Buzz Magazine Buzz Magazine - July Issue | Page 28

film

by Keiron Self

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES ****

TRANSFORMERS: DAWN OF EXTINCTION **

Dir: Matt Reeves (12A, 100 mins)
Those ‘goddamn dirty apes’ are back after their thoroughly entertaining rise, it’s
time for them to, er, dawn. A decade has passed since humanity has been decimated
by the Simian flu virus, the apes have firmly established themselves and have
created their own communities, keeping away from their evolutionary counterparts.
All that changes, however, when a group of humans stumble across the apes in
their new found utopia. Naturally the humans spoil everything despite initial good
intentions. Jason Clarke stars as the man willing to work in harmony with the new
clever apes, who can now talk, write, fire weapons and ride horses. Gary Oldman
is the war monger who lost his family in the years since the flu outbreak, and
wants revenge believing mankind the superior species. What starts off as small
conflict becomes an epic battle for simian supremacy as Caesar the ape (Andy
Serkis again) has to decide what to do with the human threat. Like its predecessor
and the first Planet Of The Apes film back in 1969, this is superior sci-fi with
something to say about humanity and prejudice, albeit with loads of cool effects
and mo-cap apes. Opens July 17

Dir: Michael Bay (12A, 157 mins)
Another bloated installment of the bafflingly popular franchise that, despite
lacking a good script, coherence and likeable characters continues its blockbuster
path all over the globe. Michael Bay, king of the explosion and the frantic edit,
returns to the ‘toys that turn into other things’ movies. This is a reboot of sorts
as Shia Labouef (one of filmdoms least likeable leading men) has gone and
is replaced with family man Mark Wahlberg – who thankfully has a super hot
daughter, Nicola Peltz, so Bay can still pervily film her. Mechanic Wahlberg finds
Optimus Prime, the truck one, and fixes him up, only for baddie robots and dodgy
government types like Stanley Tucci to go after him. The ace up this sequel’s
sleeve is of course the Dinobots, robot dinosaurs that can be ridden by other
robots in endless CGI battles as a frayed American flag no doubt flies nearby.
Lots of other Trans