The new Planet of the Apes trilogy redefined the franchise with its focused social commentary, more robust exploration of the relationship between animals and humanity, and respect for what the 1968 original did. Now, Wes Ball’s Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes takes the franchise into new territory by shifting its tone away from war aspects seen in the prequel trilogy and focusing on an adventurous coming-of-age story while honoring Caesar’s legacy.
The Nerds of Color got to join selected journalists and attend a special presentation of the Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes editorial process. During that time, we got to see a couple of clips that gave us an idea of how it is a standalone film that connects to the previous trilogy while also stepping toward the 1968 film that started it all.
Though the motion-capture work was done, rough animation and facial animation still needed to be completed. Despite not being final, you could tell what kind of story Ball wanted to tell by shifting away from the darker tones with more emotional weight. They haven’t even recorded music yet.
Ball says that Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is a coming-of-age adventure inspired by Kurosawa and films like Apocalypto while infusing real-life rite-of-passage influences from rituals and ceremonies like bat mitzvahs.
We won’t go into great detail about what happens in these scenes to avoid spoilers. However, we give you an idea of what Ball is trying to achieve in extending the Planet of the Apes trilogy reboot by doing something different in its storytelling.
Our first scene establishes the Kingdom of the Planet of the Ape‘s place in history. The chronicle card reads “many generations after” following Caesar’s reign. We are told there will be a brief recap to help get audiences who have watched the prequel trilogy caught up and those who haven’t watched an idea of what’s about to happen. The fact that it is set several generations in the future is purely intentional. It will be explained later on in this piece.
Earth has naturally healed itself. Buildings may have fallen into disrepair because of a lack of maintenance. It’s beautiful to see what has the Earth has returned to without humanity perverting it with their industrialized habits. These towering structures become colossal gardens that reach the sky and have become homes to eagles and their nests. The majestic birds will serve as their companions for the remainder of their lives, so they must find one and connect with it because it is a rite of passage that tests whether the chimps are ready for adulthood and accept the responsibilities that come with that role.
The camera movement reveals how dangerous the climb is. They have to climb higher and higher, and they’ll also have to make some perilous swings to get to the other side. Additionally, the camera work also gives audiences an idea of the size and scope of the Earth that has since reverted back to its natural form. It’s an adventure that doubles as a rite of passage for these chimps.
Ball says eagles are a big part of this culture of characters. “Part of the journey into adulthood of these characters is to go out on this climb on what they think are mountains but are actually something else because our characters so far in the future, a lot of knowledge and information has been lost,” he said.
The second scene shown was a play on testing the chimps’ courage and how Noa (Owen Teague) is the de facto leader of the trio. In it, a precious blanket had been stolen by someone or something that wasn’t revealed to us. It was lying outside a dark tunnel, which scared the chimps. Ball compares the scene to kids daring one another to get closer to a witch’s dark and scary home and knock on the door. Noa is the one who finds himself as the chimp who has to get the blood-stained blanket. As he slowly inches closer to it, his friends motion him to keep going. It’s as if they were playing a game of dare. Of course, Noa retrieves it. While they leave in victory, they are also running, scarred by the sounds from the tunnel.
Based on the footage, the tone of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is very different from the previous three films. There is more of an adventure and coming-of-age story to it. While the Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes takes place “many generations” after the War for the Planet of the Apes, Ball makes sure that his film honors what came before it by acknowledging Caesar’s existence and hiding some well-placed easter eggs.
Ball’s goal was to take the franchise in a new direction without disrespecting what was already established, which is why one of the film’s central themes is history. While the film does that by acknowledging Caesar’s legacy, it also explores the dangers of how his teachings could be perverted to curry a cult following.
One of the other ways Ball intends to honor the entire franchise is to insert the apes’ sudden interest in the cosmos. Space is woven into the DNA of the Planet of the Apes films, and the footage briefly shows a planetary mobile hanging from the ceiling and Noa looking through a space telescope. Though they may look like easter eggs at first, Ball teases that they are seeds that could grow into something bigger in the sequels if Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes turns out to be a success.
However, Ball says they aren’t exactly in a rush to introduce missing time-traveling astronauts and want to avoid having gimmicks like time machines as a means to connect to the other films. But that doesn’t mean there won’t be other visual and auditory easter eggs related to the franchise that die-hard fans would immediately recognize.
The third scene leans into the film’s central themes about the truth about history and Caesar’s legacy. Ball explains that something terrible has happened to Noa’s village, which forces him to go on a new journey. Along the way, he meets Raka (Peter Macon), a very sweet and wise orangutan who’s also had some terrible things happen to him. While Noa believes he knows everything about the great and powerful Caesar, Raka is there to set the record straight.
