20th Century Studios’ Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes opens in theaters nationwide this weekend, and the film is already garnering rave reviews from critics.
Kingdom is Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with critics praising its innovative special effects, scale, and cinematic beauty while proclaiming it one of the best editions in the iconic franchise.
The film — which brought in $6.6 million at the domestic box office in previews — takes place many generations after 2017’s War for the Planet of the Apes and tells the story of a young ape’s harrowing journey across a new empire. It is the latest chapter in the Planet of the Apes franchise following three groundbreaking films, which have brought in a combined $1.6 billion globally.
“This movie is built for that great collective dream that we all enter when we go to a theater together. It’s meant to be big,” director Wes Ball said. “You want to immerse yourself in this world that is just incredibly rich and visual.”
Here is some of the praise that Kingdom has received:
“More groundbreaking than ever.” — USA Today
“Mixing action thrills and visual spectacle with a surprisingly thoughtful challenge to the belief that humanity is the exclusive domain of man, the films are among the increasingly rare summer blockbusters to combine brawn and brains… Director Wes Ball carries on that tradition in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.” — The Hollywood Reporter
“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is such a rewardingly cerebral journey.” — IndieWire
“Best film of the franchise.” — Good Day New York
“Throughout these nail-biter cat-and-mouse sequences, immersive cinematographer Gyula Pados’ camerawork is impressive and spine-tinglingly exciting, crafting large-scaled action that is heart-poundingly tense, and more logically constructed than what we often see these days.” — RogerEbert.com
“This lush, thrilling adventure demands to be seen on the biggest screen possible.” — Slashfilm
“It’s another worthy installment in a series that is pretty much unparalleled in contemporary times.” — Vanity Fair
