Tag Archives: Chimpanzee

Planet of the Apes (1968) Review – Exploring the Past

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TL;DR – You can feel its iconic nature at every turn, even if not every part has aged well. 

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Disney+ series that viewed this film.

The spaceship crashes in the lake.

Planet of the Apes Review –

This week Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes landed in cinemas, and while I was watching it, I was reminded of the musical score from the original film. This unlocked a memory of being a kid and watching through all of the Apes films as a family. Well, there is no better time than the present, so I thought tonight would be an excellent time to dive back in and see just how it stacks up with my memories.

So, to set the scene, George Taylor (Charlton Heston) leads a crew on an experimental spaceship that is going near the speed of light. While it was 1972 on Earth, they were sure that it would be 2673 when they all emerged from hibernation. However, something goes very wrong, and the ship crashes into a lake on a barren, unknown planet sometime after 3978. As the survivors, Taylor, Landon (Robert Gunner), and Dodge (Jeff Burton), try to find their footing in this new world, they discover that there are humans, but they are mute and run around in herds. The more concerning factor is that humans are being hunted by apes … who can talk …!        

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Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes – Movie Review

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TL;DR – While you can feel some tension in the script at times, this is still a solid entry into the franchise with characters you care about and a world you want to explore.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I was invited to a press screening of this film.

Noa rides through the ruins of the old world.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Review –

Without a doubt, I have loved the Planet of the Apes reboot films. Rise of the Planet of the Apes was a great foundation, and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes was this sad meditation on the legacy of trauma, all before ending the trilogy with this grand biblical epic of War of the Planet of the Apes that hit the big 5 out of 5 stars. So, there was a bit of hesitance to come back to this world after such a long time and a new creative team, but thankfully, I had nothing to worry about.

So to set the scene, we open with the final funeral of Caeser, a leader who brought his people out of danger and into a new promised land but was unable to enter himself. Led by Maurice (Karin Konoval), it is a solemn event, but it is the start of something, and you see that in the world several generations later. It is here where Noa (Owen Teague) and his friends Soona (Lydia Peckham) and Anaya (Travis Jeffery) climb up through the ruins of the old world to find eagle eggs. They are a village of eagle trainers, and Noa’s dad, Koro (Neil Sandilands), is the leader who sings to the new eggs. However, when Noa sees an Echo (human), little does he know the carnage that is following in their wake and how his world is about to change forever.

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Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014) Review – Exploring the Past

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TL;DR – It is a profoundly emotional work that builds on the first film in nearly every way.   

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Disney+ service that viewed this film.

Caesar in war paint.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes Review –

It has been ten years since this movie first came out, and I was taken aback by just how good visual effects had grown, even by the high standards that the Lord of the Rings brought us. But with Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes coming out this week, I wanted to take a moment to go back in time and see how well this second entry before War of the Planet of the Apes holds up.

So to set the scene, it has been ten years since the Simian Flu pandemic spread across the globe with a survival rate of only 1 in 500, as was seen at the end of Rise of the Planet of the Apes. As human society completely collapsed, the ape colony founded by Caesar (Andy Serkis) began to thrive in the growing woods outside of what was once San Francisco. It has been two years since they even saw a human, which made that first sound of a gun going off echo throughout the colony. One of the few human settlements left on the Earth has set up shop in the ruins of San Francisco. Caesar does not acquiesce to the drum beats of war but gives the humans an ultimatum: stay away from their area. Peace has a chance, just as long as no one on either side decides to fall on the animosity of the past.     

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Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) Review – Exploring the Past

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TL;DR –.It is a remarkable film that still holds up today and provided a strong foundation for everything that followed.  

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit scene

Disclosure – I paid for the Disney+ service that viewed this film.

Caesar looks down on San Fransisco.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes Review –

Back in the 2010s, remakes were all the rage, and most of them were not great. So, I am not sure that anyone was expecting a prequel remake reboot of the beloved cult Classic Planet of the Apes was going to be any good, let alone spawn one of the best trilogies of the modern cinematic era concluding with War of the Planet of the Apes. Well, with Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes coming out this week, I knew it was time to jump back in and refresh myself in this world.

So to set the scene, we open in on a rainforest where a troop of chimpanzees is led into a trap by poachers. In San Fransisco, Dr. William “Will” Rodman (James Franco) is desperately trying to find a cure for Alzheimer’s, using chimpanzees as part of the trial. But when the first trial goes terribly wrong, they discover a surprise: the trial chip was pregnant. It is this new baby called Caesar (Andy Serkis) that Will discovers the hope he has been looking for as his father, Charles (John Lithgow), slips further behind. But will the world see what Will sees, or will they see a threat?  

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