Sophomore Success

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) 131 mins.

"You... are weaker."

If you read my review of Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and you've seen Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, then you'll already have guessed that I really liked this movie. Maybe even more than the first movie (I guess it's possible). What I liked most about it was that it didn't drop the ball. It kept the series going. I want to see more.

Another thing that I really liked about it was the continued re-invention of the tropes. From the apes on horses with guns, to the ape compound, to the "big bomb" (and it's vertical orientation), to the "anti-human" apes who Caesar must battle, to the "nobody is really a bad guy/everybody is the hero of their own story" character motivations, all were in/sub/diverted nicely. Of course the primates who take it too far, and cross the line, define themselves as villains and the film deals with them as such.

And of course, "our heroes" must take the mantle of the judge upon themselves (however reluctantly) and attempt to even the scales, meting out such meager justice as they may in the face of such inescapable destiny.

Again, a good disaster movie, a good survival movie, a good action movie, but a good movie as well, advancing the meta-story of Caesar, and providing more moments of character than in many films starring all humans.

Another film from Category 1: 70s Monster Flashback.

I give it Four Stars: Good.

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A Boy and His Monster

Godzilla (2014) 123 mins.

"Echolocation?"

I started the 2015 Watch-a-thon with a movie from Category 1: 70s Monster Flashback. I guess I should have made a kaiju film Category Eleven. But Godzilla is more than just a monster movie, and it's more than just a giant monster movie.

It's a disaster flick, as any good giant monster movie should be. It tries to be a bit of a horror movie, too, by playing some of the scenes really dark. It's a good movie, as a disaster/survival/monster movie, and a nice reboot to the series and the character, and that's what 70s Monster Flashback is all about.

The story of course is told through the eyes of a child, or a man who suffered a tragedy as a child. This film hits all the tropes, and plays them right, from the scientist (who has also lost loved ones due to tragedy) who realizes that there are some things even beyond our power to control, to Godzilla as the "good" monster, to a young couple (family, even) separated amidst a massive catastrophic disaster. I watched it twice.

It has "bad" monsters for Godzilla to vanquish, lots of military hardware thrown around like a kid's toys, even a recurring visual motif of walking into rooms that are torn open to the sky by something that just escaped.

The plot is a bit headlong, and a lot of stuff sure manages to happen to this one guy, but at least his dear old Dad wasn't crazy after all.

Definitely learned lessons from Cloverfield, but why not update the classic giant monster, anyway?

As a Godzilla movie, it was a fine reboot. I give it 3 out of 5 stars: Not Bad.

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