Sci-Fi Thriller On Hulu Reignites All-Timer Blockbuster Franchise
At this point, audiences far and wide are universally sick of movie studios dragging out old, outdated franchises and beating them to death with constant lazy reboots, reimaginings, and legacy sequels. Despite this unfortunate trend, some films manage to completely reignite interest in their long-running franchises, such as 2011’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Though the film is the seventh overall installment in the Planet of the Apes franchise, the movie completely reinvents the source material for a new generation of moviegoers, inspiring a franchise that is still churning out visually astonishing hits in 2024 and beyond.
The First Of The Modern Day Planet Of The Apes Movies
For those interested in checking out Rise of the Planet of the Apes today, the film is currently streaming on Hulu. If you’re not familiar with this iteration of the franchise, it’s the first of the modern Planet of the Apes adaptations, which tells the story of how primates came to take over the Earth, providing a fascinating take on the mythology of the original 1968 classic.
The Plot
The narrative of Rise of the Planet of the Apes centers on a California-based pharmaceutical chemist named Will Rodman, who works closely with a number of chimpanzees to test biotech drugs. After testing a series of drugs designed to cure Alzheimer’s disease, the chemist begins seeing signs of advanced intelligence in the test chimps, which allows them to complete complex tasks unlike any other non-human creature on Earth. Unfortunately, his department is shut down when one of the apes lashes out in a violent tangent, resulting in all of the chimps being euthanized.
Caesar Is Born
As a last-ditch effort, Rodman saves a baby chimp, born to the very ape who exploded into a violent rage, and names it Caesar. Against his better judgement, Rodman continues his test trials after bringing Caesar home with him, eventually teaching the highly intelligent ape how to communicate using sign language, and introducing him to the beautiful outside world.
As Rise of the Planet of the Apes continues building to an incredible climax, Rodman comes to learn just how dangerous it is to keep a chimp in your home, even when it is blessed with the gift of higher intelligence.
A Franchise Revived
I won’t give away the ending of Rise of the Planet of the Apes, though it should go without saying that the film ends by setting up a future in which apes take over as the dominant species on Earth. As the narrative continues in sequel efforts Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, War for the Planet of the Apes, and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, Caesar’s story becomes more fleshed out and fascinating, while Rodman’s lynchpin position in the ape uprising is largely left in the past.
Surprising It Took So Long To Make A Comeback
When I first heard about Rise of the Planet of the Apes, I was resistant to check the film out, as I felt the franchise had already had too many installments to break any new ground. Despite my reservations, I wound up catching the movie shortly after it became available for home viewing, and quickly fell in love with it. Today, I can’t believe this concept was never cooked up earlier, as it seems like a no-brainer in response to the success of the original Planet of the Apes movie.
Streaming On Hulu
REVIEW SCORE
Even if someone had thought up the idea for this movie decades sooner, it still wouldn’t have been possible, as Rise utilizes the latest and greatest motion capture technology. The movie’s performances from the likes of James Franco, Freida Pinto, and John Lithgow provide an excellent human element to the science fiction world, while the visual effects and Andy Serkis’ motion-captured performance as Caesar elevate the film to the status of an instant classic.
Rise of the Planet of the Apes is currently streaming on Hulu for those interested in checking it out today.
