The reboot series that started with 2011’s “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” is one of the few postmillennial remakes that actually succeeded. The original “Planet of the Apes” from 1968, which had a forgettable Tim Burton remake in 2001, served as the inspiration for a remarkable achievement in American popular filmmaking in the 21st century. The trilogy consisting of “Rise of the Planet of the Apes,” “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes,” and “War for the Planet of the Apes” earned a combined $1.7 billion at the box office. These movies were massive action thrillers that explored deep questions about human nature and played with our fears of human extinction without being overly grim.
Similar to “Twilight Zone” creator Rod Serling, Amanda Silver and Rick Jaffa, who oversaw the series, understood the balance of seriousness in an apocalyptic fantasy. In the original 1968 “Planet of the Apes,” the main issue under examination was racism. The reboot trilogy, however, focused on humanity’s downfall due to a related flaw: our ambition to push moral boundaries and master the physical world, leading to a virus that nearly wipes out humanity and robs survivors of their intellect and speech.
The latest installment in the franchise, “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,” takes place hundreds of years later, revealing a world where apes have not made much progress in their human-free society. The story follows Noa, a member of a nonliterate society of peaceful apes who live among the ruins of a forgotten civilization. Proximus Caesar, a powerful ape claiming to continue the legacy of Caesar, rules over another group of apes. Unlike the wuss apes of Eagle Clan, Proximus believes in dominating the Earth at any cost, leading to conflict and the enslavement of other apes.
“Kingdom” challenges the current Hollywood trends by exploring themes of power, history, and civilization in a dystopian world. The film poses questions about the human-animal dynamic and the consequences of progress and ambition. As the finale of the series, “Kingdom” may not reach the same level of profound insights as the original “Planet of the Apes,” but it still offers a thought-provoking commentary on society and civilization.
