Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

Ignorance is bliss, knowledge is power.

A bit of history

The planet of the apes franchise goes back to 1968, with 5 films in the initial timeline, starting with Planet of the Apes, with arguably one of the best twists of all time (no spoilers here) closely followed by Beneath the Planet of the Apes, which delves into science fiction and aliens rather than the apes.

By the time of Escape from the Planet of the Apes, the writers realised that the apes where what people wanted, so they had the apes travel back in time to the then modern day 1970s and kick start the events leading up to the first film, which is then continued in Conquest and Battle for the Planet of the Apes, outlining the rift between the apes and humans.

The franchise was then rebooted in 2001 with Tim Burton's remake of Planet of the Apes which tries to be the same but different and doesn't quite land. It also has a twist at the end which I don't quite understand, but that can wait till another time.

The franchise was then rebooted again with Rise of the Planet of the Apes, which aims to explain how apes overtook humans in the modern day by a virus, focusing on the lead ape Caesar. The rift between the two species is carried on in Dawn and War for the Planet of the Apes, which leads to this installment, which takes place hundreds of years in the future and delves into the effect of mythology and legend that has lead to divisions not only between humans and apes, but between ape tribes.

Caesar and his legacy

Caesar is long dead, but his teaching and views are not, and this film explores how the words of people in the past can be twisted and misused by people in the present to get their own way. Thus emphasising context is key.

We are first introduced to Noa, the lead, and his tribe who have no concept of Caesar either because elders aren't aware he existed, or if they do they don't share it with the rest of the tribe. Noa is forced to go after his tribe after they are ambushed and he is left for dead.

We next meet Raka, a friendly orangutan who still holds to the teachings of Caesar, who believes that humans and apes can co-exist and has a fondness for humans, which he hopes to pass onto Noa.

Finally, we meet Proximus, the antagonist, and his tribe who use Caesar's words to tell of the difference between the humans and apes and how they cannot co-exist, seeking ways to destroy all remain humans from the face of the earth.

Trust, friendship and loyalty

Another aspect of this film is trust. Noa and Raka meet a human called Mae, who's lies to her friends constantly about her aims, but expects them to trust her and some could say that she manipulates the characters to get her way, and will stop at nothing because she is so desperate to complete her mission.

However their is still a warmth in Noa and Mae's friendship that cannot be denied, and with 5 films still confirmed to be released, I am sure that they will meet again and their friendship will become ever more complicated.