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Show all (12)Will Rodman (James Franco), a scientist in San Francisco, is experimenting with a drug that he hopes will cure his father's (John Lithgow) Alzheimer's disease. After his work is deemed a failure, Will becomes the guardian of Caesar, an infant chimp who was exposed in-utero to Will's drug. Caesar displays unusual intelligence, and Will decides to continue his experiments secretly. But as Caesar's intellect and abilities grow, he comes to represent a threat to man's dominion over Earth.
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DMN movie critic Chris Vognar compares 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes' with the 1968 original. Watch the video. (Full review)
Simian special effects have come a long way since actors jumped around in late-’60s monkey suits for 2001: A Space Odyssey and the original Planet of the Apes. The chimps, gorillas and orangutans of the new Rise of the Planet of the Apes don’t just move like the real deal; their faces flash with flickers of emotion and thought, which is, of course, the menace they ultimately pose. Conjured through the ever-expanding magic of performance-capture technology, the apes are easily the most compelling elements of Apes.
Oddly enough Rise has less in common with the five original Apes movies or the unfortunate 2001 Tim Burton remake than with a fine new documentary. In Project Nim, a razor-sharp chimp endures a tragic arc as a series of clueless humans (and a couple of responsible caregivers) try to teach him how to sign and live as a domesticated animal. Confused and abused, the chimp emerges as the noblest figure of the bunch. (Full review)