Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Early Review

When director Wes Ball was approached about the possibility of a fourth installment in the latest Planet of the Apes franchise, he shared the same sentiment many fans had: “There was no reason to go back into it.” Despite some discrepancies in the lore, Matt Reeves effectively capped off the franchise with War for the Planet of the Apes and positioned the franchise pieces so the films could (theoretically) align with the 1968’s original Planet of the Apes: Caesar helped maintain ape-human relations while the apes rose into the dominant species as a virus effectively wiped out humanity, with the remaining survivors either going mute or into hiding. With his death, fast forward a few hundred years, and the audience’s head-canon assumes the apes begin hunting humans for sport until one day enters Colonel Taylor, right? Well, not quite.

What compelled Wes Ball to justify making a return to the Planet of the Apes (no deep-cut pun intended) was carving out the space in between the previous three films and what we know will come. Humanity is underground. Nature has reclaimed the Earth. The apes run free. But when did apes begin hunting man, and how did the lessons of Caesar become distorted? While the wheels are spinning too clearly to claim Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes as an essential entry into one of the greatest, longest-running film franchises of all time, it’s certainly an entertaining one, albeit one that sacrifices on delivering big ideas in favour of a well-crafted spectacle.

Penned by Josh Friedman, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes ventures into the post-apocalyptic landscape, unfolding 300 years after the events depicted in the previous trilogy capper. During this era, human-ape relations have drastically deteriorated, echoing the primitive hierarchy depicted in the original film: humans are dumb, mute, and hunted by apes. The narrative revolves around Noa (Teague), a young and gifted ape with a striking resemblance to Caesar who hails from the Eagle Clan, a thriving but isolated community that is adept at utilizing predatory birds for hunting and travel. Noa’s sheltered existence is shattered when he encounters Mae, a highly intelligent human girl whom he regards as an “echo,” the first sign that the apes’ (or perhaps just Noa’s clan) understanding of humanity has drastically decreased. Fleeing from the oppressive rule of Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand, playing the character as a messiah fully convinced of himself, grin shining through the mo-cap and all), an ape leader who distorts and misuses the legacy of Caesar for his own gain. The tranquil life of the Eagle Clan is abruptly disrupted once Proximus Caesar launches a devastating attack on their village, capturing the survivors of Noa’s clan, thus, thrusting him onto a journey to find the Clan, track down Proximus Caesar, and overthrow his reign.

Comparatively, its redemption plot may seem straightforward in comparison to what’s come before, but Ball uses the conflict as endpoint, not the journey, as much of the runtime somberly explores the ruins of the lost Earth. Throughout his quest, Noa’s perspective broadens as he forms alliances with companions like Raka (Peter Macon), an orangutan with an understanding of Caesar’s genuine beliefs and humorously fragmented knowledge of the old world, as well as the human Mae, whose intellect challenges Noa’s worldview. As the trio navigates through nature-reclaimed ruins and collapsed structures, the disheartening truth is revealed that generations of ape society have lost the ability to preserve knowledge, history, culture, and language. This loss becomes a vulnerability exploited by Proximus, who manipulates the vague, but powerful “ape together strong” mantra to militarize apes against humans, claiming human remnants as fortresses and plundering their treasures.

Whether or not progress in the Simian species is emulating human development or reflects a darker pattern of colonialism remains a compelling, underlying question, even if the film doesn’t seem fully prepared to dig deeper (among many others). Not all dramatic beats are as successful, as the script stumbles in taking short-cuts with contrivances and conveniences, such as consistently fumbling Noa into the perfect, ideal circumstances, or hinging reveals that rely on information assumed by the audience. Regardless, it is within the film’s quieter sections that it is at its most compelling, skillfully transitioning Noa from the reluctant hero into a figure reminiscent of Caesar, demonstrating a deeper understanding of the world and balancing relations with humans even as his preconceptions are challenged.

However, where Kingdom struggles is by falling into the slippery slope of heavily referencing and reminding the audience of the much stronger films that preceded it, while simultaneously attempting to carve out its own identity as a reboot. By Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes drawing from iconic quotes, storylines, imagery, and repeated allusions to Caesar, the film inadvertently highlights the daunting task of following up on a protagonist as compelling and complex as Andy Serkis’ Caesar, a character widely revered as one of the greatest cinematic achievements of the 21st century. Teague, as Noa, gives a commendable and endearing performance, making a character that is easy to root for, but perhaps there’s room in this new trilogy to transform Noa into something far more subversive and interesting than a Caesar 2.0. In this film, the character can’t help but fall short and appear relatively stock compared to the “world’s first hyper-intelligent ape.”

While Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes struggles to carve out its own identity, Wes Ball and his team have certainly landed on an exciting space within the Planet of the Apes timeline to settle into. Despite aping and under-developing many of the themes the franchise pulls from, what remains is an impressive display of “Apes” in Summer Blockbuster mode, with a strong combination of action brought to life by stunning, photorealistic VFX (that water!), great motion capture performances, and a concept so inherently intriguing that all the world-building and post-apocalyptic imagery can’t help but be compelling despite its stumbles.

still courtesy of 20th Century Studios

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J.A. Birney

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