War for the Planet of the Apes - 4 smiles

"War for the Planet of the Apes," which caps off the story of how an alternate universe Earth was transformed from a bastion of humanity to being dominated by intelligent simians, is not only the best of the trilogy (which includes Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and Rise of the Planet of the Apes), but the best of all nine Planet of the Apes pictures. Powerful, heartbreaking and at times brutal, "War for the Planet of the Apes" provides more substance than spectacle. which is a surprise for a summer blockbuster. It would have been easy for writer/director Matt Reeves to take the easy way out: pit the dwindling human forces against the apes in a  winner-take-all contest. But Reeves, who co-write the script with Mark Bomback, wanted more, leaning heavily on themes of racism, the evils of war, the dangers of obsession, the poison of revenge and the importance of sacrifice. The movie is at times exciting, occasionally funny (one character has been added almost exclusively for comic relief) and, ultimately, poignant.

The story is told from he apes' perspective. The primary antagonist, Woody Harrelson's Colonel, is introduced obliquely and not given a full scene until the movie is a third of the way over. The main character is the ape Caesar (Andy Serkis), the leader who has for two movies sought peaceful coexistence with humans. But the Colonel is bent on genocide. He will accept nothing less than the obliteration of the apes and his brutal tactics force Caesar to confront the darker aspects of his nature. Accompanied by two companions, Rocket (Terry Notary) and the orangutan Maurice (Karin Konoval), Caesar sets out on a suicide quest to track and kill the Colonel. Along with way they are joined by an orphaned human girls , Nova (Amiah Miller) and a fearful loner who goes by the name Bad Ape (Steve Zahn). The motion capture special effects that transform Andy Serkis into Caesar are the most impressive technical achievements of the film. We never think of Caesar as anything but a fully realized individual. And Harrelson's portrayal of the twisted Colonel makes him the perfect foil for Caesar. "War for the Planet of the Apes" clearly paves the way for Planet of the Apes and is easily one of the summer's best films.