“I did not start this war. I offered you peace. I showed you mercy. But now you’re here. To finish us off… for good.”
– Caesar
SYNOPSIS: After the apes suffer unimaginable losses, Caesar wrestles with his darker instincts and begins his own mythic quest to avenge his kind. – via IMDB
Oh yeah! Went to see this the a while ago (my first official trip to the cinema in London) and I had a blast. Actually, I don’t know if that is the right phrasing. Either way, we are going to roll with it. Andy Serkis returns as the most amazing Caesar, and is as honourable as ever. War for the Planet of the Apes really goes for certain themes, and the conflict and strife between the apes and the humans reach a peak.
Woody Harrelson steps in as the truly reprehensible Colonel McCullough . Like I mean really. The man waltzes in and just destroys things all round. Harrelson was good, if underused, which was the same complaint lodged against Oldman in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. There is so much more potential here, but it doesn’t come. Serkis completely owned in his role of Caesar, but I expected no less from him on that front. His portrayal is brilliant, he really has made Caesar his own. Naturally the movie was visually stunning, too, because these movies have all just looked fantastic from the beginning. It definitely has heart and is excellent. I must be honest and say that Dawn is still my favourite.
The plot progression is also good here. It rapidly brings you up to speed with where everything is now in the world, and then it hits the ground running and it does not let up. You feel the fear and the anger here, and I would like to give the movie credit for that. The score also works hand in hand with the visuals to set the mood and tone for what it to come. I was also super pleased to see Maurice, Luca, and Rocket all together here, and I also found Bad Ape to be an amusing and yet sad (his backstory and the lasting implications on his psyche) addition to the movie. This movie didn’t really go between the two sides, as we have become accustomed to, giving us the first movie that is more about the apes than anything.
I feel this movie was totally worth the excitement I had stashed away for it. It totally had that Logan vibe going for it, like this was the last stretch, and it was most certainly serious. It was grim and heavy and it was not out of place. These movies started at a lighter area and have progressed through a whole array of emotions and settings, and have not once stumbled. These movies are a great example of how a film franchise, and especially a reboot franchise, should be handled. War for the Planet of the Apes is definitely worth watching!
Glad to hear it. This is one of the few modern franchises I find myself interested in and I’m happy to hear it wrapped up well.
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It’s is very interesting. It sounds like you haven’t caught it yet – hope you enjoy it when you do!
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Great review! Loved it, maybe not as much as the previous two, but it was still pretty good.
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Thanks! It was awesome, so glad I went out to see it. These movies are excellent!
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Great review Zoe, glad you enjoyed this! Loved the previous two (especially Dawn) and War was pretty darn good.
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Thanks Chris! These movies have been fantastic. Seems we are in agreement on Dawn – my favourite of the lot!
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Awesome. Happy to hear you enjoyed this. I have simply LOVED what Andy Serkis has done with this character. I don’t know where I read this, but I thought it was a brilliant suggestion: they need to create a new category at the Oscars for Motion Capture performance. His role as Caesar is just so unique. And then he was Gollum before that, so I really think he should be in the conversation for having an entire awards category based off of his talent. The man is amazing. He gives these movies soul
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It was an awesome trip to the cinema 🙂 He really has done a phenomenal job. He totally dominates motion capture, he is just that good.
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Yeah, I hear they are green lighting a fourth installment and it’ll (I assume) be without him, so I’m not sure how I feel about that . . .
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You and I are definitely in the same boat about that one…
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Nice review. It was a solid send-off in certain ways.
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Thanks Dan! That it was.
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