It’s interesting to look into these ideas. Ever since 1968 with the release of the original Planet of the Apes, the series has been exploring ideas relating to intelligence and evolution. These things go hand in hand and make up what is and will continue to be a perfectly poignant modern trilogy.
The Planet of the Apes trilogy has been vastly underappreciated by modern movie fans. This is a trilogy with three legitimately great movies that doesn’t get mentioned in the same breath as other well-known trilogies. Every great trilogy has a weakest link. But in this case, the weak link is an underrated great movie.
After the greatness that was Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, the filmmakers went for the trifecta of great Apes movies and made War. Somehow, Matt Reeves created a movie that lived up to the first two, while giving us something almost completely different.
After the modest success of Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes arrived to much-deserved critical and fan acclaim. It is the best, most complex, and most compelling installment out of the three. Director Matt Reeves took what worked from the first movie and expanded upon it to make it a much better and more realistic movie.
This is a movie that does the important job of setting the tone for a movie series. It is fairly dark, as the series will progressively get darker. But what it does best is set a high standard for the summer blockbuster. It is a standard that most films don’t meet. But its successors certainly do.
Robert's Thoughts