WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES

Cert Running time

This hair-raising action adventure provides a suitably spectacular and satisfyingly epic end to a thrilling sci-fi trilogy. Not only has the series maintained its quality since it began in 2011, it’s a rare beast which has improved, along the way going from good to great to gripping.

In the two previous films, human civilisation was devastated by a virus and the apes became intelligent, leading to a fierce inter-species conflict.

Now the remainder of humanity is on the warpath and the talking apes are being hunted to extinction. But it’s at this critical moment that Caesar, the chief chimp, abandons his tribe and sets off on a mission of personal revenge with a small group of friends.

However, when he is confronted with the consequences of his disastrous failings as a leader, father and spouse, he seeks to redeem himself and save his tribe.

Reprising his role as Caesar, Andy Serkis provides the powerful emotional heart of this film with another mesmeric and masterful performance.

Had he not been wrapped up in CGI for three films, Serkis would certainly have been receiving some Academy Award love for his performances. He still may.

Across the barricades and leading an army of fanatics, Woody Harrelson brings a terrific sense of menace to the role of the crazed Colonel McCullough.

The ambitious script carries unmistakable echoes of Francis Ford Coppola’s Vietnam war epic Apocalypse Now. Even older primary school kids may struggle with the heavyweight tone of a film pitched far ahead of movies featuring spangly spandex superheroes or wise-cracking giant robots.

That’s not to say there isn’t humour spread through the film, but it’s there to lighten the weight of the drama, not to make you laugh out loud.

Mean, meaty and increasingly tense, the explosive and emotional finale proves these Hollywood apes are still at the top of the blockbuster tree.