Metascore

Generally favorable reviews - based on 39 Critics What's this?

User Score

Generally favorable reviews- based on 551 Ratings

  • Starring: Andy Serkis, Freida Pinto, James Franco
  • Summary: Rise of the Apes is an origin story in the truest sense of the term. Set in present day San Francisco, the film is a reality-based cautionary tale, a science fiction/science fact blend, where man's own experiments with genetic engineering lead to the development of intelligence in apes and the onset of a war for supremacy. (20th Century Fox)
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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 27 out of 39
  2. Negative: 0 out of 39
  1. Reviewed by: Richard Corliss
    Aug 4, 2011
    100
    As both a simian simile and a wonder of technology, Rise of the Planet of the Apes deserves to be in the company of the great original "Kong." This year's sixth "origins" story of a fantasy franchise (after The Green Hornet, Thor, X-Men: First Class, Green Lantern and Captain America: The First Avenger) is also the year's finest action movie.
  2. Reviewed by: Kim Newman
    Aug 8, 2011
    80
    A worthy, exciting, emotional addition to the venerable monkey movie marathon. Apes will rise. Sequels are likely.
  3. Reviewed by: David Denby
    Aug 29, 2011
    80
    By far the best spectacle movie of the season, and one of the few films to use digital technology for nuanced dramatic effect.
  4. Reviewed by: Staff (Not credited)
    Aug 6, 2011
    60
    To showcase the special effects, the filmmakers reportedly trimmed many of the dialogue-based scenes, thereby dulling the dramatic impact of a strong genre premise.

See all 39 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Negative: 3 out of 177
  1. One of the best movies you'll see this year that isn't about comics!!! 10/10
    the movie is nice, it has some emotional parts, some funny parts,
    not boring at all, the action at the end is spot on. The movie is really great, the dialogue was nice, the characters were likeable except Draco Maulfoy. GO SEE IT NOW! Collapse
  2. When this movie was announced, I was a little sceptical mainly due to fact that the last Planet of the apes movie sucked. I was surprised how good this film is. James Franco puts on a top performance as does John Leithgow. While the plot takes a while to get interesting, the outcome is sweet bliss.CGI is brilliant, even more so than avatar. This movie in brilliant and I highly recomend this to anyone Expand
  3. BKM
    5
    The visual effects are superb and Serkis' performance as Caesar is terrific, but the film is too one dimensional and simple minded to be truly engaging. None of the humans in the film are particularly interesting or complex so you find yourself rooting for the apes to do their thing which doesn't take place until the final act. Most perplexing is why Franco chose this film as a follow up to 127 hours. He basically serves as a piece of human scenery. Expand
  4. Two stars is generous for this film! I didn't really want to see this overhyped prequel, but my friends felt otherwise, and we went. For the first 40 minutes, the movie actually has a plot, is on genre, and was surprisingly good! Unfortunately, it goes way downhill from there. As the apes get smarter, the reality of the film decreases, and gets to the point where it becomes laughable. I loved the first half, but by the end of the film, I couldn't wait for it to end. First time director, Rupert Wyatt, really doesn't know when enough is enough! Some of the scenes just went on and on, and of course, they were the more ridiculous ones. Andy Serkis, who played the main ape, did a nice job with what must have been a difficult role. I give him props for that, but it's a good performance wasted in a ridiculous film, that was much too long, one that eventually becomes a farce of itself. Seriously, ignore the hype and save your money, this film is a waste of time. Expand

See all 177 User Reviews

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