Dawn of the Planet of the Apes brings the war home this December

Twentieth Century Fox has just announced the release of the latest entry in everyone’s favorite simian saga, DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES! The struggle between man and ape comes home to Digital HD on November 11th, followed by a Blu-ray/DVD release on December 2nd. For those who haven’t had a chance to catch up with the superior sequel to RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, DAWN picks up years later as humanity has been pushed to near extinction by the deadly virus engineered in RISE. When a group of survivors desperate to find a new source of power travel into the woods near San Francisco, they discover a highly evolved community of intelligent apes led by none other than Caesar (portrayed to perfection by Andy Serkis). The two species form a fragile peace but dissention grows and the groups find themselves hurtling toward all-out war.  JoBlo’s own Chris Bumbray gave the film top marks, calling it “the kind of film that restores your faith in big-studio blockbusters!”

The Blu-ray iteration will come with approximately two hours of special features.  Given the nature of the filming, these should make a fascinating look behind the scenes of what went into crafting believable and lifelike apes that audiences could feel for.  With its release weeks before the holiday season, this set should make a great gift for any PLANE OF THE APES fan.

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES 3D Blu-ray and Blu-ray special features:

• Deleted Scenes with Optional Commentary by Matt Reeves
• Journey to Dawn
• Andy Serkis: Rediscovering Caesar*
• Humans and Apes: The Cast of Dawn
• The World of Dawn
• The Ape Community
• Move Like an Ape: An Artist s Artist’s Medium
• Weta and Dawn
• The Fight for a New Dawn
• Audio Commentary by Matt Reeves
• 4 Galleries*

* included on the DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES DVD

If you’re a fan of gift sets, or haven’t had a chance to check out RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES, 20th Century Fox has you covered as they are also releasing the Planet of the Apes: Caesar’s Warrior Collection. This gift set includes both RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES and DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES on Blu-ray, along with a limited-edition, fiercely lifelike replica bust of Caesar wearing his tribal war paint, designed by WETA (the special effects masters responsible for bringing the apes to life on film). The set will also include an all-new 32-page booklet “Planet of the Apes: Building an Icon” that explores WETA’s creation of the Caesar replica, four battle-ready ape collectible character cards and all of the features available on the previously released RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES Blu-ray.

DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES hits Digital HD on November 11, followed by a Blu-ray/DVD release on December 2.