Dawn of the Planet of the Apes: Who’s the Hero?

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes was an excellent film.  Personally, I have been surprised at how much I’ve liked the two reboots in the Apes franchise.  In terms of the sic-fi genre, these films have to be some of the best of their kind.  And, I would actually say that Dawn was better than its predecessor.  In my humble opinion, these films are taking a cult classic and turning it into a true classic, which is a rare feat to accomplish.

For starters everyone knows the special effects are phenomenal.  Even if you are one who doesn’t want to see apes carrying guns and riding on horses, you have to admit that the realism of the apes is unmatched by other CGI.  I will be shocked if this film doesn’t take home multiple Oscars in this category and possibly even some other Oscar nominations (Best Picture?).

In fact, you can tell the filmmakers are pretty confident about the special effects because of the opening scene.  They are so confident in their craft that the film opens with a close-up of Caesar’s (Andy Serkis) eyes.  They’re basically saying, Our special effects are so awesome, we’re going to open with a scene that highlights these effects.  And, we are going to get as close-up as possible so you can see how awesome they are.  The filmmaker’s attention to detail with the apes is something that should be highlighted and appreciated – ultimately worshipping the great Filmmaker behind the scenes.

The story of Dawn is fairly simple, but still intriguing and kept me immersed in a post-apocolyptic San Francisco.  One criticism was the fact that the apes believed that the human race was now extinct.  One ape remarked that it had been 10 winters since they had seen a human, however, the viewers discover that the humans are about 15 miles inland in San Fran.  How had the apes not seen them there in 10 years?  Wouldn’t they have run into each other at some point?  Even though this was a bit puzzling, it’s not a deal-breaker for me.

One aspect of the film I found to be interesting was the fact that humans truly weren’t the main characters of the film.  As I said, the opening scene of the film is the apes and this continues for some time.  Several minutes into the film, and I felt like I was watching a Discovery Channel special on apes…that were dominating the world and could speak.  It felt similar to watching Star Wars: A New Hope.  If you remember, much of the beginning of that film has little to do with humans.  The main characters are two robots fumbling through space.

The filmmakers did well to cause the movie-goers to identify with the apes.  We witness an ape birth early on in the film.  This causes us to see the apes as more human than they are, and it accomplishes our love towards this “race”.  We are also drawn in to love the apes through other relationships, like Caesar’s instruction to his son, for example.  The fact that I had to keep telling myself, They’re apes, was a real accomplishment on the filmmakers part.  However, I think most people bought into the lie this film sold us.

And, it is this lie that gets us to the real hero in the movie.  Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed this film.  I thought it was extremely well-done, and its excellence only assisted with the lie this film is selling.  That lie?  Apes and humans are equal.  The movie made them so human-like that movie-goers were rooting for them.  We were hoping that Malcolm (Jason Clarke) and Caesar would bring their mutual “Trust” to bear in the lives of their races.  Why couldn’t apes and humans learn to love each other?  Why couldn’t we accept the fact that there are some irrational/bad humans and some irrational/bad apes and learn to work together?

At the end of the day, however, the apes can talk as much as they want but they will always lack one essential aspect of their created being.  They aren’t image-bearers of God.  And, because of that, they do not have a soul.  I don’t care if they can ride a horse, fire a gun, bake a cake, or talk – they are apes.  And, while we may have bought into a joyous reality of apes and humans living in harmony, at least one human didn’t – Dreyfus (Gary Oldman).

Some people see Dreyfus as the villain.  The irrational human who isn’t progressive enough to imagine a reality of apes and humans frolicking in an open meadow.  But, he proves to be the only rational thinker when he exclaims, “I’m saving the human race.”  He realizes what we know to be true.  He asserts what was commanded in the opening chapters of Genesis.  That command?  Humans are God’s image-bearers and they are to have dominion over creation.  Therefore, as human-like as the apes could be, a future of equality among these creatures should go against our grain.

Even though we get sucked up into the story of apes evolving into a more intelligent species, we must not forget that mankind named them “apes”.  They are inferior.  They are not created in God’s image.  I am not asserting that there was some hidden agenda by the filmmakers of Dawn.  I’m not even saying that this message kept me from enjoying the movie (again, I thought it was excellent).  I’m just saying, a man risking his life to kill a bunch of talking apes is a hero in my book, as well as, The Good Book.

