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Will’s Watchlist: Movie Reviews from HCTV

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is an action sci-fi film that takes place many generations after the events of War for the Planet of the Apes (2017). It follows the story of a young ape who encounters a wild human near his village while preparing for his coming of age ceremony. He eventually sets off on a journey that leads him to discover the truth about the world and its history.

This is a fun blockbuster with tense action scenes that also explores the philosophy of humanity. Through the depiction of ape society and its contrast with human scavengers, the film emphasizes the apes’ anthropomorphic qualities and reinforces them with incredible CGI. This highlights the positive and negative traits of humanity in both ape and human characters, which makes them more apparent in the narrative and its themes. While conveying these elements is the film greatest strength, many of them have already been explored in similar ways throughout the franchise. However, this film also introduces the themes of legacy and history manipulation by expanding on the narrative developed in the previous three movies. This provides a mix of familiar concepts and new ideas that, although not completely unique to the franchise, still creates an entertaining experience that reflects on the human condition.

I recommend Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes to anyone who enjoys the previous Planet of the Apes films, as it contains many of the same elements and further expands on them. It can be enjoyed on its own as a standalone film, but the story significantly benefits from watching the recent trilogy, as it continues to build on the narrative and themes developed in those movies.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes releases in theaters today.

– Review by Will Hopper

Visit Will’s Watchlist for more movie reviews

Throwback of the Week

Bromfield Girls Varsity Basketball vs Tahanto, Jan 13 (2012)