'Dawn of the Planet of the Apes' finally hit theaters this weekend and we have 4 reasons you should finish that grilled cheese sandwich (because nobody should waste a grilled cheese sandwich), put on some clothes and go see it

It's been ten years since the events of 'Rise'. The Human race has succumb to the the virus unleashed in the last film. Earth's only human survivors, genetically immune to the virus, struggle to survive in a post apocalyptic society. Meanwhile, a group of genetically altered apes, led by 'Caesar', have built a community in the forests outside San Francisco. They have thrived based on one rule: "Ape no kill Ape". The human race takes measures to ensure their survival by attempting to re-activate an old hydro electric power plant deep in Ape territory. The excursion leads to a human/ape encounter that brings forth a fragile peace. Short-lived, this peace turns to the brink of a Human- Ape war.

REBOOT OR REMAKE?

If you haven't seen any of the old 'Apes' movies you probably won't know this, but not only are the last two installments "reboots" of the franchise, but they are basically remakes of two Ape films. 'Rise' follows the same path and similar story arc as 1972's "Conquest of the Plant of the Apes" while 'Dawn' harks back to 1973's 'Battle for the Planet of the Apes'. 'Conquest' focuses on the birth of Caesar (technically he's born in 'Escape from the Planet of the Apes... 'Ape's' "Star Trek: The Voyage Home"-esque entry ), his training and eventual enslavement. He leads a revolt which starts a 'new' Planet of the Apes. Sound familiar?

'Battle' sees the world (a decade after the events of 'Conquest') wiped out by a nuclear event. Caesar, now with wife and child, leads a community of apes and seeks peace with the remaining humans while other members of Caesar's clan have different ideas... These two installments are basically remakes of the last two 'Ape' movies of the 70's and I think that's just terrific. They could have written two brand new movies, but to actually remake these to make fan's of the original films happy? YES PLEASE. Granted, I wasn't around when all the original film's were released, I have seen them all though. Spread out over time on Saturday afternoon T.V. matinee's used to baby sit me. Were they great? ......No, not really. But that's what makes these reboots terrific. They took two mediocre movies, repackaged them, gave them a paint job and made them even better.

CGI

If your a Star Wars fan, you know what CGI did to the prequels. I'll play devil's advocate here and say it: "Why is CGI bad for Star Wars and good for Apes?". Both film franchises began with practical effects, but Star Wars fans are now clamoring for those same practical effects to remain consistent in Episode VII after what they saw for CGI in the prequels. On the flip side we have the 'Ape" franchise. 2001's 'Planet of the Apes' did the opposite and remained true to the franchises beginnings by using practical effects and make-up...and look where that got 'em! Sucker punched by critics and fans. I guess the old adage is true.. "you can pick your friends, and you can pick your nose, but you can't pick your friend's nose"....shit, that's not right.. Oh! "You can please some of the people most of the time, and most of the people some of the time, ....... aaah screw it, you know what I mean. Where CGI dissapointed in the Star Wars prequels in excels 'leaps and bounds' in the 'Apes' series. 'Rise' and 'Dawn' both incorporate the same visual effects, more so in 'Dawn' with its battered wasteland backdrops and Forest villages. But the real draw is the Apes. They looked amazing in the first one and look just as good if not better in the 2nd.

Andy Serkis

Best known for his portrayal of 'Gollum' in Peter Jackson's 'Lord of the Ring's' trilogy and 'The Hobbit' films, Serkis is the go to guy for motion capture these days. He's no stranger to playing apes either. Serkis did the motion capture work for 2005's 'King Kong'. You hopefully saw the amazing job he did as 'Caesar' in 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes' and he continues to impress in 'Dawn'. What most movie goers don't know is that even though the Apes are CGI in the last two movies, Caesar has been fully portrayed by Serkis. This means the way they move, sit, smile, frown, express, yell, laugh, play, even take a dump is all done by Serkis. Hes not just a guy in a suit with balls on his face. Videographers and special effects artists put their balls on Serkis's face for a reason. Their balls capture every single nuance that Serkis emotes. These are then rendered over in post production with CGI ape parts, but the expressions are all still Serkis's. He brings these creatures to life more than the CGI does.

KOBA

If you saw 'Rise' you'll remember Koba, he was the asshole with the cloudy eye (see above). He is the main antagonist of 'Dawn'. If you've seen 'Battle" then think "Aldo". I really won't get into details about Koba since it might spoil the movie but "WOW" does this ape not disappoint. a BEAUTIFULLY written and acted character. I left the AMC theater (shameless plug) thinking that if anyone should see this movie, it should be to experience this ape on screen.