Andy Serkis’s superb performance and Matt Reeves’s heartfelt direction means that for once, humans will root against their own species.
A grim and sombre tone hangs over War of the Planet of the Apes, in which the conflict that began in Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011) comes to a conclusion. The first film sowed the seeds for the ape-human conflict with an Alzheimer’s cure that went wrong. In Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014), which is situated 10 years later, much of the human population had been wiped out by a simian flu, and there was the realisation that the conflict could not be resolved without an all-out war.
Sympathy for Caesar and his band of simians is set up early into the third film. Fifteen years into the ongoing conflict, the soldiers walk through a forest with lines such as “Monkey Killer” and “Bedtime for Bonzo” emblazoned across their helmets and satchels. They are ruthless and cold-blooded, choosing to employ apes (whom they call “Donkeys”) to help them in the battle against their own species.
By contrast, Caesar is restrained. He has learned much from observing the treachery of humans and attempts to try and not fall into the same pattern. His apes only want a clearly-marked out territory and an inter-species truce.
The villain, a character known simply as the Colonel (Woody Harrelson), is a bald Kurtz-like figure who is losing his mind owing to the horrors of war. In one scene, there is an overt reference to Apocalypse Now, with graffiti reading “Ape-ocalypse Now”.
Reeves isn’t as interested in the action or the cat-and-mouse game between Caesar and the Colonel as he is in the relationship between Caesar and his mentor Maurice (Karin Konoval). While the large action set-pieces remain, much of the film focuses on the quiet moments between Caesar and Maurice. Caesar is haunted by memories of the one time he did not obey the “Ape Not Kill Ape” diktat even as he attempts to take revenge against the humans for his tragedy.
Over the films in the ape trilogy, which were inspired by Planet of the Apes (1968), the humans have become less and less interesting and the apes, who have learnt to speak and are gaining in intelligence, have emerged as the standout stars. The motion-capture technology has also evolved to a level where it feels as close to the real thing as possible.
The film operates on the scale of an epic, choosing to explore grand themes of morality and the futility of war. In going full throttle with this theme, the movie occasionally falters over its 120-minute running time, sacrificing quick-fire pacing for mood and atmosphere. But the real triumph of War of the Planet of the Apes lies in creating a franchise film that has stakes, feels genuinely created by care and contains memorable characters with a strong emotional core.
