War for the Planet of the Apes
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(out of 5)
We are moving ever closer to getting Charlton Heston naked in the desert, with a planet whose dwindling human population has broken out into all-out war with the genetically developing primates who are multiplying in great numbers. Caesar (Andy Serkis) is now the folk-hero leader of an army, still hoping to create a world in which ape and human co-exist peacefully until he suffers a personal tragedy at the hands of a hellbent Colonel Kurtz-like general (an uncompromising Woody Harrelson). Caesar and friends travel to the military compound where Harrelson is using apes as slave labour, but before our protagonist can wreak revenge upon his nemesis, they all end up involved in something much bigger and more significant for the future. The group also pick up two new friends, a young human girl suffering a strange virus that is robbing humans of their speech, and a quirky chimpanzee (voiced perfectly by Steve Zahn) who is traumatized by his years living in a zoo. Dark, brooding and highly involving, this magnificent film maintains the quality of its two predecessors, a worthy effort in this wonderful series and never too heavy despite the places that the plot goes. Scenes between Caesar and Harrelson are remarkably good, while the visual effects continue to be of such high caliber mainly because they rarely call attention to themselves: this series is marvelous for what a great job it does of leaving a much deeper impression of story and character than aesthetic wizardry, and this third entry is no slouch.
Chernin Entertainment, River Road Entertainment, TSG Entertainment
USA/Canada/New Zealand, 2017
Directed by Matt Reeves
Screenplay by Mark Bomback, Matt Reeves, based on characters created by Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver, and the novel La Planete des Singes by Pierre Boulle
Cinematography by Michael Seresin
Produced by Peter Chernin, Dylan Clark, Rick Jaffa, Amanda Silver
Music by Michael Giacchino
Production Design by James Chinlund
Costume Design by Melissa Bruning
Film Editing by William Hoy, Stan Salfas
Cast Tags: Albert Nicholas, Aleks Paunovic, Alessandro Juliani, Amiah Miller, Andrew Alexander Reeves,Andy Serkis, Billy Wickman, Chad Rook, Dean Redman, Devyn Dalton, Doug Chapman, Finn Notary, Gabriel Chavarria, James Pizzinato, Judy Greer, Karin Konoval, Kyle Horton, Lauro Chartrand, Levi Meaden, Mathew Yanagiya, Matilda Aperlo, Max Lloyd-Jones, Mercedes de la Zerda, Michael Adamthwaite, Paul Luongo, Phoenix Notary, Roger Cross, Sadie Aperlo, Sandy Robson, Sara Canning, Shaun Omaid, Skye Notary, Steve Baran, Steve Zahn, Terry Notary, Thomas Potter, Timothy Webber, Toby Kebbell, Ty Olsson, Willow Notary, Woody Harrelson
