On a budget of around $150-190 million, 2017’s War for the Planet of the Apes grossed over $490 million worldwide. Critically, it was the best-received of the trilogy and earned an Oscar nomination for Best Visual Effects. Following Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox in 2019, the studio announced a new installment was in development. While Mark Bomback and Matt Reeves expressed interest in returning, Wes Ball of the Maze Runner trilogy got the job. Ball wrote the screenplay with co-writer Josh Friedman during the COVID-19 Pandemic, and the actual production commenced in 2022. With a $160 million budget, the movie was shot in Disney Studios Australia from October 2022 to February 2023. The story would be set many years in the future with a whole new cast of characters. After premiering at the TLC Chinese Theater, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes hit theaters in May 2024.
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Synopsis
Many generations have passed, and apes are the dominant species while humanity has regressed to a feral stage. Noa (Owen Teague), a chimpanzee from a clan of bird experts, prepares for a coming-of-age ceremony when tragedy strikes. Ape raiders armed with electric staffs burn his village, kill Noa’s father, and take the rest of his clan prisoner. Having been left for dead, Noa journeys in search of the raiders to get revenge and rescue his clan. Along the way, he meets an orangutan named Rakka (Peter Macon), who teaches Noa about Caesar’s history and knowledge. They also meet a human they nickname Nova (Freya Allan), only to discover she speaks and her name is Mae. Eventually, Noa finds his clan, which is held captive by the self-proclaimed king Proximas Caesar (Kevin Durand). Will Noa save his clan, or will Proximas succeed in acquiring whatever is hiding behind a mysterious vault?
Review
I was surprised when I heard that a new Planet of the Apes movie was coming out. Given how War for the Planet of the Apes perfectly wrapped up the trilogy, I thought there wouldn’t be more. While Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes doesn’t quite live up to its predecessors, it’s still a decent movie. For one, seeing how far the ape’s civilization has grown since the last film is interesting. Like before, the apes are the best part of the movie, helped by outstanding visual effects and solid performances. While Andy Serkis is missed, Owen Teague does a great job as Noa, coming off as likable and strong-willed. Peter Macon also stands out as the wise orangutan Rakka, who imparts wisdom to Noa to disguise his exposition-laden dialogue. Though he doesn’t show up until halfway through, Kevin Durand’s Proximas is a great villain with a larger-than-life personality.
Unfortunately, like the other movies, the humans aren’t the greatest and feel more like plot devices than characters. Freya Allan isn’t terrible as the human lead Mae, but it seems overly convenient how she knows so much. It’s not adequately explained how she already knows so much about human civilization after its downfall hundreds of years ago. Also, William H. Macy feels wasted in a role that might as well be a glorified cameo. Granted, the idea of a human working alongside the apes is interesting, but it’s not executed well. On the other hand, the film explores ideas of one’s teachings being interpreted differently in a way that echoes religion. While Rakkas believes Caesar’s teachings of apes staying strong and united, Proximas uses his teachings to assert power. While it’s not as deep as the other installments, it’s still more insightful than your average blockbuster.
At its core, the film tells a straightforward story of revenge and awakening the hero within. Though derivative, it’s a storyline that generally works, and when the movie focuses on that, it’s engaging. Once the human characters and the vault are introduced, it’s not as engaging, and the story feels bogged down. If it had just been Proximas capturing Noa’s clan and forcing them into slavery, that would’ve been good motivation. Adding the vault feels like the filmmakers wanted to give Proximas more motivation when it wasn’t needed. Like Avatar: The Way of Water, this seems more interested in setting up sequels than being a good standalone movie. Thankfully, this isn’t nearly as long, though slightly over two and a half hours is pushing it. Overall, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is decent but not entirely up to par with the previous installments.
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