I’ll be the first to admit that I didn’t care much for Rise of the Planet of the Apes. I thought it was incredibly overrated and quite frankly, a bit boring (aside from the last act). Hate on me all you want, but I didn’t enjoy it very much. I felt that while the parts with the apes were pretty good, every time the film focused on human actors it quickly became a bore. So, it was with a considerable degree of hesitation that I sat down to watch the first trailer for Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, the upcoming sequel directed by Matt Reeves.
Yes, Fox has shaken things up quite a bit by bringing in a new director and an almost entirely new cast (which boasts some pretty impressive names), but up until now, I haven’t been sold on the fact that the follow-up will do anything to change the way I feel about the franchise. After watching this first trailer, however, I’m going to switch my stance to cautiously optimistic.
Judging by what we see here, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes seems to be a lot darker and more brooding than the first one, which I really like. I think that Reeves is headed in the right direction with this sequel and if he can deliver a gritty sci-fi tale, then I’ll definitely be on board.
I also like the fresh cast that’s in place. As I mentioned above, I thought the first film’s weakest element, and ultimately its biggest downfall, was due to how heavily it focused on the human side of the story, which I didn’t find at all engaging. With the sequel, I think things will be different, as actors like Jason Clarke and Gary Oldman are captivating screen presences who will no doubt bring a lot to their roles. Unfortunately, we only get glimpses of the film’s stars in this footage but I’m already very excited to see the human survivors go up against Caesar and his army of apes.
And speaking of Caesar and the apes, they look totally badass here and the CG is perfect, once again.
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes hits theatres on July 11th, 2014 and stars Jason Clarke, Gary Oldman, Kerri Russell, Judy Greer and Andy Serkis. Check out the first trailer below and let us know what you think in the comments section.
