Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

A solid followup to Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes picks up about a decade after the events of the first film and details the exploits of (and eventual strife between) apes and humans. Director Matt Reeves does a superb job of setting Dawn of the Planet of the Apes apart from most of its summertime blockbuster brethren, with the filmmaker’s subdued sensibilities ensuring that the movie, for the most part, unfolds at a refreshingly laid-back pace – which, in turn, paves the way for an impressive amount of character development. The latter is undoubtedly heightened by a raft of better-than-average performances, with series newcomers Jason Clarke, Gary Oldman, and Keri Russell more than holding their own opposite Andy Serkis’ commanding, towering performance as central ape Caesar. And although the movie is at its best when focused on the engrossing interactions between the simian characters – this is especially true of virtually everything involving Caesar’s rivalry with Toby Kebbell’s vicious Koba – Dawn of the Planet of the Apes contains a handful of impressively captivating action-oriented sequences, with the effectiveness of such moments heightened by Reeves’ old-school visual choices (ie no shaky-cam!) There’s little doubt, however, that Reeves ultimately does press his luck in terms of the movie’s running time, as the film occasionally seems to be moving a little too slowly for its own good – with the underwhelming nature of a third-act battle only perpetuating the erratic atmosphere. Fortunately, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes recovers for an exciting climactic battle between Caesar and Koba – which finally confirms the movie’s place as both a stellar sequel and an above-average blockbuster.

*** out of ****