I love apocalyptic movies. If it in any way involves the destruction of mankind, I’m in. Hmmm….. I guess it’s cathartic in a way, with everything going on around us in the world today, sometimes I think Mother Nature would just like to take a big old fly swatter, zap us all at once and be done with it.
So, it was with bated breath that I went to see “Rise of the Planet of the Apes”, expecting a doomsday for mankind scenario that would take my imagination to new heights and I would leave the theater quite satisfied. The trailer, in my opinion, was to blame for these great expectations.
I’m not saying I didn’t enjoy it. I did. From the beginning, the storyline was captivating and I found myself following along, intrigued and anxious to see how it played out. The story revolves around a scientist, played by James Franco, best known for his role in “Spiderman”, and his quest to cure Alzheimer’s Disease motivated primarily by his father’s (John Lithgow) affliction with it.
The test subjects are, you guessed it! Apes.
I don’t want to give the movie away, except to say that the story line was done too well. What I mean is that I was so engrossed in the characters and the build up to the climax of the movie, that I didn’t realize how long I’d been sitting there watching it. It dawned on me after about 90 minutes that I was still waiting for what had to be a spectacular end, except that the story had taken another direction, giving me the impression that it was far from over. I was wrong…..my excitement and expectations had been built up so high that I felt a little let down as I left the theater.
Maybe I set my sights too high. The visual effects were awesome and I was on the edge of my seat more than a few times. There were just so many missed opportunities. The story had created some great possibilities that if taken advantage of, could have been a true blockbuster. In fact, if the build up hadn’t been so great, I probably would have enjoyed the final outcome.