 

The Dark Knight Rises & Final Thoughts on the Summer

Well, summer is over. School has started back, for most, and the tone at the local box office has changed. I believe this was a pretty good summer for films. The Avengers avenged, Spidey was back in action, The Dark Knight saved Gotham again, and the Bourne series birthed a new hero. However, which film was the best of the summer? One might easily look to the numbers and say, ‘The Avengers’, however, that’s not necessarily a fair comparison. For one, TDKR wasn’t released in 3D (hooray for Nolan!), which greatly decreased the monetary return, plus, should money determine the best film?

In my opinion, summer is about blockbusters (no offense to Moonlight Kingdom) and that brings us to two, The Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises. And I really really enjoyed TheAvengers, but have to pick The Dark Knight Rises as the best film of the summer. In a sense, comparing these two is sort of like comparing apples and oranges. Yes they’re both blockbusters and they’re both superhero films, however, we are comparing the first installment of a film with a third. When The Avengers 3 comes out, then we can compare the two. Plus, TA has the advantage of using the various individual stories, like Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, and The Hulk, to assist in character development. That being said, I go with Batman, and, as promised, here is one more theme I enjoyed from TDKR and some closing thoughts on the franchise.

(As always…SPOILERS).

One More Parallel

I mentioned one theme I enjoyed in an earlier post, and a second was the theme of resurrection. After Bane took the formerly reclusive Batman out to the wood shed and broke his back, Batman is then locked in a pit for a time. Even though it seems that our hero may be confined to this sort of prison for good, he eventually rises. After regaining a great deal of strength and returning to his heroic self, Bruce Wayne appears to be ready for battle. But, he continues to fall short until he exercises a great deal of faith to climb out of the pit.

I couldn’t help but think of the resurrection of Christ while watching this. As always, any earthly parallel falls short of Christ, but there are similarities. Jesus Christ, too, seemed to be defeated and locked in a pit (the grave) for a time. He, however, rose victoriously conquering the grave, giving his children the boldness to ask of death, “Where is your victory? Where is your sting?” (1 Cor. 15:55)

I once heard John Piper comment on Christ’s death on the cross as Satan committing suicide. Satan knew what His death meant. The death of death and corruption for all time. Was this not also true of Bane? His severe beating of Batman only aided in Batman’s resurrection and, eventually, defeat of Bane.

Some Final Thoughts on the Batman Trilogy

It wasn’t too long ago when my father and I attended The Return of the King with several other friends. As the film ended, my father remarked, “It’s kind of sad that it’s over.” There was a sense in which we didn’t want an end to Frodo’s journey’s. Although different, a similar feeling occurred as I sat to watch, The Dark Knight Rises. Before the film even began, I didn’t want it to end. There was an anticipation for the lights to go down in the cinema, but I knew that meant the end of a great story. But isn’t that always the case? We don’t want good stories to end. Why is that?

Some of you may have read Christopher Nolan’s farewell letter to Batman. It was excellent and he’s illustrating this deep truth without even knowing it. Read an excerpt below (This forward appears in the book, The Art and Making of The Dark Knight Rises Trilogy):

Alfred. Gordon. Lucius. Bruce . . . Wayne. Names that have come to mean so much to me. Today, I’m three weeks from saying a final good-bye to these characters and their world. It’s my son’s ninth birthday. He was born as the Tumbler was being glued together in my garage from random parts of model kits. Much time, many changes…Michael, Morgan, Gary, Cillian, Liam, Heath, Christian . . . Bale. Names that have come to mean so much to me. My time in Gotham, looking after one of the greatest and most enduring figures in pop culture, has been the most challenging and rewarding experience a filmmaker could hope for. I will miss the Batman. I like to think that he’ll miss me, but he’s never been particularly sentimental.

The conclusion of The Dark Knight trilogy was obviously bittersweet for Nolan, and it should be. You see, we don’t want good stories to end, because the best story never ends. God’s story will last for an eternity for those who have faith in Jesus Christ. Enjoying a good story and not wanting it to end is simply illustrating the fact that we were created for an eternity. I can’t wait to see and enjoy that story more fully!