Rupert Wyatt dropped out of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes when he felt the release date loomed too close; Fox quickly leaked a list of possible directors for the sequel to the reboot but it was full of no way guys - Rian Johnson, Guillermo Del Toro - and it seemed obvious their real choice was Matt Reeves. That list leak was probably a negotiating tactic, which kind of sickens me.
Anyway, it looks like Reeves is the man after all, and the official announcement should be coming soon. A lot of people, knowing that Planet of the Apes is my shit, asked how I feel about him getting the gig. The answer, anticlimactically, is "I'm ok with it."
I'm not excited, because I don't really have a sense of what Reeves will bring to the movie. But I'm also not worried; while I had my share of problems with both Cloverfield and Let Me In, they weren't about Reeves' basic filmmaking chops. He's not a hyperactive, low attention span guy, he knows how to compose nice shots, he's willing to let a scene play smartly and he's interested in thematic elements beyond onscreen action. That's a decent resume for someone to tackle an Apes picture, as far as I'm concerned.
To be honest, he might be just the kind of smart, stylish but not overpowering journeyman this franchise needs. The concepts and the apes are the stars, not the director. Wyatt established the world and the tone of this new series, and I think Reeves will be very able to pick that up and run with it. The big question for me is what the script will be like. That's where Dawn of the Planet of the Apes will be made or broken.
About the Author: A ten year veteran of writing for the web, Devin has built a reputation as a loud, uncompromising and honest voice – sometimes to the chagrin of his readers, but usually to their delight.
