Give 'Dawn of the Planet of the Apes' a chance, you won't regret it

There is a certain contingent of film snobs who will  never give Dawn of the Planet of the Apes a chance. They dismiss it as a CGI ape movie, or as a reboot of a rehash of a dated B-movie.

Nevermind the fact that remakes have been a Hollywood staple forever. And yes, sometimes they can surpass the original.

If you can get past those kind of biases and the snark and accept this movie on its own terms, you will not be disappointed.

I can safely say -- barring a huge surprise -- that this is the movie of the summer and one of the best films of the year. The reviews are right, believe the hype -- it's fantastic.

Director Matt Reeves -- who has shown a real visual flair and knack for storytelling with Cloverfield and even more so with Let Me In (one of the most underrated horror movies ever) -- has said he set out to make "The Godfather of ape movies," and boy, did he ever.

Let me start at the beginning. I am not a fan of the 1968 Charlton Heston original and its offspring. I found the movie entertaining for its camp value and its influence on the sci-fi genre, but I found the racial subtext of the film to be more than a little problematic.

What's memorable about Tim Burton's 2001 reboot is how unmemorable it was. It was a pure money grab (arguably the beginning of a decline in Burton's talents) and it added nothing to the original's audacious concept of apes ruling over humans in a futuristic version of Earth.

Still, there was money to be made and from a creative standpoint, a fresh way to approach this material. The best reboots have resurrected series or characters who had appeared to run their course (think Batman after the debacle of 1997's Batman & Robin) by taking them in a completely different direction that still retains what we like best about the original conceit.

Clake and Serkis in Dawn of the Planet of Apes

Rise of the Planet of the Apes accomplished that and more. Not only was it the surprise breakout smash of the summer of 2011, it also featured perhaps the best use of CGI I'd ever seen and completely sidestepped the political incorrectness of the early Apes films by having the monkeys appear to be real -- instead of actors in elaborate make-up.

This brilliant choice -- buoyed by incredible motion capture work by the genius Andy Serkis -- eliminated the element of the Apes films that made them silly. Instead of hyper-articulate, even urbane character actors playing dress up, you got to see creatures evolve, and form a sophisticated consciousness, personality and eventually, ability to communicate.

I am happy to say that Dawn of the Planet of the Apes tops its predecessor in every way. I have heard some comparisons to the place The Empire Strikes Back takes in the Star Wars pantheon. This is apt. The film is riskier than the first one from the start. It plunges you right into the world of the apes, which, make no mistake about it, are the real protagonists of this film.

The story is darker and scarier. Since the events of the last film, a sizable portion of the world's population has been wiped out by a virus and the apes have retreated into the woods where they have established their own society. Humans are desperately trying to find sustainable energy, which for reasons I won't spoil, lead them into direct contact with the monkey population.

The apes are lead by Ceasar, the indelible character brought to life by Serkis in the 2011 film. Here he is older, wiser and even more richly detailed. This is a character with a real presence. There is not a false note in the characterization and the artistry. If there was ever a case to be made that a special Oscar be given for a performer it should be Serkis for his motion capture work here.

Like in Rise, the weakest element here are the human beings. But at least Jason Clarke imbues his character with a lot more expressive feeling than the detached James Franco did as the human star of the original. The rest of the non-CGI cast is fine, but the real show here is the battle among the apes -- whose growing and maturing culture shows real nuance and tensions.

The expressiveness of their face, the excellent use of sound to create their movements and their voices -- are a feast for the eyes and ears. Again, if you're someone who can only snicker at the sight of an ape riding a horse, this is not the movie for you. But I was so drawn in by the filmmaking prowess that I ignored the absurdity (and yes, the occasional plot hole) and went along for the ride.

For a summer movie season that has been largely disappointing for me, I finally found a movie I can get behind wholeheartedly. Along with The Grand Budapest Hotel and Under the Skin, it'll likely make my top 10 list for the year.