SPOILER ALERT! BEWARE!
Many generations have passed since the death of Caesar (a top a hill in the most dramatic fashion, no less), but we are finally back with the apes. Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, which topped the box office this weekend with $56.5 million, returns to our changed planet. The Simian Flu, Caesar’s fight, and human kind’s inability to coexist has led to the current shown state of things on Earth.
In this newest film, Noa takes center stage. We follow him as his clan is ravaged by a radical ape colony, which misconstrues Caesar’s words and uses them as motive to create tyrannical rule. Humans lie in the shadows, as the Simian Flu variant has left them mute and back to cavemen-like origins. After Noa is left for dead after a brutal attack, he gains the help of a sage, wise (and GAY!) orangutan to help him get back on course and protect his clan.
On their trek to get back to Noa’s clan, they meet Nova, a (seemingly) infected human being who finds it necessary to join Noa’s journey at all times.
At this point in the film, everything hits the fan. Gay orangutans drown, humans reveal that they speak, William H. Macy is choked to death and thrown into the ocean, and a big ‘ole scary monkey screams “What a wonderful day!” like a sadistic reincarnation of Mr. Rogers. It rocks.
Now, for context, I didn’t follow Caesar’s journey in theaters. I recently dove into the franchise at home and, while I was still blown away by the visual spectacle that are the series of films, I did think I would’ve better appreciated the story and merit of the films in a theater. So, Buncha Crunch in hand, being able to watch Kingdom at my local theater was a complete thrill.
Due to that fact, I fell in love with Noa in a way I was never able to with Caesar. Maybe that’s the point? Caesar was always supposed to read as an accidental prophet, while Noa is someone just wanting to make his family proud and live his life normally. Noa is amazing and Owen Teague’s performance is spectacular. His ability to show Noa’s inquisitive apprehension with his life-or-death journey is astounding. Also? Gotta say? That’s a handsome monkey!
The human/animal dichotomy in this film also seems to carry a bit of a different weight going into this rumored trilogy that is intriguing. The selfishness being paired with unknown, remote human hubs and a bubbling sense of possibility about coexistence, even if for a single human, is something I’m excited to tackle going forward.
I’d argue that the biggest takeaway from Kingdom is the interesting conversation it has about misconstruing words, organized religion, and the idea of being deemed a “hero”. The feeling of Caesar's presence, though long gone, fills every second of the film. I hope the discussion continues.
To get really serious now…I’m going to need a full scale replica of Noa’s clan’s bird towers real soon. I want to climb those structures and look at falcons and then dry out fish. Afterwards, I want to travel to the abandoned LAX and make snide comments like “Honestly? Never looked better.” or “This isn’t even the worst LAX experience I’ve had.” or “Ya know, this airport still doesn’t have a good place to grab a coffee.”
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is now in theaters.