Because the rumor of a new Planet of the Apes installment has been so freely tossed around over the last decade, I have never paid much attention to it. So imagine my surprise when the viral buzz around Rise of the Planet of the Apes began to explode this week. Not only was I seeing it posted all over the internet, but I was getting press releases in my inbox concerning the first footage and a streaming Q & A with visual effects team. Not only was I clueless to the fact that it was actually coming out this year, but I had no idea that it was starring James Franco (127 Hours) and Freida Pinto (Slumdog Millionaire).
As of now, it appears like Fox is trying to entice audiences by slapping the ‘Avatar‘ name all over the place. Hopefully they are not just trying to win us over by saying, “It’s gonna look pretty … like Avatar!” Because we need more than just good-looking movies.
After seeing the teaser trailer, I am intrigued. Rise of the Planet of the Apes is not a sequel, nor a reboot – which so many franchises are prone to doing these days – it appears to be a solid prequel, showing how the apes became human-like and took control of Earth. The only problem that this story might face is a lack of intensity. We already know how this story turns out – the monkeys win.
With all of that aside, I think the teaser looks good. Hopefully I’m right.
What do you think?
