Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Movie Review

Review: Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is an admirable demo tape for director Wes Ball. The movie shows his talent for directing large-scale action sequences and consistent CGI-driven work, but it doesn’t quite have the succinct and emotionally powerful story to match.

proximus caesar kingdom of the planet of the apes — Proximus Caesar in *Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes* (2024)

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes comes at an interesting time for the franchise. While not necessarily a direct sequel to the other modern movies in the Planet of the Apes world – the movie begins with an ode to the main ape Ceasar before a generational time-jump that forces you to forget the relationships you’ve made to past characters – Kingdom is tasked with building a brand new world while simultaneously telling a story with more emotion than the Matt Reeves entries that came before it.

And in a way, that attempt at a sturdy, resonant story looms over Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes in the best and worst ways possible. There is certainly an attempt from director Wes Ball to build characters beyond just the central ape in this world (a real issue I’ve had with each of the previous films – James Franco innocent), but it comes at the expense of a first half that feels much too light on plot and world-building detail.

Owen Teague voices Noa, a young ape tasked with long journey to overthrow a newly developed tyrannical kingdom of apes, led by Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand). It’s an obscure story initially, long-playing Caesar’s ultimate motives as long as it possibly can, and the first two acts suffer because of this aimless choice to prolong the details.

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In the meantime, we venture with Noa to meet a young girl Mae (Freya Allan), and a wise, determined Raka (Peter Macon). The frequent frenzies that ensue due to the cronies of Proximus Caesar’s are enough to hold your appetite, but the breaks in action become increasingly frustrating as the movie rolls along.

Yet despite the movie’s heavy reliance on CGI to build its characters and battles, it doesn’t feel like a fragmented viewing experience quite like Dawn and War. The world feels real, and the big structures and loud sound design add to the immersive experience that feels right to see on the biggest screen you can.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is an admirable demo tape for director Wes Ball. The movie shows his talent for directing large-scale action sequences and consistent CGI-driven work, but it doesn’t quite have the succinct and emotionally powerful story to match. I expect his next movie, rumored to be a live-action Zelda film, to tie together the loose ends and not take so long to get to the point.

Rating

Genre: Action, Adventure, Science Fiction

See Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (2024) in theaters

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