The Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

New release in cinemas now.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. A 20th Century Studio production. Director Wes Ball, Writers Josh Friedman, Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver. (12A) Released 10 May 2024.

Movie Review by Rob Tysall

For most of us who are fans of sci-fi and The Planet of the Apes will be delighted that this long running story goes on. This latest movie – The Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is the fourth instalment in the Planet of the Apes reboot franchise, and the tenth film overall.

The story is set in a dystopian future, where the apes are the top species and doing just fine – but the humans however are still the underdogs. All but a few of the humans have lost the power of speech whereas the apes have mastered it.

The great ape leader, Caesar is long gone – the film set some 300 years after his reign but now the ape world has a new king – Promixus Caesar played brilliantly by Kevin Durand. His aim being to enslave and take all power as well as to seek out any past human technology that can help with his dominance.

Owen Teague stars as Noa, a young chimpanzee, along with Oxfordshire actress Freya Allan as Mae and Peter Macon as Raka an orangutang – altogether a really super cast. I liked the fact that they’d chosen a woman as what boiled down to be the saviour of mankind, but not in a tough hard-nut sense, but she was one determined character – along the lines of Ripley in Aliens.

I’m not giving away the storyline, but I felt they were sticking to the original lines but with a new modern day version incorporating all the science and technology which has moved on, so there was more content.  The soundtrack was emotional and perfect for the job.

With a $160 million budget the setting and CGI are outstanding, and already the film has grossed around $237 million at box offices worldwide.

It’s non-stop action and pretty violent considering it’s a 12A, but there are moments of humour. However, it’s a long watch - 2 hours 25 minutes without a break, but if you’re a Planet of the Apes fan – which I am, this will be right up your street.

Cineworld Multiplex Cinema in Rugby.

As a matter of interest, here’s the list of all ten Planet of the Apes films, the series beginning way back in 1968.

Planet of the Apes – 1968.

Beneath the Planet of the Apes – 1970.

Escape from the Planet of the Apes – 1971.

Conquest of the Planet of the Apes – 1972.

Battle For the Planet of the Apes – 1973.

Then after a hiatus of around 28 years there was a re-boot of the original film – Planet of the Apes which came out in 2001.

Rise of the Planet of the Apes – 2011.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes – 2014.

War for the Planet of the Apes – 2017.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes – 2024.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is in cinemas now. Also, you could catch up with most of the older films on Disney + but it will cost you.