characters the movie is so that it doesn’t feel depressing at all. It allows the spectator to appreciate a beautiful natural landscape less crowded by modern urbanization while feeling dragged into an engaging story of species interaction, without the distraction of objects flying and falling on your face and out through the screen. I confess I did not notice the 3D, nor did I think it was in any way necessary.

Thankfully for all of us that don’t think a movie is more entertaining based on the more action sequences it displays, this one transits an engaging path rich in human emotions: Love, anger, sadness, envy, friendship, loneliness, vengeance, sense of justice, solidarity, violence and compassion. It’s a visually beautiful movie, but the visuals are there to support the story, to the point where they become invisible. There’s romance, if by romance you understand a broad love story where heroism and adventure play a big part.

Across the board the dialogues are very well written and even when words are absent you don’t get the feeling something is missing; the tension and gravitas is enough to make you feel engaged at all times. This is one of those rare occasions where you won’t think the movie could have been shorter; there’s no one single scene that feels a waste of your time, quite the opposite, you’ll leave the theater wondering when is the next one coming out.

“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” in in theaters now.

“A growing nation of genetically evolved apes led by Caesar is threatened by a band of human survivors of the devastating virus unleashed a decade earlier. They reach a fragile peace, but it proves short-lived, as both sides are brought to the brink of a war that will determine who will emerge as Earth’s dominant species.”