It’s hard to imagine the current run of “Planet of the Apes” continuing on without Caesar, but director Wes Ball’s latest film in the series is a fitting follow-up to the 2010s trilogy.
“Kingdom” takes place several generations after Caesar’s death. Humans are now primitive and scarce, while the apes have built up small villages, one of them being home to the protagonist, Noa (Owen Teague). Led by Noa’s father, the clan built a peaceful society around training falcons.
The peace of Noa’s village is shattered, though, when it’s raided by another ape kingdom set on conquest. Injured in the battle, Noa awakens to find his village destroyed and residents taken hostage. From there, Noa sets out on a quest to rescue those imprisoned and gets an unlikely ally along the way.
“Kingdom” is a wonderful follow-up to the trilogy that ended a few years ago with “War for the Planet of the Apes.” It carries on the atmosphere and identity of those three films while still feeling like a fresh start in a brave new world. It pulls this by featuring an epic adventure with an exciting young protagonist.
In a way, “Kingdom” is reminiscent of the first “Star Wars” film. There’s a young hero setting off on an adventure after a tragedy, he explores parts of the world he’s never seen before, there’s a great deal of lore he learns and he even is accompanied by an older, wise mentor.
Like “A New Hope,” it’s an enjoyable, entertaining and meaningful cinematic experience. One just wishes the film was a bit tighter, as the nearly two-and-a-half-hour runtime becomes excessive. Additionally, story elements introduced late in the film are questionable based on what’s happened in previous entries.
Fortunately, the film’s overall adventure and Noa’s character arc combine for a very compelling film. It’s a thrilling and emotional journey where a young ape becomes a hero and a new, promising future is set up for the franchise to continue in.
On that note, it continues to be impressive how well the motion capture technology is when it comes to bringing the ape characters to life. This series’ special effects crews have done phenomenal work in giving these apes so much personality, while also making them appear completely lifelike, capturing realistic movements and mannerisms.
Praise has to go to the performers as well. Owen Teague does great work in portraying the adventurous, driven and good-hearted Noa, while Kevin Durand is fantastic as the antagonist Proximus Caesar, a conqueror and dark visionary. The supporting apes are strong, too, each with their own distinct personalities created by dedicated cast members.
Freya Allan also deserves credit as the main human character in the film. There have been a mix of good and bad humans in this series making for complex situations. This time around, Allan’s character Mae is mysterious and has her own goals, but still allies herself with Noa. Allan does nice work in making the character sympathetic, but also not 100 percent trustworthy.
Also deserving mention is how good the film looked. Of course, there was the great special effects in creating the ape characters, but that’s not the end of the story. The way the filmmakers build this setting by combining the natural world and the human ruins is really well done. The movie’s action set pieces are also nicely crafted and keep a person on the edge of their seat.
The latest “Planet of the Apes” isn’t quite as strong as “Dawn” or “War,” but it is a good entry to the series and serves as a fine launching point for a new saga. The movie has sufficient action, it’s visually appealing, and it offers both a likable, heroic protagonist and an intriguing, threatening antagonist. 4.25 out of 5.
Matthew Liedke on Film 
Excellent review. This is another one of my anticipated films of 2024. I’m a huge fan of the Planet of the Apes series that starred Andy Serkis. Serkis is a fantastic actor that set a high standard for POTA through groundbreaking motion capture technology. He was the primary reason that these films worked so well. Curious to see how a sequel would turn out with his absence.
I loved the second film in the franchise “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” the most. Here’s why I enjoyed it:
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