121.
War for the Planet of the Apes
9/10
It's time for the third and final film in this rebooted franchise. After the Tim Burton atrocity from around 15 years ago, it's safe to say that the first two movies in this trilogy have brought back the audience's love for the stories and characters involved. With a lot of hype leading up to this and the fact that the first days of showings were only available in 3D, there was always a wonder as to whether it would live up to expectations. Let's find out if this makes the audience go ape for the right reasons or it ends on a slip of the banana skin.
The film now takes place 15 years after the virus first got released to the world. The remaining humans have called it the Simian flu and although Caesar has tried to keep the peace between the apes and humans, it's come as nothing short of a failure. They now hide in a base in the Muir woods as a special ops colonel seeks the clan to kill them once and for all. As a team slowly moves through the forest, they set their sights on the entrance to the base, monkeys on horses and more patrolling. They are being helped by their own collection of apes, which were once loyal to Koba and instead of going to face the consequences from their fellow apes, they became traitors and help the humans instead. These apes are being called 'donkeys' by the humans and are abused along the way, being used for all of the dirty work like slaves. They all launch an attack on the base with a series of sniper shots leading to explosions with many casualties. The apes are in serious numbers as they come out on the winning side and capture four humans and one of their ape accomplices. We cut to a POV scene, looking through the eyes of something walking through the ape's trenches and we can work out that it's going to be Caesar, with the camera rolling around to reveal him, he lets the prisoners go as a sign of mercy but chooses to keep Red the traitor. He escapes the clutches of Winter though and runs back to the human camp. Deeper inside the camp and Caesar's son, Blue Eyes, returns from a trip to find a new place to live. We are also re-introduced to Caesar's wife Cornelia and his new son Cornelius. They all site with further apes to discuss moving the clan to a safer location.
As the apes rest, we see unknown assailants are seen moving into the camp. The soldiers are easily picked up by the patrolling apes and Caesar in the tunnels but he has left his family alone, alone to be gunned down by Colonel McCullough, played by Woody Harrelson. He escapes through the waterfall as we see a relentless side to Caesar who grabs the rope to get him back but it's cut and he falls to the water below. Returning to his part of the cave, Caesar and the other apes are searching for his youngest son, who appears from behind a rock and into his father's arms. The next day he places his son in Lake's care. Lake was Blue Eye's love interest and will now look after the youngster as Caesar decides to leave to find the Colonel for revenge, sending the clan to head towards the desert, their new home. He won't be going alone though as Maurice, Luca and Rocket want to go and protect their leader. Coming across the military camp, they enter the tents and to their surprise find Winter. He's been promised to be saved if he defects to the human side. Revealing the information that the 4 apes needed, he then makes a break for escape but is grabbed and keep quiet by them. Caesar is a little too heavy handed though and ends up strangling him to death. He becomes distraught as he believes that an ape must not kill another ape or risk becoming like his one-time friend, Koba. This leads to the leader having a dream that night about Koba, telling him about not killing another ape. They continue forward to search for the Colonel and come across a deserted colony and a lone man who tried to shoot them but Caesar empties his gun first and kills the man. They enter his home and find a little girl who doesn't have the ability to speak, although she is of the age to be able to. Maurice hands her a doll and hopes to take her with them. Insisting that he cannot leave her behind, his leader reluctantly agrees and they have a new member to their party. Heading up to the snowy mountains, they find three bodies of soldiers, buried in the snow with gunshot wounds and one is still alive. He has trouble speaking to them, just like the girl and Caesar puts the man out of his misery. The apes climb a transmission tower for a better look, only for the girl to stay with the horses and someone in a coat steals their equipment and one of the horses. Chasing them into the mountains, they enter a snow lodge and the thing has run into a fire place, throwing out the stuff that it has stolen and slowly revealing themselves as a small chimp. Calling himself Bad Ape, he is hairless and very ugly but seems very harmless. He offers his coat to the girl because she seems cold and the gang stays for the night, receiving food and we see that this chimp is as capable of speech as much as Caesar. Most of the others are relying on sign language. They explain that they are after the Colonel and Bad Ape isn't too pleased. Giving them food labelled, California Border, they ask where it was retrieved from. After the information from Winter, where he told the apes that the Colonel is off to meet men at the boarder, they figure that this is from the same place. Bad Ape tells them that it is like a 'human zoo' and not many people make it out of there alive. With a little more comedy added through this new ape, we have a back and fore between the girl picking up his things and him being protective until he gives them back in exchange for them not wanting to go to the camp. One of the items is a car badge reading Nova, which Maurice give to the girl as her new name.
Finally, the new chimp takes the other to the quarantine camp, where Caesar and Luca are attacked by soldiers but after killing them, we find out that the gorilla, Luca, has been fatally wounded. He is slowly dying but before he goes, Nova has a moment where he gives him a flower that Luca helped he reach earlier on and she breaks down in tears. Caesar sees the side to humans that makes him remember why he wanted peace but also his hatred is growing inside at the death of another friend. Maurice tells him that he is becoming Koba, just as their leader tells them that this is why he wanted to come alone. Caesar now leaves the others and heads into the camp by himself, seeing other apes chained to wood, he quickly realises what kind of place this is. Looking down into the camp, he sees his worst fear, that his clan has been captured and are caged her, being made to work to build a massive wall in front of the main camp. From behind, two soldiers knock Caesar out with a gun. He wakes up to find himself in the presence of the Colonel and explains that he hasn't come to free his clan, but to kill the Colonel for what he has done. The man gives a shit apology and explains that he was only meant to kill Caesar. There is a massive map in the middle of the room and it's quickly worked out that the wall is being built to keep other men out. Ones that don't like the Colonel's beliefs in killing other humans who won't follow his leadership.
