Since the majority of modern Hollywood blockbusters rely on franchise filmmaking, when it comes to the Planet of the Apes franchise, it never feels like a cynical cash-grab. Despite the low point that was Tim Burton’s 2001 remake, each entry from the original film series that ran from 1968 to 1973, to the Rupert Wyatt/Matt Reeves-directed trilogy from the 2010s, Planet of the Apes has always elevated from its cheesy sci-fi premise and being relevant to the politics of any decade, especially when it comes to racial issues.
Seven years have passed since Matt Reeves’ War for the Planet of the Apes, a brilliant conclusion to the most recent trilogy, as well as being one of the bleakest summer blockbusters ever made. With Disney technically owning all the big sci-fi franchises from Star Wars to Avatar, there was no doubt there were going to be plans to revive the smart apes, now with Wes Ball helming, after directing his own sci-fi trilogy with The Maze Runner.
Many generations after Caesar’s death, which concluded Reeves’ War, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes shows that the apes have established numerous clans, while humans have become feral. Noa (Owen Teague), a chimpanzee of a falconry ape clan led by his father Koro, prepares for a coming-of-age ceremony by collecting eagle eggs. But when a raider tribe of warlike apes abducts his family and clan, Noa, alongside a human woman (Freya Allan) who is smarter than her feral race, embark on a journey that will determine the future for apes and humans alike.
With a change of staff including the aforementioned Wes Ball and screenwriter Josh Friedman, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is a change of pace following the action-heavy grimness of the Matt Reeves-directed movies. Through the lens of the new protagonist Noa, he is among a clan that though loving has closed itself from the rest of the world to live in their own paradise, and it is only when outside forces intervene, he takes his first step into a larger world. Not far off from Luke Skywalker going off on his first adventure across the galaxy of Star Wars, Kingdom feels more like a classical adventure story filled with wonder, given its post-apocalyptic setting, whilst mixing personal growth and external stakes.
With a running time that is close to two-and-a-half hours, you can feel the length and with the first hour is devoted to the continuous walking from one land to the next, featuring the central trio of Noa, the Bornean orangutan Raka and the human who is given the name Nova; although Peter Macon is having the most fun as the wise and witty orangutan. Given the number of references to the previous instalments, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes actually has something to say about legacy, particularly how the legend of Caesar can have multiple meanings for various characters, including the villainous bonobo Proximus Caesar who has twisted his predecessor’s teachings for his own personal gain.
Given the involvement of Josh Friedman, who has a story credit of Avatar: The Way of Water, you will see parallels between Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes and James Cameron’s sci-fi epic, and not CGI characters that brilliantly realized through Wētā FX’s performance-capture technology, as well as a thrilling climax with a great deal of water. As much as both franchises are about a clash between two races, Planet of the Apes always had more of an edge since the ongoing conflict throughout the series isn’t simply black-and-white, something that Kingdom embraces in its later stages, even if it’s not going to give clear answers, hence the sequel set-up. Many will be frustrated over the film being more of a soft palette cleanser that may lack the grit of its predecessors, as well as being a set-up for a more interesting story, if this franchise continues to thrive.
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