Return To The Planet Of The Apes

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Super Bowl Trailer Breakdown

In 2011, 20th Century Fox sought to reboot the classic sci-fi series Planet of the Apes for a modern audience. In a trilogy of films spanning the next six years, they told the story of Caesar, the super-intelligent chimpanzee who led apekind to freedom as humanity fell into ruin. The films were a massive success, loved by audiences and critics worldwide. While the trilogy ended with Caesar’s ultimate passing, it opened the door for more stories to be told. After a seven-year hiatus, Fox is returning to the franchise with its upcoming film, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. With the recent Super Bowl trailer having hit trending on YouTube, now’s the perfect time to look at what the new film might be about.

I’m RJ Writing Ink, and here is my breakdown for the new trailer of Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. 

A New, Ape-Led World

According to the film’s synopsis, three hundred years have passed since the end of War for the Planet of the Apes. Apes continue to grow and thrive, building new civilizations and societies. By contrast, the virus that enabled apes’ evolution has regressed humans to a more feral state, leading them to be hunted by apes. In addition, a new leader named Proxima Caesar has risen, twisting the teachings of Caesar to justify hunting humans, attacking other apes, and plundering human technology. In this situation, we have Noa, a young chimpanzee who, the trailer reveals, begins questioning everything his elders say about the world. This new thinking culminates in him defending a human girl named Nova and leading him on a quest that could decide the future of both man and ape. 

The first big note about this trailer is how far the apes have come in three hundred years. In an interview with Empire, film director Wes Ball compared apes to reaching the Bronze Age. For perspective, that took humankind thousands of years, and apes did it in three hundred; that’s fast! However, it’s heavily implied this rapid advancement comes from relying on the knowledge that humanity gained before their fall.

Speaking of that knowledge, the crux of the conflict in this film is how Proxima Caesar seeks to harness that knowledge. He knows what humans could do before they fall from grace and seeks to capitalize on it for his benefit. So, despite styling himself as a successor to Caesar, he’s just a tyrant. This idea keeps in line with the franchise’s overarching themes about human nature. Despite considering themselves morally superior to humans, apes like Koba can be just as bad. However, they’re also capable of being just as good, exemplified by Noa and his decision to protect Nova.

The Legacy of Caesar and Humans

Another big selling point of the trailer is its emphasis on the legacy left behind by Caesar and humankind as a whole. While apekind still remembers Caesar at this point, the passage of three centuries has started moving his story from fact into the realm of myth and legend. This is evidenced by the fact that the diamond pattern, taken from the window in Caesar’s bedroom in the Rodman house, has taken on religious significance to apes. It’s drawn on their settlements, with the Orangutan that counsels Noa wearing one as a necklace, showing how important it’s become to apes. His legacy continues to live on in all apes.

In contrast, the legacy of humankind is not so lucky. The cities are crumbling and overgrown with plants, their ships rust on beaches, and their surviving descendants are reduced to Stone Age-level people. In addition, their roles are reversed, with apes now hunting them and seeing them as inferior. Based on the dialogue in the trailer, apes are starting to forget about their origins and what humanity was once like, with only the most learned remembering the truth. 

Both of these examples point to how the passage of time has begun to distort the truth of how humanity fell and how apes rose. Worse, whereas Caesar knew from experience that humans and apes could be good or bad, that lesson never caught on with apekind. If Proxima Caesar’s any indication, apes will be no better than humans unless Noa and Nova can change that. 

Nova, the Next Stage in Human Evolution?

In the trailer, a lot of emphasis is put on Nova being different from the other humans shown. Her eyes show a greater awareness of events around her and an understanding of what some manufactured objects can do, like a telescope. More importantly, the fact that she dresses more like a modern human, whereas others are in scraps of clothing, shows she’s more intelligent than most. And the reason why might be a game-changer

At the end of the previous trilogy, Simian Flu, the artificial virus meant to cure Alzheimer’s but wound up killing most of humanity, had begun to mutate. Even if it could no longer kill them, the virus had mutated to rob humans of their higher mental faculties. As TVTropes speculates, the reason for this is that the virus kickstarted brain growth, making it bigger. The problem is that a bigger brain requires more time and energy to send neural signals, hampering its ability to think and communicate. In other words, Simian Flu did what it was made to do, albeit too well, and it cost humanity everything. Or so it seems.

This is a theory, but there may be a reason why people think Nova’s smarter than most other humans. Over the last three centuries, the human brain might have been evolving to cope with its increased size. If that happened, it would be possible for humans to regain their intellect and speech. Nova could be the first human in centuries capable of advanced thought and speech, meaning humanity can rebuild. 

All of which makes it all the more critical that Noa protects her.

The Start of a New Era for Man and Ape

One of the big themes behind the Planet of the Apes franchise is the struggle for peaceful co-existence. While that’s nothing new to humankind or fiction, Planet of the Apes is noteworthy for humanity fighting and losing its dominance of Earth. However, the franchise has also shown this to be unnecessary, with each incarnation showing humans and apes can live as equals. And despite everything that happened, Caesar never gave up on that idea. 

If Nova is indeed the key to restoring humankind, then how Noa interacts with her could decide the future of everything. Which, of course, only makes me want to see the movie even more. May cannot get here soon enough!