War for the Planet of the Apes is the most ambitious out of the three Apes prequels. Director Matt Reeves (who co-wrote the screenplay with Mark Bomback) has created a bleak saga that is as beautiful as it is dull.
Andy Serkis and his digitized Ape suit (otherwise known as Cesar) is the only aspect that makes this film remotely interesting. It is he who has gotten better with each movie, while the story drags itself around him. Too much reliance on him, and not enough on the plot, has lead to some of the most boring films to release in the last 10 years.
Human superiority is fading fast, and of course, they blame this on the Apes. Poor Cesar. He just wants to be left in peace but humans won’t let him have it. As Apes become more intelligent, man-kind slowly loses their ability to communicate, so a rogue group of military personnel see eliminating the Apes as a last stand. The Colonel (played by Woody Harrelson), is the most psychotic of them all, and holds a personal vendetta against all Ape species. He will stop at nothing until they are wiped out, and humanity reigns supreme once more.
Reeves has remade Apocalypse Now with apes in place of the Viet Cong. Reeves has also remade every movie about slavery in existence. Soldiers refer to the Apes as “Donkey Kongs.” f you watch closely you’ll see ‘APE-POCALYPSE’ sprawled across a wall in one of the escape scenes. Then there is a scene where Cesar is tied to a post and whipped like he’s Kunta Kinte from Roots.
I get it. The film is anti-war, pro-liberty and justice for all. That’s a great message to put forth, but damn, there is entirely too much exposition for themes the audience is already familiar with from the previous films. The movie simply doesn’t get to the point fast enough.
The cinematography and CGI is vastly improved over the course of the franchise. Every scene has a crisp, polished look which made the viewing experience easy on the eyes. The look of the Apes is a superb bit of graphic design. Care is put forth even in the most minute details. Andy Serkis’s Cesar looks hyper-realistic as it made me want to jump through the screen and touch the fur.
Speaking of Andy Serkis — he continues to impress me. He has revolutionized the acting game with stellar his motion-capture performances. Proving that he is not only agile in movement, but a talented actor. He is the glue that holds the film together despite it slowly crumbling around him.
Look, Matthew Reeves is a capable director who has the vision to see his projects through to the end. He also knows his actors and how to elicit intense emotions from them. He creates gorgeous looking films, but, not much else is there. His work on the Apes series has never been particularly entertaining, or engaging. In fact, these movies suck the life right out of me they are so boring. Honestly, I am glad this series is over with.
Rating: C
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