APE VS HUMAN FINALE TRIUMPHS
gives in to his “Koba” side, you wonder if Caesar is really a “bad ape”, to quote the movie’s quirkiest character, called Bad Ape, played by Steve Kahn. Or are the simians as conflicted as any human being can be? Are the two species then the same after all? As per the intention of French author Pierre Boulle, on whose 1963 novel
movie franchise was based all those decades ago, the movie reflects humanity back to the cinemagoer. It pushes us to think about how we engage with and think of the that other species that is 99 per cent like us humans.
sets up how Earth, as we know it, is on a trajectory to turning into the alien world seen in the 1968 blockbuster, where apes became the ultimate rulers on Earth. This trilogy actually shows how it leads up to that critical alternative history of mankind.
In the penultimate finale is a computer-generated avalanche that possibly leaves only a handful of humans alive, including some key characters that we already know from the old movies. And the ones we know, like Nova, cannot speak.
Does the thought of why the humans seems to be losing control over the Blue Marble impinge in your mind as you take in the cruel, inhumane actions done unto imprisoned apes or those in the forests?
Who exactly is the more humane in the movie — the warring, territorial, cold Colonel or the too emotional Caesar?
Esoteric issues aside, directed by Reeves, was an overlong movie at a twohour plus runtime. It could have benefited from some fine editing. For instance, in Caesar’s meeting with the Bad Ape, he stares at a hole in the wall from whence soon items are thrown out. A funny giggly moment, yes, but the camera could have just zoomed to the cave’s entrance and had the items thrown at it in a shock-and-gasp moment instead of wasting 10 seconds before anything happens.
This was the same concern during the various war scenes. Still, is relevant for that apocalyptic feel, given today’s world affairs. The humans are going extinct with their constant wars, and maybe, just maybe our closest cousins, the simians, will rule Earth soon enough!
As the end loomed on the big screen, in glorious 2D Atmos sound, I was left hoping for an opportunity to catch a complete marathon, right from to the popular and classic Franklin J. Schaffnerdirected movie, all by 20th Century Fox.