Rise of the Planet of the Apes is boring, plain and simple. It has a cumbersome title, odd looking CGI mashed against live actors, and it’s ultimately rendered utterly pointless by film’s end. If we know humankind is going to be wiped out entirely, what’s the point of getting to know them? Down the line it’s going to be one of those prequels movie fans use to argue against the idea entirely. Why did we need a prequel to Planet of the Apes? Here to muddy up that question is the sequel, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.
With another title that only slightly makes sense (dawn is just after sunrise, I suppose), Dawn of the Planet of the Apes takes the last remaining humans and pits them against Caesar (Andy Serkis)’s army of super monkeys (and maybe the monkeys fight each other in some kind of civil war). I understand why this exists (the first film went bananas in the box office), but that doesn’t mean I’m happy about it. If the sequel can somehow be less boring than the original, then I’m game. Dawn of the Planet of The Monkees couldn’t leave us if it tried July 11th.