Caesar is put to work, just like the other apes and he sees Lake and his own son in another cage from the rest. Calling out in distress for his father, it's a hard moment for the leader who for once, feels helpless. The whole clan are starved and unhappy with Caesar for leaving them. One ape falls and is whipped for his troubles but Caesar steps in, regaining the respect of his fellow apes as he is whipped in his place. The Colonel demands that work continues, even as the leader tells him that they need food and water in order to carry on the work. He holds a gun to the ape's head until Lake and others being to work again in order to save Caesar's life. Red is the main gorilla 'donkey' in the army he, along with a soldier named Preacher, lead Caesar to the main office again where the Colonel starts to tell his story. He has a son who turned into a primitive state. So as the apes were getting smarter, humans affected by the virus are becoming primitive. He killed his own son out of fear that there isn't a cure. Going on to explain about the men that are coming and the reasoning for the wall, which I have already mentioned. The next day and the apes are finally fed and watered except for Caesar as the Colonel intends to break him down. He has another vision of Koba, who this time tells him to join the army. Back to the outskirts and we are with Maurice, Bad Ape, Rocket and Nova as they are looking into the camp. More humour as Bad Ape wonders why they are so far away but he's holding the binoculars the wrong way around. Nova walks by herself and straight into the camp and to Caesar's cage to make sure he is ok. Listening to the calls from the other cages, she heads over and picks up water and food for him and then gives him her doll for safe keeping. As the soldiers approach, Rocket distracts them by sacrificing himself to be caught so the girl can hide. The next morning when Caesar is retrieved from his cage, the Colonel notices the doll and gives the eyes that he knows something is going on. The two remaining free apes find a way into the camp but from underneath, where they begin to dig upwards in two different areas, under the two main cages. One problem is that the one under the children's cage is flooded so they cannot free them in that direction. Caesar and his second in command, Rocket, find a way to save everyone and whilst the others dig, Rocket creates a distraction by doing what apes do best, flinging poo at one of the patrols. They find some keys and release the children, who climb on the wires and into the other cage to escape through the hole. One ape is left to get down the hole and it's the leader but he turns to Rocket and tells him that he is like Koba and cannot let the Colonel live for what he has done. Without a second thought, he heads back to the Colonels office just as we see in the distance that the other army has arrived to confront him. Helicopters begin laying rounds into the base and the Colonel is nowhere to be found to lead his troops. In his office is a mess, bottle of alcohol line the floor and the Colonel is lying in a bed as Caesar approaches him. He sits up slightly and begins to speak but we notice he can't. This bastard has got his comeuppance by contracting the virus himself and turned primitive. This isn't going to stop revenge though and the ape holds a gun to his head. He can't pull the trigger though, even though the Colonel welcomes it. Instead he leaves the gun for the job to be done by the man himself. As the chaos outside ensues, the other apes have nearly escaped into the forest and Caesar wants to join them but one of the soldiers on the wall spots them and begins firing rather than aiming at the opposing army. Red, the donkey, is the one to reload the gun for him. Caesar picks up some grenades and launches one to blow up part of the wall and stop the attack on his clan but Preacher shoots him with an arrow from behind. This soldier is the one from the beginning that Caesar releases to show mercy but it's come back to haunt him. Red goes to get his soldier a grenade launcher and Preacher is about to kill Caesar but is blown up by the donkey in a turn out for the books. Caesar finishes the job with him grenades by blowing up a tanker which explodes through the gas lines and reduced the site to rubble. As this happens he makes a break to the tunnel and escapes to the outside. Standing up he notices the size on the new army, as one by one they turn around and notice the ape's leader whilst slowly raising their guns. Instead of shooting him, a rumble is heard further up the mountain and the explosions are created an avalanche. Terror ensues as the army is covered and destroyed but also the apes are in trouble and climb the tallest trees for safety.
The apes and Nova continue their journey to their name home and finally reach their new peaceful land. As Caesar and Maurice look over the happy apes celebrating their freedom, Maurice notices the arrow wound that his leader received earlier. Knowing that his time is up, Caesar asks Maurice to make sure that his son is protected and Maurice replies, saying that his son shall know what his father did to protect this clan. With that, Caesar, the hero, passes away in peace underneath the only tree in sight.
This was a brilliant end to the trilogy but also a sad one in more ways than one. This ending not only finished a great set of movies but also brought a close to the life of an ape we've all come to know. Andy Serkis is without fail the most underappreciated actor in how much time and effort he puts into each role he plays. The special effects throughout this movie were second to none and being able to show emotions on each single ape and make them have their own characters was simply phenomenal for everyone involved. Along with the dramatic musical score and storyline, with the adding of some humour in order to balance out the darkest of the three, this film will take some beating if they ever choose to go back and reboot this in the future. Even Woody Harrelson as a bad guy worked. Matt Reeves will now move onto The Batman with my blessings. The bravery, sacrifice and love shown throughout, in the end showed how humanity should be, except the apes were better than the humans by the end, through no fault of their own.
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