Rated Greg’s Top 5 Trilogies*

1. Indiana Jones (1981 – 1989)
2. The Dark Knight (2005 – 2012)
3. Star Wars (1977 – 1983)
4. Toy Story (1995 – 2010)  Planet of the Apes (2011 – 2017)
5. Bourne (2002-2007)  Toy Story (1995 – 2010)

*All installments must be good in order to qualify, eliminating the likes of Back to the Future, The Godfather, and Terminator.

I say this with ZERO percent sarcasm.  War for the Planet of the Apes deserves an Oscar nomination for Best Picture.  I understand why movies like Baby Driver and Get Out would never be considered for the classy affair, but if Academy voters are really doing their due diligence, the final chapter in this trilogy will get a seat at the adult table.  Do people understand how good these movies are?  From talking with friends it really seems like this decade’s Planet of the Apes series is the most misunderstood franchise out there.  Critics are on board (per Rotten Tomatoes, Rise of the Planet of the Apes got an 81%, the sequel Dawn 90%, and the just released War 95%), but I fear the general public might look at an advertisement for the Ape movies with the same disdain that a preview for Transformers evokes.  It shouldn’t.

Although it is meant to be seen on the biggest screen possible, War just isn’t your typical July popcorn blockbuster.  The tone is much more fitting of a super serious December release like Zero Dark Thirty or The Revenant (it has NO BUSINESS being PG-13).  If you’re worried about not being able to take the story seriously, don’t be.  The CGI motion capture technology is so freakin realistic and the voice work is absolutely impeccable.  I promise within the first ten minutes you’ll be watching the ape leader Caesar bark orders as if it were Tom Hardy himself.  It’s such an emotive and dark two hours and change!  I love it. Shoutout to Steve Zahn’s “Bad Ape” (my favorite character of the year).  Shoutout to the “Michael Jordan of being a son of a bitch”, Woody Harrelson.  And finally shoutout to Andy Serkis as Caesar. He deserves as much acclaim as any actor come awards season.  Grade: A-