Andy Serkis - IamGuruJay

BY: GURU JAY

War for the Planet of the Apes is a fantastic conclusion to the Planet of the Apes franchise. I’ve seen all three movies in the theaters and give each one high praise. Here’s my analysis. The Rise of the Planet of the Apes, the first in the series, was a great start. And the Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, the second one, was extraordinary.

Overall, the acting was phenomenal. Andy Serkis portrays Caesar perfectly in every movie. His character literally evolves on screen. James Franco deserves credit for his contribution as Dr. Rodman in the original. Finally, Woody Harrelson deserves respect for his portrayal of the Colonel in the finale.

It’s hard to say which movie is the best because each movie has its own intrinsic value. The Rise contains the most science fiction. Sci-Fi lovers can appreciate the experiments on chimpanzees because that’s science fiction at its core. But I believe the Dawn contains the best scenes. Who can forget Koba’s iconic machine gun scene?

With that said, the Dawn is still not better than the Rise. What is the Dawn without the Rise? The Rise sets up the story so that the Dawn can be great. And the Dawn sets up the story so that War can be greater. Somehow they all work together.

However, as a standalone film I rank War higher than the others. The director did not hold back. Matt Reeves used cutting edge technology and advanced techniques. His directing has become better over the years. Plus, the cinematography is revolutionary. There are only a dozen or so movies with arguably better photography than War for the Planet of the Apes.

The writing is not all that good in the Dawn. But I must say, I’m impressed by the writing in War. It reminds me of the Rise.

Chime in your comments. What are your thoughts on the Planet of the Apes Trilogy?

I am Guru Jay launching into orbit 5-4-3-2-1!

BY: GURU JAY

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes SPOILER ALERT

Photo By: Wikimedia Commons

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is now playing. The second installment is an absolute must-see summer fun movie. I highly recommend you see Rise of the Planet before Dawn.

I reluctantly went to see Rise of the Planet of the Apes three years ago. It wasn’t on my radar at the time. Still, the Planet of the Apes proved to be worthy of our recognition.

I’d never seen another movie like it. I couldn’t criticize this if I’d tried. I gave Rise five stars because six is an anomaly.

Rise Vs. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

Whoever says Dawn of the Planet is the best is sadly mistaken. Have you seen the Rise of the Planet? You can’t make this comparison unless you’ve seen them both.

Watch Rise again before you pick sides. Maybe, you can build a better case for Dawn. I’d like to hear it.

Here are the official trailers for both movies. Which movie is your favorite- Dawn or Rise? It’s a clear choice for me.

Rise had more power to its punch. The human actors were more talented. The script was flawless. The story was spotless. I feel Dawn had too much speed and no haymaker.

I give you that the apes were more believable in Dawn. I won’t argue that point because Koba ruled with an iron fist. It’s a damn shame that Koba killed Ash.

Luckily, good won over evil. Koba got what was coming to him. In the long run, things fell apart and came together.

I’d like to combine Rise and Dawn into one. Rather than choose one over the other, let’s view the two installments as a single unit. Planet of the Apes is a powerful plot.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes takes the torch and lights a fire. It is an outstanding interpretation of the original. Unfortunately, the writing was lackluster.

I loved everything about Dawn except the writing. At times the apes were incoherent. In the original they spoke like English professors. Now, they speak like two year olds.

My advice is to stay true to the script. Don’t leave any areas open for interpretation. Next time aim for precision.

Dawn begins with little explanation of events. They give us snippets aka ‘tokens of depreciation.’ Blame screenwriter Mark Bomback. Mark did not participate in Rise.

While it’s easy to point the finger, Director Matt Reeves is the boss. So, let’s be fair to the screenwriters. The nature of show beast aka business is cutthroat and coldhearted.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes has been number #1 at the box officefor 2 consecutive weekends. If the song of the summer is “Fancy” than the movie of the summer is Dawn.

Keep in mind the frontrunner Transformers: Age of Extinction had a $210 million budget, while Dawn spent $170 million. Dawn is more successful in my book. The marketing was more assertive and less aggressive.

Plus movie executives saved $40 million. Profit is the bottom line. Dawn appears to be more profitable than Transformers. We’ll wait and see what happens.

SPOILER ALERT

Koba stole the show. Call him a gorilla because this chimpanzee acts like King Kong. Koba reminds me of a ruthless being like Frank Underwood from House of Cards.

I wasn’t surprised he shot Caesar, because Koba got his ass kicked by the Emperor in the beginning. Karma comes back with a vengeance. So Caesar made a crucial mistake.

The Emperor had it coming. Koba saw an opportunity to defeat him; and he pounced on it like a cougar. Here is where I thought the movie could have been better.

Koba tricks the apes into thinking a human killed Caesar. But, is Caesar really dead? Read on for more.

Koba ruled for a split second. From this point on, the movie moves too quickly. To sum it up, Dawn progresses too slowly and ends too abruptly. Blame Bomback and Reeves.

Andy Serkis performed brilliantly in both Riseand Dawn. He is the key to their success. It was great to see his return.

If James Franco embodies the art of acting, Andy Serkis is a mad scientist. Take a look behind the scenes.

During Dawn the apes evolve while the humans devolve. It is actually the apes that are more civilized. It is the humans that want to go to war and annihilate all the Little Caesars.

Caesar’s son -Blue Eyes- is the last hope. While chaos erupts, Malcolm informs Little Caesar that his father is still alive. Blue Eyes goes bananas when he sees his dad.

Caesar calms him down, and tells his son the truth. After speaking the facts, father and son concoct a scheme to reclaim their throne. Fortunately, the plan works.

Jason Clarke and Gary Oldman work well together. If Clarke is Houdini, Oldman is David Blaine. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is a magical experience.

It is rare to see a sequel achieve great critical and financial success. For that reason, Dawn is the movie of the summer. Although the film is a remake, it is by no means a copycat.

I give the film four stars. The Rise of the Planet of the Apes was better. Still, Dawnis an exceptional motion picture.

Planet Hollywood

Hollywoodgets a bad rap. Think about it for a minute. Can you imagine how hard it is to produce an original movie?

Give the Dawn the benefit of the doubt. Steven Spielberg is a juggernaut, so he is an easy target. Check out his filmography at IMDB. Whether we like it or not, directors rule Planet Hollywood.

Dawn of the Planet director Matt Reeves dropped the ball. Yes, he was above average. But for a movie of high caliber Planet Hollywood demands greatness.

The Hollywood landscape never stops changing. The stars constantly shine. Blockbusters are the new normal. Nowadays, you need at least a $50 million budget with 3D in order to compete.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes beat their competition like the heat. I am a Movie Analyst not a Movie Critic. Despite my rants, Dawn is still the movie of the summer.

This is The Guru Jay launching off to outer space in 5-4-3-2-1. Feel free to comment and ask questions. Thank you for reading and sharing. Meet me @ Mars.