For anyone hoping to enjoy an action-packed blockbuster full of explosions and thrills will likely be disappointed, or at least take aback by how serious Reeves and co-writer Matt Bomback approach the subject matter. After the blistering finale of the previous film, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, which offered the delightful sight of an ape riding a horse wielding two machine-guns, it would seem more fitting to switch the two titles around, and there is little war in this trilogy-closer, but there is certainly a dawn of something big. Beginning 2 years later, Caesar (Andy Serkis), who can now speak as eloquently as any human, is still haunted by his former ally Koba (Toby Kebbell), whose feelings of pure hatred towards his human abusers could not be quelled by Caesar's teachings of tolerance. Leading a huge tribe hiding out in the woods, they are attacked by the military but manage to defeat the small band of soldiers. After this pulse-racing opener, Reeves takes his foot off the pedal to focus on Caesar's inward struggle and personal journey.Caesar's hand in forced when some of his immediate family are murdered by a renegade militant group headed by the genocidal Colonel, who isn't given a name, or much personality until his motivation is eventually explained. Although he sets out on his quest for revenge across the snowy mountains alone, he is soon joined by his loyal companions Maurice (Karin Konoval), Luca (Michael Adamthwaite) and Rocket (Terry Notary, who also did the motion-capture for Kong), who continue to trust the judgement of the leader they have followed from the very beginning. They soon pick up a couple of new faces, the mute young human Nova (Amiah Miller), and former zoo resident and chimpanzee Bad Ape (Steve Zahn). The latter offers the series a levity so badly lacking in the previous instalments, and Zahn wonderfully captures the character's adorable mixture of naivety and weariness, as well as delivering the film's few funny moments. It soon transpires that the clan Caesar had left behind and believed to be on their way to safety have been rounded up by the Colonel and locked away in a concentration camp of sorts, so it becomes a race against time to prevent the extermination of his species.
Dawn represented the very pinnacle of special effects, with the CGI rendered characters interacting seamlessly with their human counterparts, as well as the drizzly forest surrounding them. War somehow eclipses this, taking such care with its special effects that you can truly see the humanity in Caesar's eyes. Even the Colonel acknowledges this by marvelling at how almost human Caesar appears, yet this does not sway his disdain. But this shouldn't take anything away from Serkis' performance. As well as nailing the physicality of the primate's movements, he also delivers a performance of remarkable intensity, yet also one of warmth. Caesar's pacifist attitude has constantly been met with aggression, and his tolerance has taken a battering over the course of Rise and Dawn. He is an ape at the end of his tether, willing to risk certain death to see one man burn, but he also recognises the good side of humanity in the form of the harmless Nova, who has witnessed the barbarity of her species first hand. It's incredibly heavy stuff for a big-budget picture, but although some of the symbolism may be clumsily-handled in parts, this is refreshingly mature stuff. It left me with both the sensation of satisfaction after a fitting closure to the story, and the desire to see the franchise push on even further.
Directed by: Matt Reeves
Starring: Andy Serkis, Woody Harrelson, Steve Zahn, Karin Konoval, Amiah Miller, Terry Notary
Country: USA/Canada/New Zealand
Rating: ****
Tom Gillespie
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