Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Review: Epic in Heart and Scale

Hope is the beating heart of most movies. The medium is designed to inspire us to live more life, get closer to people we have never met before and pull the curtain back on the complexities of being human.

Wes Ball's Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes doesn't just make hope its beating heart, but its gospel.

Years have passed since the Christ-like Caesar's death, and the world is divided once more. The film's protagonist Noa, voiced by Owen Teague, lives peacefully among his family and community of apes, entirely unaware of the legacy of Caesar. His clan resides among endless luscious green forests where the measure of success is how high you can climb and the quality of the egg you bring from your findings to add to the expanding community of eagles living in harmony with the apes.

Noa's peaceful existence is disturbed one night when he discovers a young human stealing his treasured egg, kicking off the film's momentum when the misunderstanding leads to a horrendous act of violence against Noa and his home.

Epic in both heart and scale, Ball's film grabs you early and forces you to care, regardless of how many of its predecessors you have indulged in. It is Biblical, interested in deeper contemporary themes that expand beyond the spectacle of a franchise studio movie.

Seeing a big budget spent wisely is refreshing. Every inch of the frame feels authentic, curious to connect with the people who will receive its message. Ball has spared no expense to ensure his audience believes every second of what they see, and it pays off in spades.

Every facet of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is making thoughtful choices, desperate to relay its central message. Camerawork leaves the sticks to capture the chaos of violence, and when the world is working as it should, we stay grounded.

While heavy on the subtext, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is still an edge-of-the-seat thrill ride with intense action sequences that'll compel you to sit upright and lean in. A two-hour 25-minute runtime in a generation of shortening attention spans must demand every second of your concentration, and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes flies by so quickly you barely feel the seconds ticking by.

Its dedication to taking innate human empathy for animals and subverting it for the mortal experience is commendable. Burying complex messages of how language changes with intent and the complicité of ignorance in an epic studio movie makes it accessible and thoughtful, respecting its audience and inviting both entertainment and meaningful reflection.

It unpacks how fear and anger reign supreme over individuals, preventing the majority from really doing what is right. The reward is often greater than the risk, so we sit in frustration, allowing cynicism and apathy to brew deeper each day.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes questions how we respond to authority and the boundaries we must push to expand our way of thinking beyond the self. Noa must learn that his upbringing has taught him one way of living, not the definitive way of living. The film is not interested in blame, however. Nor does it celebrate or glorify murder or injury. It's refreshing for the moments of "victory" not to feel like one at all. Instead, they serve as a harsh reflection on the dog-eat-dog conditioning of society.

It may be easier to cling to objects to make us feel safe and in control, but Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is interested in an alternative reality where we place the power back in humanity and watch it blossom.

Of all the movies spending over $150 million this year, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes may be the best so far to justify its expenditure. It is evident in every second that Ball was thoughtful with each choice his cast and crew made. In an age where some studios are quick to deliver sloppy underbaked narratives with visual effects and CGI that have you querying where the money went, it really cannot be overstated how necessary it is for a director to trust and respect their crew to deliver that same ethos to the film's audience.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is a comforting reminder that while we may look at the world with frustration, there are still people choosing to respond with care, compassion and innate humanity. Division requires reflection, and watching Wes Ball and his apes question in real time what it means to be human and what is truly important invites us to do the same.