Caeser, the main ape, is a great protaganist, and his flaws as a leader are made apparent through his lines and actions. Andy Serkis is great at portraying CGI characters, and this is no exception.
Something a lot of recent movies lack is any kind of comedic awareness. When jokes are delivered at the wrong time, it can take all of the tension out of a scene. An example of this is in Thor: The Dark World. Even though the whole universe is at stake, it never feels that way, due in part to the constant jokes. War for the Planet of the Apes however, has a great balance of humor and tension, and at no point do either cancel each other out.
The CGI in War is second to none. The closeups on the Apes looks incredible, and when they're in motion, it looks great. In the previous installments, the apes have looked somewhat rubbery when in motion, but that's fixed in this one.
The villain, played by Woody Harrelson, is a very interesting counterpart to Caesar. His motivations are justified through his eyes, which mirrors the arc Caesar is given.
This movie has a lot of cool ties to the original films, which make it even more enjoyable. It's similar to
Rogue One in that the movie as a whole flows into the original. One of these references is that in the 1968
Planet of the Apes, the humans are mute.
This plot point is never explained, until 49 years later. The virus that was released at the end of 2011's
Rise of the Planet of the Apes has mutated by the the time the events of
War for the Planet of the Apes occur. The virus now damages the human's brain making them mute, which works as a great bridge to the original.
The Bad:
There really isn't anything to dislike about this movie. It has a compelling hero and villain, a great narrative, and great writing.
The list of trilogies that get better with each film is short, (
The Hobbit, the
Star Wars prequels, the
Captain America series) and I'm glad that the
Planet of the Apes reboot can be added to that list.