Fancy CGI animation worked around real characters you enjoy, and the thrill of seeing intelligent super-apes kick human ass make this depthless plot-hole ridden, overhyped cheap-thrill of a popcorn film that lacks any structure whatsoever, truly entertaining and enjoyable from credits to credits!
Evolution goes ape shit in “The Rise of the Planet of the longest and most ridiculous” movie title ever. There are more District 9 references in this film than there are references to previous Planet of the Apes films, with most notably the appearance of a mysterious black substance being coughed up and the whole segregation- apartheid issue. Expect to witness mini-King-Kong’s taking down every cop in San Francisco, massive explosions, apes climbing up redwoods to build their own Ewok inspired tree villages, and genre-crossing into horror with a gratuitous scene featuring degenerate teens, their girlfriends and beer. Somehow the writers figured genre-crossing would fit perfectly into the progression and structure of their well developed plot.
Overall, The Rise of the Planet of the Apes starts out with a truly heartwarming premise, a scientist trying to cure his father’s illness with a vaccination procured from animal testing, but the film skips ahead a decade and loses itself in the character building process of a speechless, CGI ape, played by Gollum. Even so, he is still an enjoyable character you have sympathy for and want to see do well. From this point, the largest gathering of apes in one place takes over the city and we’re launched into a fun popcorn inspired action sequence of a Michael Bay ending. The ending promises a strand of sequels/remakes/reboots and with mixed feelings.