The warfare in War for the Planet of the Apes isn’t a lot between people and apes as it’s between simian chief Caesar (performed by way of movement seize by Andy Serkis) and Colonel J. Wesley McCullough (Woody Harrelson)—the latter the rogue and ruthless commander of a splinter group of troopers decided to protect humanity by annihilating the apes, who appeared poised to take management of Earth after a virus known as the Simian Flu has decimated mankind. As the story begins, Caesar suffers a heartbreaking loss by the hands of McCullough, and that devastation causes him to rethink his peace-loving methods and search revenge…not in opposition to all people, however in opposition to the cold-blooded killer colonel. From there, Caesar tracks his nemesis by way of blustery, snow-covered terrain, together with a small band of loyal followers and a mute, orphaned human lady they take underneath their wing. The journey to search out McCullough encompasses the good majority of the movie’s lumbering, self-important midsection, and is harking back to the vengeful quest undertaken by Hugh Glass, Leonardo DiCaprio’s embittered character from The Revenant, to search out his son’s assassin.

In reality, a lot of War is cobbled collectively from different (higher) films. It’s a patchwork of The Revenant, Schindler’s List, Apocalypse Now, The Ten Commandments, and The Great Escape. When Caesar lastly locates the shaven-headed McCullough, he’s shocked to search out that the crazed, Kurtz-like colonel (“Ape-ocalypse Now” is graffitied on a wall, in case we miss the resemblance) oversees a focus camp crammed with apes. His singular mission to kill the colonel instantly morphs right into a larger trigger: to free his mates and convey down not solely McCullough, however his savage military as properly.

Sadly, all of this sounds extra thrilling than it really is. Director Matt Reeves and co-screenwriter Mark Bomback take this humans-vs.-apes story oh so significantly, which squelches a lot of the joy and journey. They by no means miss a chance to tug at our heartstrings, with one painfully poignant scene after one other; these “touching” interludes drag the film down and bloat the working time to an interminable 140 minutes. Of course, all the people, apart from the mute lady, are portrayed as evil, whereas all the apes are pure, upright, and good. Yes, Caesar offers in to his darkish aspect, however the filmmakers bail him out of the ethical dilemma he’s mired in when it comes time to enact revenge, thus permitting him to stay unsullied. It looks like dishonest, and albeit, so does the ending. The precise warfare, with helicopters hovering, weapons blasting, and explosions erupting, comes within the closing reel and is primarily between McCullough’s troopers and what’s left of the U.S. navy, who’re out to terminate the colonel (with excessive prejudice, one assumes). When the navy are completed with McCullough’s forces, they flip their sights on the apes. But as a substitute of a closing confrontation, the filmmakers as soon as once more bail out the primates with a fast decision that defies credibility.

War isn’t with out its pleasures. The motion-capture results, make-up, and CGI are all exemplary; and Serkis, if a bit too dour, remains to be wonderful because the towering Moses-like determine decided to steer his flock to a rumored promised land. The different standout is Steve Zahn as Bad Ape, a zoo escapee who discovered to talk English from his former handlers. Bad Ape (that’s what the zookeepers known as him) is an excellent creation, and Zahn’s efficiency is hilarious and heartfelt; the character is so endearing he needs to be given his personal film. That brings us to Harrelson, however sadly, the gifted actor is badly miscast. He merely lacks the gravitas the position requires, as his McCullough is extra just-plain-crazy Mickey from Natural Born Killers than mad genius Kurtz. He’s even given a Kurtz-like speech wherein he defends his actions, however the prolonged monologue lacks conviction. Try as he may, Harrelson simply can’t pull it off.

For followers of the collection, War is clearly a must-see; simply don’t go in anticipating the epic ape-human battle for the ages that the posters and trailers counsel. This War is extra somber than thrilling.