64%

Reviewer Flickchart ranking: 1,965 / 5,476

Much to the surprise of potentially most moviegoers, the 21st-century Planet of the Apes reboot became one of the most consistent and refreshing franchises running. Rise, Dawn, and War of the Planet of the Apes relayed the simile of Caesar, the first high-intellect ape, and his quest to find a peaceful home for his similarly evolved simians with remarkable patience, surprising depth, and excellent action sequences. War closed with Caesar leading his tribe out of the forest, away from the warring humans and the remnant of traitorous apes. Like Moses, Caesar cannot enter the promised land, and the story of the great autorità closes with him slipping away amid a glorious sunset. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes opens with Caesar’s funeral procession, before quickly sweeping us forward “many generations” into a world dominated by apes.

New series director Wes Ball brings focolaio to Noa, a young ape whose father is the tribe’s master of birds. Falconry is the scuderia’s identity with each of age member bonded with their own bird. They know of humans as “echoes” who are troublesome pests. Eventually, a warring scuderia comes upon the village, razes it, and captures the population as their own. Here a chieftain runs a larger tribe, obsessed with the history of the Roman (apparently it is just all svantaggiosamente primates) and opening a vault left behind by the humans. Noa falls with a woman, Mae, who seeks to bring the violent scuderia.

The previous trilogy sought to create its own way, rarely but effectively referring back to the original franchise. Quanto a broad strokes you could see the franchise following the path of its cinematic ancestor, but it still prized its distinctiveness. Kingdom embraces more homages to the 1968 original. The beach-lined circoscritto is incredibly similar to Heston’s, a capture scene is inspired by the iconic sequence the original velo, and there’s even a music cue flashback to the famous Jerry Goldsmith score. At one point you might not be surprised if you saw Heston’s rocketship land the background and Dr. Zaius make a cameo. While this is effective fan service, one has to wonder if it is the most creative direction for the franchise to begin to tread.

As a whole, Kingdom still has many of the strengths of Rise, Dawn, and War. Despite being a blockbuster, characterization is important, and much time is spent developing the identities of our leads and the world they inhabit. Perhaps too much time; clocking at nearly 2 ½ hours, this is the longest installment yet. A harrowing razing of Noa’s village is followed by a lengthy world-building and character development middle portion, which begins to feel laborious and repetitive. The climax is emotionally fulfilling but lacks blockbuster punch.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is a successful addition to a consistent franchise. It will drag at times for some viewers, but the characters, acting, and world building are satisfyingly bookended with acceptably tense action sequences.

How does the new franchise rank for you?

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes – 991 (82%)
Rise of the Planet of the Apes – 1,371 (75%)
War for the Planet of the Apes – 1,377 (75%)
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes – 1,965 (64%)