Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (2024)

This is a thrilling, emotional blockbuster and the most consistently exciting CGI-era franchise, with breathtaking effects, empathy for characters, and thoughtful questions about society, domination, and coexistence. It leaves the viewer eager for the next chapter.

The review describes the film as a handsome blockbuster that harks back to classic Hollywood Westerns, with sincerity and conviction in its epic adventure. It singles out the eerie motif of ordinary ruins and the film's sincere commitment to its story.

The film drills into character and culture for a thoughtful take on history and clashing societies, with strong VFX and enough of an arc to stand alone as the start of a new trilogy. It is less action-heavy than predecessors but a promising, chewy entry with big potential.

The review portrays it as a sturdy epic of simian civil war with contemporary political hints, where a human-free utopia is disrupted by revolution and a quest for justice. It singles out the carefully rendered sustainable ape world and high-end VFX action.

The critic sees the film as a smart rethink of the durable sci-fi concept, delivering character-driven storytelling with youthful energy and impressive world-building. It singles out the emotional depth of the new protagonist Noa and the sophisticated visuals for praise, while noting the story feels a bit overstuffed.

The critic notes that humanity’s worst instincts remain central, with the film functioning as a reboot of a reboot exploring myth and regression. It highlights the fresh characters and the contrast between wise orangutans and power-hungry leaders.

The critic views the film as an effective reboot that finally reaches the ape-ruled future with a survival tale and connects to the original's spirit through its cult-kingdom drama. It singles out the organic motion-capture performances and classical pacing for praise, while criticizing its length and noting it may not be a major hit.

The film lacks the grim urgency of predecessors but has great visuals and ideas; the final act shines, though early parts are a slog due to unexciting characters; it gets the franchise's social critique right.

The film offers decent thrills, spectacular action and engaging characters in a family-friendly fantasy adventure. It is a serviceable potboiler rather than a must-see, with more cartoony apes and fantasy tropes replacing the intensity of prior entries.

It is a decent romp with thrilling set-pieces and glittering CGI that excels visually, but suffers from too many apes, predictable plotting, clunky dialogue, and a sense of stretched filler for future installments. The film comes alive mainly in ape-human interactions.

The film offers spectacle and thrills but lacks the smarts and ambition of its predecessors.

This ripping action-adventure features stellar effects and a superb lead performance from Owen Teague. It delivers a muscular blockbuster that is far more intelligent and mature than most event movies, maintaining the high standards of the previous trilogy.

The film is a paradoxical epic modelled on Apocalypto, with humour and horror in equal measure. It reworks elements of the series and The Jungle Book through Proximus Caesar's quest for human power.

The critic calls it a top-quality summer blockbuster that brings fresh blood and new ideas to the series while remaining true to its established world. They single out the phenomenal visuals of nature reclaiming human spaces and the superb motion capture performances as standout elements.

The critic praises Wes Ball’s exciting new chapter that proves there’s still life in the franchise, highlighting the mix of action thrills, visual spectacle, and thoughtful themes, along with strong performances and motion-capture.

The critic finds the film a strong continuation of an excellent series, noting how mythology evolves into power structures among the apes. It singles out the franchise's uncommon thoughtfulness and insight for praise.

The critic praises the film for giving new life to the franchise by advancing the story hundreds of years into the future with a fresh angle and strong adventure elements. They single out the advancements in performance-capture acting and the production design for particular praise.

It is handily the best of the new Apes series, a film that fast-forwards deep into the post-ape world and lets us live there for a moment with quiet scenes appreciated. The reboot series excels most in its special effects.

The film delivers on story and spectacle with captivating performances, astounding VFX and richly developed characters. Wes Ball brings awe-inspiring post-apocalyptic set pieces and youthful rebellion to this fresh and satisfying chapter.

The review notes the film's evolution into a post-Caesar world with new characters and strong effects, praising the villain and some imagery, but criticizes pacing, conventional storytelling, and lack of daring compared to predecessors. It's a passable but unremarkable exercise.

The critic finds the film a technical marvel in its ape effects but narratively competent at best, lacking character development and ambition, making one miss Andy Serkis's performance. It praises the visual effects but criticizes the pedestrian storytelling and franchise maintenance feel.

The critic criticizes the film for abandoning the bold storytelling and interesting characters of previous entries, resulting in bland franchise fodder lacking courage or daring ideas. They single out the flat characters and lack of subtext as major complaints.

The critic finds it a solid but not groundbreaking entry that builds a fascinating world and proves the franchise has life left, praising the visuals and performances, but notes it doesn't fully explore new ideas.

It's a visually stunning but middling sequel that starts sluggishly but has tense climax and points to future, no classic but keeps franchise going.