Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes ~ I have talked about my love for the Planet of the Apes movies before, actually more than once. And while Rise of the Planet of the Apes, the second attempt to reboot the series was a pleasant and superior surprise, I still had some reservations. I shouldn't have worried at all. Dawn is even better than Rise.

If you know the saga of the Planet of the Apes, you know that Rise and Dawn are covering old territory. We already know the history, we know what happens, and that's the danger of any prequels. And even though the movies in the original series, Conquest and Battle, are by far the most inferior, and provide the basis for Rise and Dawn, I have much praise for Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.

Once again, Andy Serkis and the CGI portraying Caesar, the first leader of the Apes, are the stars over and above anyone or anything else in this flick. Gary Oldman is wasted for the five to ten minutes he appears, Keri Russell continues to age badly, and Kirk Acevedo is a master of playing the same character in every project he's in. Harsh, yes, but those are the only bad things about this movie. The rest is near perfect.

The opening, outside the establishing narration of a world a decade after the last film, is without traditional dialogue. The Apes live in peace in their own home, speaking in a combination of simple pantomime and crude American Sign Language. Caesar himself only speaks aloud once man intrudes on their idyllic life, but don't be fooled, the other apes speak as well. And these apes, CGI and otherwise, out-act the human players.

There is no black and white, or good and evil here. It's man vs. ape, it's true, but factions within each group are at war as well. This tale of trust and war and family is set against another amazing score by my favorite composer Michael Giacchino. He hits all the right notes for the appropriate emotional impact. I've already gotten the soundtrack from iTunes I was so impressed.

Whether you're a fan of either Planet of the Apes franchise, or not, this entry is highly recommended. I can't wait for 2017's War of the Planet of the Apes.

Wonder Woman Animated Sneak Preview

On the first night of the 2009 New York Comic Con, folks got a very special treat – a sneak preview of the new animated Wonder Woman film. My day had been crazed and I didn’t think I would make it but I did, just in time to see it – and I’m damn glad I did.

Before Wonder Woman there were a couple previews, and the one that drew the most response from the building audience was Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun Li starring “Smallville”’s Kristen Kreuk. Loud booing roared throughout the theatre. Wow, Lana Lang is not well liked at all.

Next up was a Dark Knight action figure commercial, a la Mego from the 1970s, that just kept getting more and more gruesome. Luckily it was a joke. And yeah, the kids saying, “Holy s-” and the Harvey Dent figure half-melting were both pretty sick, but also dead on and damned funny too. heck, Christopher Nolan should’ve made action figures…

And then the real movie started. It begins with the Amazons fighting against the forces of Ares, and specifically Hippolyta vs. Ares. It’s an interesting rewrite of history and continuity. Apparently Polly and Ares were at one time lovers and had a son, one that she slays in battle now. She then turns on the father. When Zeus forbids her from killing Ares, Hera gives her an island to protect her people from man, and a child of her own. When the little baby of clay starts crying and titles roll, the crowd cheers.

We jump to the present, and Artemis and Princess Diana sparring. There is a lot being done to individualize the Amazons here, which is a nice change of pace. We learn about Artemis and Alexa and others. There are tidbits shown that are terrific, like the Magic Sphere. When I saw that I was hoping for the Mental Radio, but I guess that’s asking too much. We do get a nice redesign of the Robot Plane/invisible jet/Wonderdome (what is it called these days anyway?) later on though that rocks.

There’s no war going on as this is present day, but Steve Trevor’s introduction is nearly intact, voiced by Captain Hammer himself, Nathan Fillion, who also intro-ed the showing of the film itself. The entire voice cast is phenomenal, but his humor as Trevor comes through loud and clear. Trevor caught in the grip of the golden lasso is like a perfectly timed and damn hilarious Abbott and Costello routine. You’ll never think of the word ‘crap’ the same way again.

The interaction between Steve and Diana jumps back and forth like dueling Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn. This is a light-hearted battle of the sexes done smart for today’s generation. If anything I am reminded of the equality of the sexes argument between Tony Curtis and Natalie Wood at the end of The Great Race. And speaking of sex, and violence for that matter, and a zombie or two or three – this is not for the kiddies, but the grown-ups will love it.

A few closing observations – Dian can kick serious butt in her bare feet, and she’s invulnerable to tequila. The only fault I can find is that toward the end a statement is made that the Amazon lifestyle itself may be inherently flawed. Wtf? Let’s just throw the whole mythos of the character in the trash, shall we?

In summation, holy crap, pun unintended, this has been the best so far of the DC animated films. I really mean that, and yes, I’m including New Frontier. I can’t wait ‘til this comes out and I can buy my own copy. How long until March 3rd?

Wonder Woman Animated

While we're waiting for the Joss Whedon Wonder Woman film or that Justice League movie, neither of which may ever see the light of day, here's the trailer for the new straight-to-DVD animated Wonder Woman flick:



It's from the same folks who brought us Justice League: The New Frontier and Gotham Knight and stars "Felicity"'s Keri Russell in the title role. Also cast are Alfred Molina as arch-foe god of war, Ares, and the sexy Rosario Dawson as Diana's rival Artemis. The DVD is set for release in February 2009.