Movie Monday: War for the Planet of the Apes

Last week, my husband and I had a real date night treat: dinner out and a movie in the theater! Even better, we went to a theater that's been newly refurbished in our area that our son told us had real recliners. So amazing!! These theaters have been refitted with FULL recliners - the foot rests go all the way up, the backs lean back - ahhhh! Almost like being at home. For someone like me - very short and can't sit for long with my legs down due to medical problems with blood pressure & heart rate - this is a game-changer! I've been frustrated lately because lots of theaters are putting in new seats around here, but they are using huge seats with high seat backs and extra leg room. I'm too small to lean back comfortably in these giant seats, the way my husband does, and the wider space between aisles and high seat backs means I can't usually put my feet up anymore, either. I LOVED the new recliner theater and may not ever go anywhere else!

Oh, and the movie was good, too! I almost forgot, in my ecstasy over the recliners. We saw The War for the Planet of the Apes, the third and final prequel to the original Planet of the Apes movie (1968). My husband and I were big fans of the original movie, and our whole family has enjoyed these prequels. This one was just as good as its predecessors. If you haven't seen those yet, I highly recommend you go back and start at the beginning, with Rise of the Planet of the Apes and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes.

The War for the Planet of the Apes picks up where the last movie left off, with Caesar (the original intelligent chimpanzee who started this whole revolt) and his followers ensconced in the forest, trying to stay protected from the human armies that are trying to find them. Caesar has maintained his focus on peace (though the humans don't seem interested in that goal) and only fighting to defend themselves, never to attack the humans offensively. That all changes when a defector leads the human armies to the apes' secret cave hideouts, and Caesar (and many others) suffers a horrific loss. Once the humans have been fought off, Caesar knows that his first priority must be to get the remaining members of his group to safety and find a new hiding spot, but he is personally bent on revenge now as well.

Caesar sends the community on a journey to a new safe place they've heard about, while he and a few loyal followers head off in another direction, tracking the human army - and especially a ruthless man known as The Colonel, played by Woody Harrelson. Along the way, they pick up a deaf human girl, whom they name Nova, played wonderfully by Amiah Miller, and another ape who can talk, who thinks his name is Bad Ape because he grew up in a zoo and is voiced hilariously by Steve Zahn. The small group makes their way through snowy mountains until they find the abandoned armory (that was later used as a quarantine facility) to face off against The Colonel. The humans have plenty of high-powered weapons at their disposal here, though, so the odds are against the apes...but hey, all of this is leading to The Planet of the Apes, so we know how it ends, right?

Like the previous two prequels, this movie was filled with action and suspense that kept us glued to the screen (that and those wonderful recliners). Also like its predecessors, this film is also filled with warmth, poignancy, and plenty of humor, which is why I enjoy these movies so much. Ironically, there is plenty of human drama among the primates. Since this is the last prequel, it was also fun drawing the lines between this movie and what we know happens in The Planet of the Apes. For instance, when the group names the little girl Nova, I remembered there was a human female in the original movie named Nova. We both enjoyed this latest addition to the saga very much. Now, we are thinking of watching the 2001 remake of The Planet of the Apes, to come full-circle (and since neither of us has seen the remake yet).

The War of the Planet of the Apes is now playing in theaters. You can purchase tickets ahead of time through Fandango - Know Before You Go! Buy Movie Tickets in Advance. (look for a recliner theater near you!). The first two prequels, Rise of the Planet of the Apes and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (both highly recommended) are available for streaming through Amazon, starting at $2.99 or on DVD through Netflix or Amazon.

Note: This post contains affiliate links. Purchases from these links provide a small commission to me (pennies per purchase), to help offset the time I spend writing for this blog, at no extra cost to you.

First two links below are for streaming, starting at $2.99 each (regardless of what price the link shows) and the last three links are for inexpensive DVDs: