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Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes review: A stunning and satisfying reboot that delivers and offers hope for the franchise
What: ‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ – keeping the faith and restoring the ‘spirit’ of the ‘Planet Of The Apes’ the tenth film in the Apes franchise by Wes Ball (Maze Runner fame) is a visually stunning and dramatically satisfying reboot backed by fabulous motion capture performances that offers hope for the Apes franchise.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes movie synopsis
Past and future come together as the global, epic franchise this time is set several generations ahead in future. Following Caesar's reign, one young ape Noa (Owen Teague) a chimpanzee of an eagle-oriented clan, prepares for the future by collecting eagle eggs with Anaya (Travis Jeffery) and Soona (Lydia Peckham) friends of Noa.
An encounter with a human Mae (Freya Allan) results in a massive chaos that turns the world of Nova his clan and his family upside down.
Hiding in Noa’s village to escape from the clutches of the dangerous Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand) – a bonobo monarch who leads a coastal clan of apes and is in search of human technologies which he feels belongs to him.
Accidently Noa’s egg gets destroyed in chasing Mae and the kind hearted soul Noa decides to go back to the city to find another new one.
On his way, Noa sees Proximus and his army desperately searching for Mae, Noa leaves his horse and hides but unfortunately the horse gets noticed by Proximus loyal Sylva (Eka Darville), through the horse Proximus enters Noa’s clan and creates havoc, the village gets burned and many from Noa’s clan are taken as slaves to serve Proximus.
Noa vows to bring back his family and rebuild his village. A journey of discovery and adventure begins where Noa meets Raka (Peter Macon) - a wise and righteous orangutan who becomes an ally and a teacher of Noa.
Noa also meets Mae and soon a battle of survival begins that will decide the future of the Apes and Humans.
‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ opens with Caesar lying in state, surrounding by a huge crowd of mourning apes. Caesar last rites are performed and his dead body covered with flowers is set on fire. Cut to many to a period set many years ahead, making us believe that the trilogy ‘Rise of the Planet of the Apes’(2011), ‘Dawn of the Planet of the Apes’ (2014), and ‘War for the Planet of the Apes’ has happened years ago and is an ancient history.
Director Wes Ball and writer Josh Friedman (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, War of the Worlds (2005), Terminator: Dark Fate (2019), Avatar: The Way of Water), smartly attract the new audience while rekindle the memories of the fans/audience who have loved the original and restores faith.
Wes Ball adapts the classical approach of storytelling in ‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ backed by cutting-edge motion capture making it an absorbing combo of drama and technology.
Peter Jackson’s Weta FX company does a commendable job in making those apes expressive which brings out the emotions nicely to the core.
Th remarkable CG that gives us a stunning eye-popping view of the landscapes of New South Wales, Australia, as America’s West Coast. Apart from the scenic beauty, the man-made skyscrapers, planes, ships and industrial sites are covered brilliantly.
Interestingly, in the movie ‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’, the push and pull between the need and greed of human technology by Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand) makes us ponder.
The movie shows that the human civilization has been destroyed, we see cadavers of buildings, escalators etc getting rusted but Proximus Caesar wants to have that technology, weapons that are kept inside the closed vault (sort of a Pandora Box) of a door. Proximus wants access to this vault and for that he can go at lengths. So human (isn’t it?!).
Certain things remain unanswered in ‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ for example what makes Proximus Caesar believe that the vault has great treasure, weapons?
The climax could have been better.
However, the robust camerawork by Cinematographer Gyula Pados and John Paesano’s thumping score keeps you hooked.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes – final words
‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ – the tenth film in the franchise gets a new life thanks to director Wes Ball who bridges the gap between the pasta and present. With outstanding motion capture, stunning visuals and relatable emotions, ‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ is an entertaining and satisfying chapter in the franchise that asks us to wait for the next chapter/sequel.
Going with a deserving 3.5 stars
‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ is running in theatres near you.
A child born from life & fed by cinema. A filmi keeda from child & a film journalist for the last fifteen years. a father, seeker, foodie who loves crooning bollywood melodies twitter.com/cineblues More By vishal verma