War for the Planet of the Apes

The best trilogy since The Dark Knight? Undoubtedly! The final installment of the trilogy is much more of a depressing drama than an action spectacle, which is a bit of a bummer (I think the conclusion of a trilogy would deserve a pumped-up action inferno), but the upside is that even without "war" the apes work flawlessly. The CGI is a few levels above anything else we've seen so far, the emotions work better here than in any emotional blackmail film, and the pace hurtles forward faster than a draft horse. Another big upside is the villain, played by Woody Harrelson, who fits the bill perfectly. By the end the whole theater was crying, the woman behind me was considering running away as the emotional fit she was experiencing was too much for her. An emotional experience. 90% (24/07/2017)

I'm struck by how many people complain that there is “not enough war" in War for the Planet of the Apes. I, on the other hand, am glad there isn’t. The war scenes that are there are enough for me - they are so suggestive and gritty that I most definitely didn't need more. I am so pleased that the unimaginably cutting-edge effects serve mainly to create 100% believable characters and we can follow their story - especially Caesar's. A story that shows us one of the most heroic film characters of all time (I mean that, deadly serious), deals with humanity and inhumanity, skillfully develops the ideas of the 2011 film (who would have expected it back then?) and gets closer and closer to the 1968 film. I don't have a single reservation about the directing and its atmospheric scenes, I didn't really expect so much emotion from start to finish, in terms of acting it’s top notch (the Colonel and Nova are the only interesting humans, and that is the way it should be) and most importantly, it's still interesting and engaging and epic, though at the same time intimate. And that Michael Giacchino music! (15/07/2017)

The initial draw into the action with a chilling forest scene is still fine, but as soon as the generic piano motif trying to mine the viewer for emotion kicks in, it was clear that it was over and the third time was definitely not going to be the charm. This is a film that could have been anything: a war apocalypse to save the world, an ape odyssey, a grim post-apocalyptic ape drama. Unfortunately, however, it’s a bit of a patchwork of everything and as a result, it lacks a strong theme, something fatal compared to the previous episodes, especially the first one, which also had a nice "realistic natural disaster" feel to it. The acting of the rendered apes is a class above that of any real actors. Unfortunately, even Woody Harrelson picked a weaker moment and an absolutely bad movie. Two stars for the visual effects and (digital) expressions of the apes, which ironically were the only tangible, real ones. (14/10/2017)

My disappointment with the last film was so great that I avoided the trailers for the third one, feeling their uselessness. However, Reeves was either kept sedated or some brave producer really believed him, and I can hardly resist getting excited about arguably the boldest summer blockbuster in years. The opening action is still very forced, but then for the next hour, four monkeys, whose CGI rendering is a CGI reality approaching perfection, track a military unit through a snowy landscape at a slow but cinematically precise and deliberate pace. All the while, they are driven by the best possible cinematic engine, i.e., the desire for revenge. It was clear that all would be forgiven and I just prayed that it would keep going like this, as Michael Giacchino conducts the minimalist retro score and the cinematography flirts with the turn of the sixth and seventh decades of the last century. And that’s not all. Woody Harrelson varies the best possible creation of khaki madness spewed from the heart of darkness, and after the famous dialogue with Caesar, the film jumps on the dark wave of the erratic nature of desired good and the lure of ambiguous evil to bring it to an epic end. Even amidst the cheesy interludes and pathos of heroic self-sacrifice, it still keeps a grim face that relies on heroes who are no longer amusing apes who can do funny gestures, but solid figures whose emerging evolutionary supremacy is not to be doubted. (13/07/2017)

Four stars out of love for Caesar and out of respect for Matt Reeves' courage to make a film that is largely based on silence, gestures and slowness. Unfortunately, the attempt not to rush the culmination of the trilogy leads to the film completely sleeping through it. A strong opponent such as Koby is missing (and therefore the film must also evoke him at certain points, at least as a phantasm), and Woody Harrelson is very doll-like. It’s a bit of an easy template, a light version of Colonel Kurtz deprived of real demons. The introductory part is also captivating thanks to the inventive minimalism of Michael Giacchino and Seresin's detailed camera with variable depth of field. Unfortunately, the prison break in the second half drags on - it lacks energy and the supporting dilemma. The unraveling itself is imaginative and in the key of the entire trilogy, but the promised ape-apocalypse is not nearly as fatal and overwhelming as the trilogy imaginatively transmitting humanity to the monkeys deserves. The triumph is the incredibly detailed and precise animation and the acting of everyone involved. A slight disappointment. [70%] (12/07/2017)