The fourth installment in the “Planet of the Apes” franchise picks up generations after Caesar’s rule. The apes have established and divided into various factions, while the humans have become scavengers with no ability to speak. The film centers around Noa – an ape from the Eagle clan, and his journey to rescue his clan from the Proximus Caesar.
Just as we saw in previous Apes movies, the visuals are stunning, and the special effects and mo-cap look even more seamless than ever. While Caesar serves as the heartbeat of the previous films, Noa (Owen Teague) proves he can step up to the plate as the main protagonist of the film, capturing the emotions of an ape who’s on the verge of having his world turned upside-down.
Despite its 2 hours and 25 minutes runtime, it moved along with great pacing with plenty of action. The film mostly focused on Noa and his unlikely human companion, Mae, but it did leave some characters under developed.
Overall, “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” fits nicely into Apes franchise, and is a solid follow up to the previous Apes films.
