When I first started hearing all of the positive reviews about "Rise of the Planet of the Apes", I thought that low expectations had to have played a part. Still, the strong word of mouth boosted my own expectations and I have to say that they weren't met. Yes, the CGI apes are great and the effects work is some of the best I've ever seen. Yes, it's smarter than what I expected and it's more of a character piece about Caesar the ape than an action film. And yes, the film was competently made and there weren't any out and out flaws besides the casting of James Franco, who I just could never quite believe in this role. All that being said, I just was not involved or all that entertained by the movie.

My first issue was the pacing. I know that the producers wanted to show off their CGI but I felt like almost every scene and act in the film could have been cut down by a third. The climatic scene on the Golden Gate Bridge drags out far too long and in showing so much, they actually took away from the power and tension of the scene.

But the bigger issue was POV. The humans in this film are all almost secondary and while the first half of the film focuses more on James Franco's character, the lead in the film is Caesar and the general POV of the film is his. This film is more about the apes than it is the humans and, in an odd twist, you could argue that the apes are the protagonists in the final half of the movie. I was pretty stunned at the ending point of the movie and was dismayed that the actual fall of the human race is almost literally an afterthought and anti-climatic (there's a bit after the first few credits at the end that explains it).

Like Captain America, I have to say that the movie was competently made but there also wasn't really any outstanding moments (aside from the CGI). The human characters were mostly forgettable and the coming of age of Caesar honestly wasn't THAT strong. I think the film gets point for humanizing the apes and investigating Caesar's emotions but it's really not that strong of a coming-of-age tale. The movie apparently earns a lot of points from people because it does take the POV of the apes but I guess that just didn't wow me as much as it did other people.

If you like the Planet of the Apes movies, I'm sure you'll be pleasantly surprised by this film. Or if you like a little more thought put into your tentpole films, this could be your cup of tea. And going off of some of the films so far this year, Apes is a better made flick than most. But, in the end, it's a forgettable film and, for me, a lackluster experience at the movies. If you haven't seen Crazy, Stupid, Love, you should most certainly skip Apes and go see that instead.

As for a couple of side thoughts:
1. While it's true that her role was underwritten and was kind of useless, Frieda Pinto (below) did nothing with it and it was kind of stunning to see such a beautiful woman come off so flat. I don't think you can write her off because it was such a nothing role but you'd think a true talent could have elevated the role a little bit and shone a little brighter.
2. Tom Felton is falling into the Billy Zabka type. Felton was Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter films and plays a sadistic punk in this film and I think he's pretty much typecast now. Zabka once complained that his character's backstory was cut out of the Karate Kid and he came off a more of a straight punk rather than an abused kid driven to being a punk by his overbearing dad and that that sealed his fate and the only roles he could get after that were as the prickish antagonist.