The fourth film in the new franchise from 20th Century Studios drops today in theaters. The original Planet of the Apes franchise had 5 films, so the question is, how does this film stack up to the others and does it lead to more films in the future? Our review after the trailer.
Many years after the reign of Caesar, a young ape goes on a journey that will lead him to question everything he’s been taught about the past and make choices that will define a future for apes and humans alike.
Review
The Planet of the Apes franchise is a long-running staple in the science-fiction genre, starting with the original franchise in 1968. Then Tim Burton took a swing at it with a single film which was generally not well received and had an even more confusing attempt at the ‘time travel’ theme from the original but never stuck the landing. The newest franchise took a different approach and started when the first ape began to speak (Caesar), removing the element of time travel. Since then, this new approach and breath into the franchise has landed a generally well-received new take on the story with audiences.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes takes place many generations after Caesar’s rule and his vision of humans and apes co-existing has been lost or twisted, as so many things that are forgotten from the past tend to be. Noa is a young ape who is a part of an isolated tribe that raises birds to help them hunt and survive but they never venture into the valley. This tribe knows little of humans or their past. Eventually, they run into Proximus Caesar and his views of the old world and who should reign supreme.
The film’s story points are unique compared to the original franchise in many ways, but still managed to add in elements of the original that tied it together for those who had seen the original films. Whether it was the hunting scene or naming the young girl Nova it wasn’t overdone as they focused on creating something new. However, the writers had some issues establishing a timeline that made sense with the progression of the separation from the time of humans to the generations later when humans could no longer speak.
Towards the later quarter of the film, several story plots are thrown out on the screen that are never seen to completion or even make much sense. It leaves you wondering if they were unsure how they wanted to proceed with the ending of the film. In theory, it does set up the franchise for another set of films. Given the overall success of the franchise so far and the generally well-received audience at our screening, I would venture to bet we will see more Planet of the Apes films.
Visually the film is stunning with its use of motion capture, and the landscape views of a world long untouched by humans. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes hits theaters today.
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