I think one of the hardest narrative tricks to pull off is
writing a story to an inevitable conclusion. A conclusion that the audience
knows is coming. Some authors want you to know; Shakespeare tells us that his
two star crossed lovers take their lives in the prologue of Romeo & Juliet.
It’s a tragedy and you’re waiting to see how that falls into place.
Prequels suffer a similar pressure; we know what’s coming,
but what happens on the way there. And if we're already emotionally invested in the outcome, maybe we won't care about what came before? David Lynch’s Fire Walk With Me tells the
last week of Laura Palmer’s life; the object of Twin Peaks becomes the subject
of the film. The dread comes from seeing what we know to be true come true.
When Rise of the Planet of the Apes was released in 2011, it
had a lot to live up to – The Planet of the Apes is a classic of the genre, as well
as having one of the most famous endings in the history of film. In fact, its
ending is so well known, people who haven’t seen the movie will still recognise
the indelible image of the Statue of Liberty.
But Rise also had a pitfall to avoid. Tim Burton’s 2001 remake
was not very well received and for good reason – it had no real reason to
exist. It seemed to have no purpose and no real point of view. Burton’s film
also tries to outdo the original’s twist ending and it is laughable.
Rise and its sequel, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, are
playing toward the ending of the original film – there are seeds planted in the
first prequel that will lead to an astronaut landing on the Planet of the Apes,
in a film that is due in 2016. And to that end, we are watching a tragedy and
the pieces fall into place.
I think that’s fitting for a pair of films that is so
critical of modern society and, in particular, our treatment of animals. They
are not saying that war can be avoided. They are not saying we can defeat the
worst parts of our nature. These films are saying that, well, power corrupts.
In fact, even in ape society, they fish and subjugate horses. And there are
apes that are in power and apes that want to wrest that power away.
The parallels between the humans and apes in this story are
drawn clearly but with subtlety. We are certainly not lectured to. And the
filmmakers know that the best way to tell this story is to find a balance; in
fact, much of the first act explores the ape society – the mere appearance of a
human being is the first significant narrative turn in Dawn. But by then, we
are emotionally engaged with Ceasar and his family and their society.
Andy Serkis is stunning in the role of Ceasar, helped
enormously by the CGI artists involved in bringing all the apes to life. Well,
to be honest, the CGI is so life-like these days, some of those scenes might
have been guys in suits. But don’t even tell me if you know. I think maybe they
found apes who could act.
Rise was a stunning achievement – a reinvention of the Apes
mythology for the twenty-first century. Dawn is an even greater feat – building
on what had come before, in Rise, and toward what we know is inevitable. The
Planet of the Apes. Set for release in 2016.
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