KINGDOM OF THE Planet of the Apes takes the series into a new era with a brand new protagonist. The fourth movie in the reboot series follows the story of Noa (Owen Teague), a young chimpanzee from the Eagle Clan.
Despite the series moving on from the compelling Caesar of Andy Serkis, his legacy is still much referenced in this fourth movie. With Noa now taking the spotlight in this fourth movie, it also provides a great starting point for newer fans interested in the Ape-verse.
-Minor Spoilers-
History Is Indeed Written By The Winners
Many generations after Caesar's victory in War of the Planet of the Apes, the apes have finally become the dominant force in the world with humans now an afterthought. Apes have become even smarter while the humans are scavengers who have seemingly lost the ability to speak.
The film begins with Noa trying to prove himself alongside his friends by capturing eagle eggs to raise. The customary rite to prove themselves goes wrong for Noa however as he ends up breaking his egg while chasing a rare human played by Freya Allan of the Witcher fame. His village eventually gets attacked and abducted by soldiers of a new ape leader calling himself Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand).
Noa is then thrust into a quest to save his village alongside a scholarly orangutan called Raka (Peter Macon) and the human they call Nova.
This is when the legacy of Caesar places the conflict between characters. Raka is a member of the Order of Caesar which promotes a peaceful relationship between apes and humans for the betterment of the world. Raka even said that, ‘together strong’ which is a contrast from Caesar’s famous line, ‘apes together strong.' The line has great meaning and symbolism into it that it shouldn’t just be apes but everyone on the planet.
On the flipside, we have Proximus Caesar who says Caesar was all about dominance and strength. Therefore he enslaves apes to do his bidding in the name of the original Caesar's legacy. He twists history for his own benefit to manipulate the apes for his own benefit. His end goal of eventually conquering the remaining humans in the world using old human technology.
The movie utilizes the time-skip nicely as the set-up of a different world in a different era and premise allows director Wes Ball to set up the journey of Noa as the series’ new protagonist is off to a good start.
A Simian Symphony
The movie provides a more subtle conflict between humans and apes this time around. It definitely is a far cry compared to the bloody war in the last movie. The tension between Noa and Nova is something the movie uses throughout the movie.
Nova pretends to be mute for the better part of the movie despite Noa and Raka saving and showing her kindness multiple times. She eventually opens up and introduces herself as Mae and reveals her goal of wanting to help humans find a better life again in the world’s new hierarchy.
Mae, at times, shows that she is indeed greedy and selfish while remaining close with Noa and Raka. One of the best scenes in the movie for me was when Noa was carrying Mae atop the cliff to an old human bunker. Despite apes still being technologically inferior, the two races can still help each other in a variety of ways.
The movie was also sprinkled with plenty of humorous moments that showcased its new Disney influence brightly. While some people may be turned off by the humour because the Ape movies have been known for its tension, it was still a nice breath of fresh air for me.
I personally enjoyed Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes as someone who hasn’t really watched all of the ape movies. It was straightforward and made me look forward to the sequels. I’m actually loading up the earlier movies on Disney+ now in the reboot because of it. My interest in the Ape-dom is definitely piqued thanks to the movie.
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