By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 5 cats
Director: Matt Reeves
Starring: Andy Serkis | Gary Oldman | Jason Clarke | Judy Greer | Keri Russell | Kodi Smit-McPhee | Toby Kebbell
Country: united_states
Year: 2014
Running time: 159
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2103281
Thom says: “Yes, I’ve seen them all: PLANET OF THE APES (1968, 4 CATS), BENEATH THE PLANET OF THE APES (1970, 4 CATS), ESCAPE FROM THE PLANET OF THE APES (1971, 4.5 CATS), CONQUEST OF THE PLANET OF THE APES (1972, 4 CATS), BATTLE FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES (1973, 4 CATS), PLANET OF THE APES (2001, 2.5 CATS). RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES (2011, 4.5 CATS). So it’s a certain thrill to find such strong going so late in the series. I’ve always liked the idea of talking apes acting like latter-day humans especially when we got such class actors as Roddy McDowell, Kim Hunter,
Maurice Evans, James Whitmore, Helena Bonham Carter, James Franciscus, Thomas Gomez, Ricardo Montalban, Sal Mineo, M. Emmet Walsh, Don Murray, Lew Ayres, France Nuyen, Mark Wahlberg, Tim Roth, James Franco, Michael Clarke Duncan, Paul Giamatti, David Warner, Kris Kristofferson, John Lithgow, Brian Cox, all adding their considerable talents into the proceedings.
“This time we’re a few years down the line from the last one where James Franco had created an anti-Alzheimer’s medication that only acts for a short time on his dad (the lovable old coot John Lithgow) but on apes not only hurries their evolution chain but creates a virus that nearly decimates the entire human population. Meanwhile, our ape friends are over in Marin County across from San Francisco creating a new ‘Ape Society.’ The humans left in San Francisco are little prepared for what they are about to experience. Yes, there are the ‘good’ humans who are more than willing to make nice with the apes but they are definitely in a small minority. All Hell is about to break loose, and does. Strong script, perfectly rendered, careful and thoughtful this desperate action film is a wonderful winner. 5 cats”