'Rise of the Planet of the Apes' coming August 5

Rise of the Planet of the Apes hits theaters in the U.S. and Canada on August 5, rejuvenating the earlier series.

The plot centers around James Franco as Will Rodman, a scientist developing a cure for Alzheimer's by running tests on apes. The first test subject, a chimpanzee named Caesar, is genetically modified by the cure into a new breed — one gifted with greater sentience.

While Caesar's cognitive abilities grow to surpass his human counterparts, he is still viewed by most as an animal, and is treated like Rodman's pet. In retaliation, Caesar spreads the cure to millions of other apes, who rally to plot a revolution. Rodman must stop the war before apes overthrow man as top of the food chain.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes is meant to be a platform to build future movies on. Director Rupert Wyatt said:

To me, I can think of all sorts of sequels to this film, but this is just the beginning.

This movie is no mere remake of the older series, but a new conceptualization of the same idea. Special effects in film-making have also made immense progress since the originals; instead of plastic-looking men and women with prosthetic make-up plastered to their face, the viewer will be able to experience more aesthetically-pleasing and realistic CGI effects.