Rise of the Planet of the Apes is an ethically rich blockbuster about evolution, revolution, animal rights and science madness, told through game changing VFX wizardry sure to make viewers go ape.

Although a prequel/reboot to the pop culture phenom Planet of the Apes, this ...Apes tale stands on its own as a story about what happens when beast becomes man and conquers the world.

The beast in question is enlightened, radical ape Ceaser (Andy Serkis), the offspring of an experiment gone right saved from extermination by Will (James Franco), an ambitious scientist who is on the verge of finding a cure for Alzheimer’s, using apes as guinea pigs.

Under Will’s care, Ceaser’s high level of intelligence blossoms with age and leads him to question just what is his identity: Ape? Human? A twisted amalgamation of both?

Yet the horror of this evolution is that while Ceaser’s intelligence in advanced, his conscience – that finely tuned, all too human tool to decide matters wrong and right – is still primal. Thus the morality found in humanity is void, leading to one ambitious, super pissed chimp.

Also thrown in the mix is a sub-plot about scientific research vs pharmaceutical profit, and the mistreatment of animals by sickos who should know better and get their just deserts (consider it a PETA members wet dream).

Directed by Brit filmmaker Rupert Wyatt, ...Apes continues with the trend of morally conscious sci-fi releases illuminating screens over the last few years (District 9, Moon) without sacrificing its blockbuster action chops.

Performances are fine all around. James Franco and Freda Pinto do what they can with underwritten roles, while John Lithgow is a highlight as Franco’s Alzheimer’s suffering father.

The real star, however, is Andy Serkis and those wonderful VFX, with New Zealand based company WETA outdoing themselves in the depiction of these creatures.

Serkis, who should now be considered the Marlon Brando of motion capture work (or is that the Lon Chaney?), succeeds in injecting emotion into this digital creation. Sadness, fear, anger, happiness, love, betrayal, all break through the pixels to create an ultra-realistic depiction and pull on the hearts and conscience of the viewer.

Considering ...Apes is a live action movie, this is akin to a cinematic miracle and major turning point. VFX should no longer be seen as complimentary material, to be kept at arm’s length and questioned for its “credibility”. These pixels can now live and breathe on screen. Serkis is the heart, soul, and body of the character, and with WETA providing that all important veneer, they prove that motion capture is no longer a novelty but the next step in the evolution of filmmaking.

Wyatt and Serkis deserve kudos for knowing how to create such a performance so well. They aimed for the heart of this hard done by chimp and made his emotions come to life. This is monkey enlightenment at its best.