Episode 139: War For The Planet Of The Apes

It’s time to revisit the final film of the first “Planet Of The Apes” reboot trilogy this week on BIRD PROTOCOL! You already know we had to give it up for our boy Caesar one last time. Directed once again by Matt Reeves, “War For The Planet Of The Apes” is the last chapter of Caesar’s story and one hell of a movie. Starring Andy Serkis, Woody Harrelson, Amiah Miller, Steve Zahn, and more, this movie shifts focus almost completely on the apes as their defensive war comes to a close, revenge is in the air, and the apes seek a new home. Talk about a satisfying conclusion to an excellent story. As with “Dawn”, this movie is pitch-perfect. It is a superb finale. The CGI and motion capture work is immaculate, the cast (especially Serkis and Zahn) gives an outstanding performance, the story and world-building are excellent, the themes are deep and complex, the action is awesome, and the emotional payoff is delivered perfectly. What more could you want in a sci-fi film? It truly is a modern classic of the genre and an example of a blockbuster done exceptionally right. The whole series is. It is a travesty that this movie wasn’t recognized by the Academy for more than the SFX. We spend most of this episode unpacking why this movie rips and sharing everything we love about it. We also talk about the critical response to the film, some of the themes and ideas behind the film, which films influenced the making of “War”, Caesar’s journey and ultimate end, and what ties this film (both good and bad) to the first episode we did on “Kingdom”. We shine a light on Steve Zahn’s excellent performance as Bad Ape, discuss Nova and The Colonel being examples of the right way to use a human to further the apes’ story, marvel at Serkis’ swan song as Caesar and how they showed the weight of his journey both visually and in the writing, break down some of the various action set pieces, ponder the skill it takes to make someone cry for imaginary apes, and more. Is this the best in the trilogy? Probably. We eventually rank the films and share our reasoning. We love this movie. We love apes. Apes together strong. We’ll be back next week with either some music or some recommendations. INITIATE BIRD PROTOCOL! Follow us on Instagram! Instagram: @palmreadr @otismorrisdude