"Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" does something that I'm not quite sure I've ever seen in a film. I found myself caring about the CGI characters astronomically more than I cared about the human characters. The CGI apes features in "Dawn" are far more interesting, exciting, and thought-provoking than absolutely anything offered by their human counterparts. There were large stretches of time where the film focuses on the human characters where you sit bored out of your mind. You are watching these stock characters (the racist violent guy, the leader who will stop at nothing, the level-headed scientist, the African American character who possibly has a name) interact with each other in cold and lifeless dialogue. The film then cuts to the CGI ape story and you realize just how much more fleshed out and interesting these 1s and 0s are as compared to the humans. CGI characters are often involving but don't necessarily feel "alive" to the degree that we care. You have the "Transformers" films where the humans are really unneeded (except for the hilarity of repeating the name "Witwicky") and you are only truly interested in seeing these 0s and 1s attack each other. That entertainment is the equivalent of a monster truck show or just watching things burn in a fire. While "Dawn" isn't necessarily a great film, it does some of the most interesting and daring work with CGI characters yet seen in film.
The world is in turmoil after the events that took place at the end of "Rise of the Planet of the Apes". The super-intelligent ape population lead by Caesar (Andy Serkis) has moved into the San Francisco woods. They have spread the ALZ-113 virus (called the "Simian Flu") to the human population which has killed off most of mankind. The human survivors are immune to the virus and live in a cramped towns-square without electricity. A small group of humans lead by Malcolm (Jason Clarke) has descended in the ape-populated woods in search of a hydro-electric dam that will hopefully restore power to the city. A member of the expedition kills an ape which forces the human and ape populations to clash. Caesar draws a line explaining to the humans (in broken spoken English much to their surprise) that the apes home is in the woods and that humans must stay out. Malcolm and Dreyfus (Gary Oldman), the leader of the survivors, know that the dam that is in ape territory is vital to reconnecting with the rest of the world. Malcolm knows that he has to make an alliance with Caesar in the apes in order to make this happen. After the death of one of their own, the apes are hesitant to allow the humans into their world. Caesar believes that the ape population must co-exist with humans. He is meant with the resistance of Koba (Toby Kebbell) who doesn't trust humans after being tortured throughout his life. The clash between Caesar and Koba only builds as the humans come further and further into the apes world.
To say that the human characters are poorly-defined is an understatement. The first real exposure we have with bad human characterization is Carver (Kirk Acavedo), the member of the humans who kills the ape in the first act. Carver is so paint-by-numbers that it borders on insulting. He is the dumb and violent racist who is there to generate conflict. If he is in a scene, it is more than likely just for him to repeat how much he dislikes the apes and how he doesn't believe they can be trusted. While there would no doubt be humans who don't necessarily trust hyper-intelligent apes that can speak English, the actions of Acavedo's character seem forced. There is some slight description about how Carver is the only one who knows what he is doing with the electrical currents but this seems so shoe-horned in simply for the purpose of generating conflict. Acavedo is a good actor which he showed in the TV series "Fringe". Here he is given nothing to do except wield a gun and look equal parts angry and afraid. He is the first human we come into contact with in the film and is therefore the first indication that we aren't going to see well-written human characters. While Clarke and Oldman do well enough with their roles, they are really not given anything interesting to do. Clarke's Malcolm spends almost all of his time pleading with Caesar and the apes to be trusted. Oldman's Dreyfus spends almost all of his time just delivering speeches to his people that everything is going to be alright. Both actors deserve more than what they are given here.
That said, the visual effects and interaction of the ape population is just astounding. You rarely are forced back into the reality that these are computer-generated creatures battling, arguing, and riding on horses. I'm not sure if the credit should go to Serkis and the other motion-captured actors for their amazingly life-like portrayal of the apes or the visual effects team. Either way, the apes are the main reason to see "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes". The interaction between the group, the drama built, and the surprising character developments of these creatures is extremely enthralling. After watching the heartless and boring destruction brought on by the 1s and 0s of "Transformers: The Search for More Money" it is great to see visual effects be used in a productive and impressive way which propels the story forward. Director Matt Reeves is in his element when he is orchestrating the ape battle sequences. He showed in 2008's "Cloverfield" that he knows how to film destruction and mayhem well. These scenes of the last act are truly something to behold. While there are some errors in logic (automatic weapons that apparently never need reloading) they are still some of the most jaw-dropping experiences we have seen in film in quite some time. When these apes battle it is not a shiny car commercial. These are brutal and surprising moments that will leave the audience a little shaken.
A lot has been said saying that "Dawn" is a superior film to "Rise". I'm not sure I totally agree with that. The battle scenes and action are far better in "Dawn" as is the characterization and development of the supporting ape characters. Still, this doesn't necessarily rise above the human element of "Rise". You cared about the humans in "Rise" to some degree. In "Dawn" the human characters are just wasting valuable ape time. It can be argued that the character of Caesar was better developed in "Rise" as well. You were shown his motives and why he truly wanted to secede from human civilization. Here he is just a grimacing leader who battles well. Caesar is still leaps and bounds more interesting and developed than most effects-developed characters though.
In a lackluster summer, a film like "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" is likely to be championed. It has great action scenes, eye-opening visual effects, an interesting story, and some decent philosophical additions. This isn't necessary a "smart film" but it is far smarter than what we have been exposed to this season. It isn't the "great summer film" that we desperately have needed this year but it is an entertaining and good movie that will no doubt pull in audiences. If anything, it is a technological marvel and a major step in the direction of computer-generated characters being on par with human characters. It would have been great, however, if the flesh-and-blood characters could have been presented less primitive.
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