Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is the tenth film in the franchise and serves as a followup to the previous trilogy that had Andy Serkis as Caesar. Hundreds of years after Caesar's death, the Earth is in shambles with apes evolving further with numerous separate clans and humans having become feral and unable to talk. Noa, who is part of a clan that doesn't know much of ape's history, sets out to save his people from a tyrannical bonobo who has corrupted Caesar's legacy for his own power. Along the way, Noa allies with Mae, a human able to talk who has plans that could help humanity their place on the planet. While Serkis and Matt Reeves don't have much involvement compared to the last films, though Reeves is a producer, this entry still has the feeling and style from its predecessors. The writing from Josh Friedman is fresh especially for how long the franchise has been going on and how often post apocalyptic stories are made. Friedman writes the characters with great gravitas and the story fleshed them out in a very dimensional way. With Wes Ball taking on the direction from Reeves, he does an incredible job at giving us a work just as good as his predecessor and Rupert Wyatt. He has a very methodical style that is very patient and dynamic while never losing that special touch that makes it too different from the past entries. The cinematography from Gyula Pados is incredibly stunning and lush, helping to take in the different environments. While John Paesano gives the movie really good music that is both original and pays tribute to the scores of the original movies. Thirteen years after the rebooted series started and the motion capture effects continue to improve and make the apes feel real. Something else that makes the apes feel real are the performances from Owen Teague and especially Kevin Durand in an iconic villainous turn. But the regular humans also still good just as good of a performance, with Freya Allan making it hard whether she can be trusted or not. If a followup to Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes can capture the magic of this entry, it may not be as easy as it seems. Over all: 100%

2024 top list so far:

1. Dune: Part 2

2. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

3. The Fall Guy

4. The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare

5. Abigail

6. Monkey Man

7. Late Night with the Devil

8. Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire

9. The Book of Clarence

10. Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

11. Drive-Away Dolls

12. Kung Fu Panda 4

13. Lisa Frankenstein

14. Argylle

15. Mean Girls 2024