By Matthew Moorcroft

Strong Recommendation

• Directed by Wes Ball
• Starring Owen Teague, Freya Allan, Kevin Durand, William H. Macy
• PG-13

Pretty wild in retrospect that the new Planet of the Apes films, which started on a whim thanks to a modestly budgeted semi-prequel, semi-reimagining turned reboot afterwards 13 years ago, have become some of the most respected tentpoles in modern cinema. It’s not surprising if you think about it for a while; the original series, despite it’s age, was a juggernaut in it’s time and led the way for the idea of sequels to be more accepted beyond simple filler content. And while the reboot series was coming off nearly 40 years of irrelevancy and a widely panned 2001 remake, it managed to prove itself as smart, intellectual science fiction while not skimping out on the blockbuster thrills – a good mix that has served it well as the films got bigger, bolder, and more audacious with each subsequent entry.

This boldness continues into it’s latest installment, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, which has arrived 7 years after Reeves’ astounding trilogy ender War seemingly put a bow on this era of films for good. But for those who know the legacy of the franchise, the story has only just begun, and now Kingdom enters uncharted territory for the first time since 1973 by exploring the in-between – the apes as they evolve. It’s the equivalent of the Bronze Age or Roman Empire for apekind, split off into different clans and territories over the course of many generations, and the old ways have been almost entirely forgotten. Instead, there are new laws, new rules, new order.

Like all great pieces of sci-fi, Kingdom is more about big ideas and thematic meat then spectacle even if it has the latter in spades. The film’s opening prologue, which reminds viewers of the heartbreaking, and poignant, conclusion of War serves to also educate us on the effect that Caesar had towards the apes and how they conducted themselves. Now we see that legend distorted, changed, mixed for the gains of both the greater good (even if it misremembers specifics) and those craving for power. Kingdom is obsessed with history and iconography, with the past affecting both our present and future, and how many times we repeat our same mistakes in an effort to reclaim some level of that initial grandeur. The film’s exploration of those themes gives no easy answers, if any at all, leaving the audience to instead ponder those questions for themselves.

Director Wes Ball, known for his VFX work first and foremost, uses that background to his advantage here by crafting some unbelievable imagery from his ape subjects. Every face is immaculately detailed, and every character looks almost lifelike in their construction. But it’s really how Ball uses the world to it’s fullest effect here, using the environment in ways that the prior trilogy may not have assumed to. With the amount of time that has passed, there is a real sense of other-worldliness and adventure that permeates this particular installment, crafting out a unique, defined world that feels lived in. There is a sense there is just something over the horizon, another clan, another group of apes, maybe a human colony. Ball is equally as interested in the current world as in the past world here, and that informs his entire filmmaking ethos here. It’s remarkably composed, slow, and takes in the environment almost just as much as it’s characters do – sure there is more action then in War, but it’s arguably even slower as it builds it’s world gracefully and precisely.

Some could say maybe too gracefully? If there is any smaller, nagging issue the film clearly has is that it lacks forward momentum for a chunk of it’s middle portion, seemingly more content with sticking around and giving new viewers rundowns of things from the prior films to catch them up to speed. A sharp turn in the middle of the story makes this exposition more understandable – a turn that has been smartly left out of the marketing and changes the game in many ways – as the film also works as something of a soft reset for the series, but it also means it isn’t until the second half where our main antagonist finally arrives and it kicks into high gear. This leads to a climax which is built more on character depth and motivations then high, world ending stakes, which makes it’s final moments all the more poignant.

The lack of Andy Serkis aside, the majority of the cast is up to snuff here to fill his shoes. Owen Teague’s slow, quiet performance as Noa is a far cry from the commanding and imposing work of Serkis, but in it’s difference there is real engagement and helps separate this film from the prior ones. The commanding scenery chewing instead mostly belongs to Kevin Durand as our villain Proximus Caesar, whose warped teachings of the titular ape make up much of the philosophical discussions in the second half of the feature. The entire ape cast in general is spectacular here, with special mention going to an extremely likable Peter Macon whose turn here is heartfelt, funny, and gives much of the film’s more exposition heavy sequences some gravitas. Freya Allan has the human companion though is a little more mixed here, as her role is still a bit undefined – a clear sequel hook that has tantalizing prospects but hasn’t fully congealed yet.

The Matt Reeves films in general are probably safe in their ranking overall, but Kingdom is ultimately no slouch and possibly even surpasses it’s original 2011 reboot in terms of quality. It’s equally as bold and original as they come for the series while also proving that these movies are no fluke for blockbusters. That they are, in fact, the real deal, and deserve your fullest attention whenever they do release. If Kingdom is a sign of things to come for the series, then we are absolutely in safe hands going forward.