By 20th Century Studios has revived its ‘Apes’ franchise and now the reviews are in. With 79 reviews counted, the film stands at a very positive 86% (7.2/10) on Rotten Tomatoes.
To put that in comparison, that’s behind the two Matt Reeves-directed sequels – ‘Dawn’ at 91% (7.9/10) and ‘War’ at 94% (8.2/10) – but ahead of Rupert Wyatt’s ‘Rise’ at 82% (7.2/10).
The Wes Ball-directed film unfolds several generations after ‘War’ and the death of Caesar. Apes are the dominant species living harmoniously and humans have been reduced to living in the shadows.
As a new tyrannical ape leader builds his empire, one young ape undertakes a harrowing journey that will cause him to question all that he has known about the past and to make choices that will define a future for all.
Here’s a sampling of reviews:
“Considering how effortlessly Ball returns us to this riveting, sweeping universe, those next instalments can be eagerly anticipated.” – Tim Grierson, Screen
“Fans of the franchise should find much to enjoy in this very solid new installment, which points the way forward to a potential new recalibration of the human-ape balance.” – David Rooney, THR
“It doesn’t have a cast of big-name stars. Yet though the movie is too long, I was more gratified than not to sink into its relatively old-fashioned dramatic restraint.” – Owen Gleiberman, Variety
“What makes “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” powerful, in the end… [is that] it probes how the act of co-opting idealisms and converting them to dogmas has occurred many times over” – Alissa Wilkinson, New York Times
“‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ is such a rewardingly cerebral journey because of its refusal to dictator-shame its villain or offer a clear alternative for the apes forced to serve at his mercy.” – David Ehrlich, Indiewire
“Sincerity and conviction are now rare qualities in the blockbuster field, but this is a film that puts its monkey where its mouth is.” – Robbie Collin, Daily Telegraph
“The final act is a mess and juggles four or five plot lines before settling on a dire jump-the-shark moment featuring Noa and a troop of warbling monkeys.” – Kevin Maher, Times
“An intermittently entertaining but ultimately fruitless exercise in franchise expansion.” – Alonso Duralde, The Film Verdict
Owen Teague, Freya Allan, Peter Macon, Eka Darville, Dichen Lachman, William H. Macy and Kevin Durand star in the film which opens on Friday.
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