‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’ Trailer, Poster

20th Century Fox has released the first trailer for Rupert Wyatt’sRise of the Planet of the Apes, the awkwardly titled prequel to the 1968 sci-fi classic (Tim Burton who?).

Ubiquitous actorJames Francostars as Will, a research scientist on the brink of discovering the cure for Alzheimer’s disease, which affects his father (played byJohn Lithgow). But when the cure is tested on primates, the experimental drug demonstrates the ability to enhance brain function, particularly in Caesar, a CGI,“photorealistic” ape created using motion capture technology and the movements of Gollum and King Kong himself,Andy Serkis.

The trailer (embedded below from our friends atTrailerAddict) has a certain rhythm to it, thanks to similar bass note beats as the unforgettableInceptiontrailer, but there’s something very misleading about featuring clips from the climactic third act. Plus, wait, is that Draco Malfoy (Tom Felton)?

Freida PintoandBrian Coxalso star.Rise of the Planet of the Apesis due in theaters August 5, 2011.

Oddly enough, before today, Fox had been leading the marketing charge for its summer tentpole with peeks at unfinished visual effects. CGI alone rarely sells a movie, but the studio’s trumped up five-second tease was merely a shifty-eyed ape nestled uncomfortably in the uncanny valley. Not much to be excited about there, unless youreallylike primates.

Yesterday’s“behind-the-scenes” Livestream discussion with the Weta workshop revealed little else about the prequel itself. Oh, the visual effects team wants the primates to look realistic?  That’s unexpected. However, spliced into the droning interview— which also included a half-assed“surprise guest” inlead apeAndy Serkis— were some potentially spoilerific concept art images, featuring the film’s third act when the apes do, in fact, rise.

Here they are, courtesy ofBadass Digest:

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