Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes movie review

MOVIE TITLE: Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

This dramatic continuation of the franchise is now playing in theaters.

RATING: PG-13

LENGTH: 2 hours 25 minutes

MOVIE REVIEW MOM GRADE: B+

SPONSOR of Today’s movie review:

https://amzn.to/3UGaS7s

IN A NUTSHELL:

The movie begins with the death of Caesar. Centuries later, a young ape goes on a journey that will lead him to question everything he’s been taught about the past and will make choices that define a future for apes and humans alike.

When I was a little girl, my mother dropped my sisters and me off at a movie theater to watch a movie marathon of the original Planet of the Apes franchise. We were there for hours and loved it. That was back when humans played the apes while wearing monkey suits! Wow, we sure have come a long way!

Today’s new series is unbelievable, thanks to outstanding visual effects. Watch this movie on the biggest screen you can so you can take it all in.

The film was directed by Wes Ball, who also brought us the Maze Runner franchise, which should give you an assurance that the post-apocalyptic setting is fantastic and so is the action. Writing credits go to Josh Friedman, Rick Jaffa, and Amanda Silver.

THINGS I LIKED:

The talented cast includes the voices of Owen Teague, Kevin Durand, Peter Macon, Lydia Peckham, Travis Jeffery, Sara Wiseman, and more. Freya Allen and William H. Macy are the only humans we get to know well in the story. Really great performances all around.
It’s all so beautiful to look at. The visual effects are incredibly amazing. It’s phenomenal how expressive the ape’s faces are. The motion capture work is extremely impressive.
The movie gives a respectful nod to the previous trilogy that featured Caesar but offers some distance from his legend in order to begin with entirely new characters and storyline.
There is some humor, both spoken and visual.
It helps to have seen the 2017 movie War for the Planet of the Apes but you can still enjoy this one without it since the events of this new movie occur hundreds of years later.
The movie does a good job exploring colonialism to some extent: who really “owns” the world?
It’ll be interesting to see how long it takes before we get an Apes movie where they wear clothes and have jobs like in the original movies.
It definitely takes its time to develop characters and story, offering mystery to the film.

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE:

The film is just way too long. We don’t see any action until 30 minutes into the film. The villain doesn’t show up until almost an hour and a half in!
There are some plot holes and details that don’t make sense.
My favorite character in the movie is Raka, who is so charming, smart, and entertaining. I would like to have been able to spend more time with him.
If you miss the genius talent that is Andy Serkis who brought us so many earlier movies of the Planet of the Apes franchise, you can see his most recent work in Luther: The Fallen Sun.
The two leading humans in the story kind of feel like the periphery humans in the Transformers movies.

TIPS FOR PARENTS:

Violence with various weapons
We see dead apes
Destruction and explosions

THEMES:

Power
Control
Freedom
Legend vs. truth
Survival
Coexisting
Choices
Revenge
Family

FUNNY LINES:

“Horses with stripes. Quite striking.” – Raka (Peter Macon)

INTERESTING LINES:

“For Caesar!” – big bad ape leader
“Much to learn. Much to teach.” – Koro
“What a wonderful day!” – Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand)
“Apes together strong!” – Raka (Peter Macon)
“Humans can never be trusted.” – Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand)
“To survive, remember your strength, your compassion, your mercy.” – Raka (Peter Macon)
“Apes hunt humans. That is the law, but the law is wrong.” – Noa (Owen Teague)