Science and the Bible
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Rise of the planet of the apes review
This movie is monkey magic with a message
What’s all that about?
Planet of the apes follows the story of an ape called Cesar (Andy Serkis) and a scientist named Dr Will Rodman (James Franco). Rodman works for a pharmaceutical company, researching a new drug that promises a cure to Alzheimer's. His drive to find a cure is driven by the fact his own father is battling with the disease. The testing of the drug is being performed on some fresh apes that have been captured from the jungles of Africa. It turns out that the drug is very effective in repairing and increasing brain function in the apes. During the testing phase, things go a little pear-shaped and funding for the drug is cut off, and the apes are ordered to be put down. Rodman manages to save a single baby ape (Cesar) and takes it home for protection. Cesar becomes a member of the family, almost like a son.
We then watch the development of Cesar, who has inherited the "smart gene" from his mother. Over the course of about 8 years, he becomes extremely smart and human-like. Through brutal treatment in captivity at the hands of Dodge Landon (Tom Felton. Yep, Malfoy and he is a brat in this movie too), Cesar turns against humans and creates his own group of intelligent apes who stage a mass breakout, causing havoc and destruction in the city of San Fransisco while fleeing to the woods outside of the city.
Is the movie any good? Yes, but...
Rise of the planet of the apes is a skillfully and lovingly crafted movie. You can tell the creators have been very careful to make sure this isn’t just some cookie cutter ape action flick. But it’s the development of the relationship between Cesar and Rodman that really grounds this movie and gives it it’s drive, its heart. You actually care for both these characters and once Cesar goes bananas you feel that it’s totally justified. The only thing that makes this movie feel a little incomplete is that it feels like a total setup for a new franchise (which in fact it is). The movie never really explores the larger overarching Apes story, it’s just the first few chapters to a book that has 30 chapters. It’s Genesis to the rest of the bible, if you will. That doesn’t make the movie bad but it gives you a feeling that there is so much more to be said, which may leave you feeling either a little flat or excited for the next installments.
Is there a message for Christians here?
On the surface, Apes may look like a movie that is just showing some primates going nuts and destroying things but it’s actually got a lot more than this going on. Greed, pride, love, hatred and freedom are all themes that run throughout this film. But for me the thing that i was struck by was the way it shows how humans often treat our planet. The movie shows that humans have power to do whatever we want to this world. We can treat the planet and the animals however we please but we often get it wrong.
In Genesis 1:28 God says “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” Yes God has given us this world to rule over but he hasn’t given it to us to mistreat it, destroy it, pollute it or completely take advantage of it. We need to be godly in the way we look after this world. If you're going to see this movie take a moment after it’s finished to think how you as a follower of God can honour him in the way you treat the world which he has graciously given us.
The final word
Rise of the planet of the apes is a pretty sweet movie and it has a lot to say about us and the way we treat our world, which is all good food for thought. It’s funny but this movie which is all about an ape will leave you feeling a little more human.
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