Ball says fans could imagine Raka as one of the long descendants of Maurice — one of Caesar’s original disciples who taught that apes are stronger together, that apes should not hurt other apes, and that knowledge is power. Though the director would have liked to have seen Raka sit on a throne in a temple surrounded by an array of tanks and the scared scrolls that carried “the true words” from the ’68 version, he says the orangutan is one of the last who knows the truth because that knowledge had been passed down for generations.
Raka educates our young hero about the Caesar and his teachings as the fire crackles. It becomes apparent that Caesar’s teachings have been blurred because of the passage of time or intervening influences that have perverted them so that they could fulfill their own agendas. Though it’s a dense exchange, it’s an exploration of preserving history, and the truth of one’s teachings comes to light. It’s a beautiful and quiet scene that visualizes the changes of civilization. The imagery of how apes have become the dominant species while humans revert to a primal stage and their innovations have been laid to waste. Although, with no apes to record history, it is impossible to tell just how much time has passed. But it’s clear enough because no ape can remember Caesar’s teachings, nor are there any apes from that era. This is why Raka is so adamant about teaching it correctly.
To give us a small idea of how much time has passed, Proximus Caesar asks if Noa knows about the concept of evolution. He says that humans were once capable of many things like flying like eagles and communicating across oceans. However, he says in the era of ape dominance, it is their time to rule.
The scene also revealed one of the human characters in the film. Humans are feral creatures, but their curiosity is like any animal. The one we saw was attracted by the campfire. Raka names her Nova (Freya Allan) but is unsure why because they’ve all been named Nova since he could remember. He tells a frightened Noa that Nova only follows them because she is hungry. As such, Raka is the only one who seems to understand who they are and their behaviors. He reminds Noa that for apes to be the higher species, they must be able to show mercy. As such, Noa offers Nova a blanket and begins to see how much smarter they are when Nova uses the blanket to keep her warm.
A curious Noa asks Raka why Caesar cared so much for these Echoes, to which the orangutan says legend tells them that Caesar was reared by humans. It may be impossible, but it’s the truth. Raka reminds Noa why Caesar’s legend is important because he was an elder who led with decency, morality, strength, and compassion. But the one thing that Noa believes Caesar is grateful for is that he never had to share a camp with Nova, to which he sniffs and disgustingly gestures about Nova’s smelly order.
Our takes us to Proximus Caesar’s (Kevin Durand) kingdom. This beautiful sandy beach juxtaposed by rusty decaying shipwrecks has somehow beached themselves on the shore. To give us an idea of how much time has passed, Ball says sea levels have risen, cities have flooded, and steel towers are on the verge of collapsing. And yet, this is the castle. As such, Noa and Nova are brought here against their will. It’s a giant procession as apes hoot and howl at Nova. This kingdom is unlike the peaceful village Noa grew up in. The former is much more chaotic and uncivilized, while Noa’s quiet home reflects Caesar’s “ape stronger together” teaching.
Proximus is a new villain. The tyrannical ape leader is building his empire on the foundation of perverting Caesar’s teachings and using it to enslave other clans in search of remnants of human technologies. The bonobo ruler is also the first to see electricity’s potential and how it could be weaponized to enslave other clans. He is fascinated and respects what humans are capable of with their tools; as such, he is able to use their tech against others who would oppose him. For him, he plans to expand his kingdom by conquering other clans. In a way, his fascination is ultimately making him human. Just not the kind of human we think of and more of the ones that apes despise or look down upon.
Ball says these apes have entered their Bronze Age. Apes are seen bringing all kinds of metals like tin, copper, and other electric conductors to Proximus, who is wearing a crown and some other pieces of metal like an army general would to assert his position of power.
Ultimately, you get to see what Ball is going for in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. The director captures the spirit of the coming-of-age adventure through the active camera, which allows audiences to be with the characters as they go on their rite of passage and how they interact with their surrounding environment. Additionally, this is an extension of a story and not so much concerned with trying to continue the legacy of the previous three films. Instead, it sets itself far enough from them while also telling a new story that would honor Caesar’s legacy.
It’s a beautiful way to ground Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes without having to go too far into the fantastical aspects of some of the other films that came before the prequel trilogy. We still can believe that there are these intelligent apes who are building communities while also advancing towards an unknown future by learning about human history and using their relic technology to aid their clans or oppress them. So it should be interesting to see what other narrative steps Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes takes to march towards the 68 film.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes opens in theaters on May 10, 2024.