'Planet of the Apes' Stars James Franco ... and Alzheimer's

The new science fiction thriller Rise of the Planet of the Apes opened to great reviews this weekend. While we typically don't endorse movies on our blog, we did want to point to something in this one that might be of interest. A key element of the plot is Alzheimer's.

We won't delve too much into the plot, but do know that the disease and search for a cure plays a vital role in the film. James Franco plays a scientist with both personal and professional reasons for wanting to eradicate Alzheimer's: his father has the disease. Someone did their research because in many ways Franco's caregiver role seems realistic, as does how the disease plays out in his father, played with aplomb by John Lithgow.

We could go on and on, but we hate spoilers. So we'll leave with just one other interesting tidbit that may or may not have influenced the story line: The wildly popular 1968 original of the Planet of the Apes starred Charleton Heston, who died of Alzheimer's Disease in 2008.