War for the Planet of the Apes takes Caesar’s apocalyptic story from the previous two films and gives it a new dimension concentrated, heartbreaking finish. We see both humans and apes struggle to survive in this ever-changing world, as each of them suffers greatly and faces new opponents that they can’t seem to defeat. It’s a poignant, sad but fitting end to the recent series Monkeys Films that set the perfect stage for everything the world has in store for the next 2,000 years.
This week Fox will release Kingdom of the Planet of the Apesa new film takes place in the legendary franchise that started in 1968 planet of monkeys. kingdom is a sequel to a film trilogy that began in 2011 Planet of the Apes: Prevolution, which we recently visited againAnd Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, which we visited again last week. Later this week we’ll get into the new trilogy – but first, let’s see how this trilogy turned out.
It takes place several years after the events of dusk, War starts in the middle of the title. Humans and apes have been fighting since the end of the previous film, and after a particularly brutal battle in which over 60 apes die, Caesar (Andy Serkis) attempts to broker peace by leaving several of the surviving human soldiers alive. In return for their lives, all he asks is that they tell their leader, the Colonel (Woody Harrelson), that he no longer wants to fight. However, the Colonel has other ideas. He takes the fight straight to the apes, killing Caesar’s wife and eldest son in the process.
Full of anger, Caesar sets out to find the colonel and end the war, along with his close friends Rocket and Maurice. Along the way, the trio meets a strange mute child named Nova (Amiah Miller) and a lonely monkey who calls himself Bad Ape (Steve Zahn). Bad Ape in particular blows her away because he proves that other apes around the world have become smarter in similar ways.
Caeser is eventually captured by the Colonel’s massive army and learns that his entire tribe has suffered the same fate. From there, War for the Planet of the Apes is less about war and more about escape, as we watch Caesar’s fortitude inspire both sides and the apes hatch a plan to escape.
Along the way, several crucial details are revealed. One is that Nova is mute because the Simian Flu that wiped out humanity has continued to mutate and now a new strain is causing people to change. They lose their language and eventually their intelligence. We also learn that the Colonel is a renegade leader among the humans and that he is using the captured apes to build a wall to protect him from the larger human army.
In “Colonel,” not only does Harrelson deliver a frightening performance, but also Marlon Brando-in-one.Apocalypse now-inspired performance, but he is also the only person who sees the future. The Colonel knows that this new mutation of the virus will not be the end. He knows that humanity is finished, no matter how long it takes, and that the apes will eventually rule the planet. It is the first time that the idea of a complete planet of monkeys comes across in these films and it’s absolutely creepy.
What’s also shocking is that although Caesar and the monkeys are clearly the heroes of these films, War forces the audience to confront the fact that Caesar is not without his faults. Haunted by the ghost of his former friend Koba, Caesar struggles with regret and anger while hoping to find ways to save his people, especially his youngest and now last son, Cornelius.
Everything builds up to what we expect to be a battle of epic proportions, only to be undermined by nature – in this case an avalanche – that takes everything out in one fell swoop. Again, this is a powerful way to show that no matter what you stand for, what you fight for, or how far you have come, everything can disappear in the blink of an eye without you ever expecting it. Nature always wins.
In the end, the monkeys find a way to survive and leave the forest that they have inhabited for about 20 years in the last films. In this new, more forgiving and beautiful land the monkeys will continue their world. When they arrive, Caesar succumbs to his previous wounds and dies, content in the knowledge that he has freed his people and given them a new beginning.
Same goes for Matt Reeves Monkeys Stories a new beginning. War for the Planet of the Apes does not fulfill the promise of the title in the expected way; In the end, it’s more about the outside forces at war with everyone on the planet and how everyone will survive. Here the monkeys win another day with heavy losses. Will all humans succumb to the new tribe? We don’t know and in 2017 it was never necessary. But the fact that we’ll see more in the new film is a testament to the excellent storytelling skills of directors Rupert Wyatt and Matt Reeves, as well as writer/producers Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver, who have brought us this new, modern film Monkeys Trilogy.
For me the best thing about this trilogy is the second one, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. Planet of the Apes: Prevolution follows the and War for the Planet of the Apes, Although still excellent, it ranks third. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes opens on Friday.
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