Review of War for the Planet of the Apes (2017) by Kevin M — 07 Nov 2017

Matt Reeves, the director of the previous iteration, Dawn, strikes back with War for the Planet of the Apes, a genre-bending journey of personal vengeance. Andy Serkis somehow manages to top his previous performances as Caesar, a now aging but highly intelligent ape with plenty to lose.

I cannot possibly stress the need for Andy Serkis to finally be, at the very least, nominated for an Oscar for his incredible performance. The CGI has yet again been improved to a seemingly perfect crossover between human and ape.

Between the tears in Caesar's eyes and the water droplets scattered across his wrinkling face, it's easy to say that there isn't much out there that's better looking than this. On the lower end of the spectrum, Woody Harrelson plays the leader of a human army in a campaign against Caesar and his apes; but he tries too hard to be like Marlon Brando's Colonel Kurtz from Apocalypse Now (Harrelson stated he was inspired by that performance).

I recognize Harrelson's capabilities as an actor, but he doesn't utilize them in the proper manner here. Second, there is a particularly odd and poorly written plot mechanism in which the virus has mutated yet again.

The explanations behind the evolution of the virus have been twisted around in the previous movies, but this time it feels very awkward in what is mostly a smart script. All in all, War is a very long journey: balancing elements of a revenge Western, blockbuster action, and tearjerking drama can be difficult.

Thankfully it's executed pretty smoothly, paving the way towards what is a powerful conclusion: a conclusion which should be the definitive ending to what has been one of the best trilogies in the history of film.

However, everyone knows Hollywood loves to dilute a rich and sophisticated French vintage with cheap grape juice to keep thirst quenched and pockets full. Savor it while you can.