Rise of the Planet of the Apes

A highly intelligent chimpanzee named Caesar has been living a peaceful suburban life ever since he was born. But when he gets taken to a cruel primate facility, Caesar decides to revolt against those who have harmed him.

A franchise reboot that landed better than most skeptics expected, Rise works primarily because of Andy Serkis's motion-capture performance as Caesar, which critics treated as the film's genuine emotional center rather than a technical novelty. The human drama around it drew less enthusiasm, with some noting the script leans on borrowed ideas from earlier entries in the series, but the ape-focused sequences — especially Caesar's arc in captivity — drew consistent admiration for their near-silent storytelling clarity.