KINGDOM OF THE PLANET OF THE APES - 2024
Directed by Wes Ball
Starring Owen Teague, Freya Allen, Peter Macon, Kevin Durand, Travis Jeffery, Neil Sandilands, Sara Wiseman, and William H. Macy
Genre: Sci-Fi Adventure (Audio clip)
One of the things I have always loved about this long-running franchise has been its willingness to just GO out on a limb with each new entry whether it be the sublime ('Dawn) or utterly ridiculous (Tim Burton's '01 reimagining) to express one consistent message each and every time: Humanity is doomed and so is any other society of animals who are destined to "rule" this planet. š And I have always found it to be both a fatalistic AND comforting message....as told through this particular saga. The most comfort actually comes from following particular protagonists like Taylor (Charlton Heston) from the OG '68 film or Caesar (Andy Serkis) from the recent trilogy....or in fact Noa (Owen Teague) of this latest story/reboot directed by Wes Ball (The Maze Runner).
Simply put, it can be gratifying to watch someone on a seemingly straightforward path COMPLETELY jolted off that path who can not only adapt and thrive but also profoundly affect everyone around him. More than a hundred years after the death of Andy Serkis's Caesar, Noa (Owen Teague) is living the simple life with an Eagle tribe - he just wants to raise his OWN Eagle and hang out with friends in what is an impressively constructed community of raised homes atop massive trees and/or abandoned buildings in some near-idyllic enclave off the Pacific Coast. But of course the ambitious Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand) and his more aggressive tribe armed with shock-sticks and torches....they have other ideas. :/
And from that point on, we watch as Noa experiences tragedy, friendship, conflict, intrigue, and through all of that....growth. The movie takes its time and all of the post-apocalyptic mostly nature-based scenery is shot gorgeously thanks to DP Gyula Pados who also shot all of Wes Ball's somewhat underrated The Maze Runner trilogyā¦.three entertaining genre films which rise a BIT above their seemingly silly source material based on pure execution.
And the motion capture effects this time around are even more impressive than they were seven years ago....well at least they SEEM that way as more ape characters are speaking more frequently. There's more expression, more nuance, and we see that with several side characters especially with Raca, a worldly orangutan whom Noa befriends on this adventure - he's played adeptly by Peter Macon who pretty much steals most of his scenes.
It all feels convincingly like a lived-in world where the Apes are the most dominant species....though that doesn't mean the humans are COMPLETELY wiped out, no they have some representation with probably the trickiest character in this story. And that would be a lone human wanderer who are taken in by Noa and Raka - that would be Mae played Freya Allen who I think does a pretty strong job portraying a SLIGHTLY underwritten character. And I describe Mae as "tricky" because her character's journey is given increasingly more prominence in the third act to an extent which I'm not sure is completely earned.š¤ Regardless she does help contribute to a powerhouse ending including a VERY intriguing conclusion for Noa as a character. š¤
And along the way, we get several genuinely exciting action setpieces (Apes On Horseback!) including one particular action beat towards the very end which took me by surprise with just how savage it was....in a good way. :) This whole epic runs about 150 minutes and I honestly rarely felt it.
Best Needle-drop (best song cue or score used throughout runtime of film):
The score for this film was composed by up-and-comer Jon Paesano whom I believe hails from the UK and I say up-and-comer because he has done relatively few movies but over the past decade seems to be making a name for himself with some award-winning music for other media. This includes creating the music for some notable Netflix shows including Invincible and the Marvel series for The Defenders along with Daredevil. Iām not a gamer but have heard nothing but great things about the more recent Spider-Man games for the PSFā¦.Paesano has also composed some rousing themes for those as well. (Audio clip)
His music for this movie is pretty strong and like the scores for other recent āApes movies can sound pretty rambunctious at points ā various percussion illustrating the more stripped down nature-based setting for most of the story - despite being a more traditional orchestral score for the most part. Definitely the most stirring points occur when choral vocals kick in from the contributing Choristers of St. Andrews Cathedral ā for me, the musical highlight occurs relatively early in the film when the village of Noaās Eagle trip becomes pillaged and eventually burnt down by a group of marauders dispatched by Proximus Caesar. Itās a tense sequence even featuring Noa dangling at some of the highest points of his home tree with flames all around him. Illustrating the EXTREMELY skewed perception of their past Messiah said Marauders this track is somewhat ironically titled āFor Caesar.ā (Audio clip)
Wasted Talent (most under-utilized talent involved with film):
Oh yeah, Oscar-nominated character actor extraordinaire William H. Macy is in thisā¦playing a human too named Trevathanā¦he has a couple of scenes, heās pretty good too. But honestly heās in the movie SO little that it becomes a bit distracting, as if there were a few scenes missing with this character who seems to have some importance. Bottom lineā¦.could used a bit more Macy.
Trailer Moment (scene or moment that best describes this movie):
APES ON HORSES, APES ON HORSES!!!! To steal a catchphrase coined by YouTube creator and pioneer Kristian Harloff, seeing the stirring image of Apes riding horseback has always been one of my personal favorite aspects of this franchise. And with this latest film, I did NOT leave the theater disappointed so yes for me, the most exciting action set piece occurs about 40 minutes into the movie. With an overhead shot of one species on horseback aggressively hunting the other on foot as we see both sets of figures carving lines into the high grass, it is in fact somewhat of a visual callback to the ā68 original filmās now ICONIC chase scene introducing the titular apes. (Audio clip)
Well this time around, thereās an added dimension as that ape on horseback ā who is in fact our main protagonist Noa ā is actually trying to RESCUE a human being chased from the other direction by one of Proximus Caesarās lieutenants who is on foot by running furiously towards her. So what results is a mad dash from opposite directions to nab Mae and I wonāt completely spoil what occurs when all three parties converge but needless to say, itās pretty exciting stuff! (Audio clip)
MVP (person or people most responsible for the success of this film):
I continue to be impressed with the meticulous way with which each new film in this franchise is crafted at every levelā¦.from the shot selection to the pacing to the performances to the overall themes. Just about every decision made seems to be from the standpoint of both exploring this setting and telling a compelling story. Yes there are callbacks to previous films but only in the most organic mannerā¦.and yes Iām not completely sold on some decisions made with regards to some characters in the third act but those are more structural/screenplay issues, they are still executed very well. After three solid Maze Runner films, director Wes Ball has seemingly raised his game and he is the MVP. (Audio clip)
Final Rating: 4 stars out of 5
Overall I just really dug revisiting this world and would recommend it highly - not QUITE at the hallowed level of 'Dawn from ten years ago or the '68 classic original but still a worthy addition to this continuously thoughtful franchise. ;)
Now Playing in Theaters
And that ends another APES TOGETHER STRONG review!
