Film - War for the Planet of the Apes

 Since I was a child and first watched the Planet of the Apes series on TV and collected all the cards, I’ve always taken the side of the apes.As I’ve grown up – and the older I have the privilege to get - the more I believe in the humans are stupid theory; animals live in their own territory and generally stay out of each other’s way.Human’s invade countries, think of themselves as superior beings and kill their own kind.This has become more evident during this excellent trio of films as I’ve watched Cesar grow from an orphaned baby into a fine adult and leader of the apes. Apart from his intelligence, he possesses more, what we would call, human, qualifies than any person I know.What’s more, now he seems to have taken a leaf out of the Alex Ferguson leadership manual ‘The only time to give up is when you are dead'.As the apes have been developing into the civilised species, the human race is reaching post-apocalyptic stage as a virus is threatening to wipe out humanity. While the virus makes the apes smarter and they live peacefully while building their own new world, the humans are out to wipe them out.Eventually, when he loses too many of those he loves in one strike due to a traitor in his midst, we see the dark side of Cesar. He sends all the apes to a desert found by his son Blue Eyes and his friend to be so far away from the humans they won’t bother to trek over to kill them.However, Cesar can’t let the loss of his loved ones go and sets out to kill the mystery Colonel responsible. Maurice, Luca and Rocket his principal deputies won’t let him go alone so they set out on a long journey to kill the enemy at source.Along the way, they make friends with Bad Ape and Nova. The former has been living on his own for years and hadn’t seen any other apes, and yet taught himself to talk watching films. He’s a bit of an eccentric, like a Gollum (LOTR) character. I love him! Nova is a young girl mute from contracting the virus and living alone in the woods.I don’t think I could watch Woody Harrelson in anything for a while. Playing the Colonel, he is the evil man responsible for killing my most loved beings in the world. He’s insisting this is the only way to get rid of the virus whereas a rival army is coming to get rid of his infected soldiers as they believe there is a medicinal cure coming.I love all the contrasts in these films. The apes suddenly becoming apes when they need to run fast, they go down on all fours, when they need to get away they climb up tall trees at lightning speed but when they’re riding a horse in battle, they ride it like humans do.The third Planet of the Apes has left me adoring Maurice even more than the first time I set eyes on him. (Our ape is name after him but pronounced Morris). I’m bereaved at all the loyal and brave apes we lose along the way.

The great leader will embrace audacity and the unthinkable, will not shirk from making controversial and unpopular decisions, and will have unshakeable confidence in his convictions.

…..Michael Moritz after studying Alex Ferguson for years.

10/10