Though not a smash hit, 2011’s franchise reboot Rise of the Planet of the Apes did well enough to spawn 2014’s Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. From there, we got 2017’s War For the Planet of the Apes.

All three movies revolved around intelligent simian Caesar, and War completed his story. Popular film series never die, however, so 2024’s Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes continues the original trilogy’s themes a few hundred years after the events of War.

Chimpanzee Noa (Owen Teague) lives in a peaceful society. However, as part of a quest to obtain ancient and advanced human technology, brutal bonobo Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand) attacks Noa’s clan, kills many and abducts the rest.

Noa embarks on a quest to rescue his friends and relatives. This leads him to a mix of revelations, many of which stem from the realization that humans may not be as intellectually stunted as the apes believe.

While I enjoyed the “Caesar Trilogy”, I feel happy Kingdom moves on from that era. It feels like the 2011-2017 movies did pretty much all they could with development of themes within Caesar’s lifetime.

Not that Kingdom ignores these events, especially in the way this era’s simians view their Caesar-related history. The film manages to tie its tale to that past in a way that doesn’t seem gratuitous but that adds dimensionality to the narrative’s situations.

This does mean Kingdom takes a while to get into gear, however. While I get the need to explain Noa and his clan, the movie does drag a bit along the way.

Basically these sequences just don’t become especially interesting. Though the moments in Noa’s village import necessary information, they just fall a little flat.

Once Noa meets wise orangutan Raka (Peter Macon), however, the story starts to percolate better. Though we stay with a fair amount of shoe leather, Raka adds a more compelling character than the semi-trite Noa and he also brings more depth and charm to the material.

From there Kingdom gradually kicks into higher gear. Raka makes sure we remain invested in the flick and the action/drama heats up along the way as well.

I like the manner in which Kingdom depicts the evolution of the various ape tribes and the different ways they reflect Caesar’s legacy, with some like Proximus who pervert his lessons. Yeah, Noa’s own clan seems less than exciting, but the others add spice.

Kingdom also offers good twists in the way it depicts humans. No spoilers here, of course, but the film shows them in a manner that steers away from what we expect in an Apes movie.

The movie also kicks to life pretty well in the second half. Kingdom takes on a more action-oriented slant during its final hour, and the afore-teased developments with humans bring added drama and spice as well.

All of this adds up to a good continuation of the “modern” Apes franchise. Expect a lively launch of what hopefully becomes a new trilogy.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 2.39:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This wound up as a terrific presentation.

Sharpness always looked solid. No issues with softness materialized, as we found a tight, well-defined image.

Neither jaggies nor shimmering created concerns, and I saw no edge haloes. Print flaws remained absent.

Colors mixed the usual orange and teal, though with a lean toward a more natural vibe given the forest settings. The Blu-ray reproduced the tones as intended.

Blacks felt deep and dense, while shadows demonstrated appealing clarity. I felt happy with this top-notch picture.

In addition, the movie’s DTS-HD MA 7.1 soundtrack delivered a rollicking affair. With plenty of action, the soundscape worked well.

Of course, these violent scenes became the most involving, but even quieter sequences provided an engaging soundfield. The various channels blended together well and created a seamless sonic image that suited the tale.

Audio quality satisfied, with speech that remained concise and distinctive. Music appeared vibrant and full.

The most important aspect of the track, effects sounded accurate and tight, with stellar low-end. The soundtrack added to the experience.

When we shift to extras, we find a featurette called Inside the Forbidden Zone. It runs 23 minutes, 25 seconds and offers notes from director Wes Ball, special consultant Andy Serkis, production designer Daniel T. Dorrance, producers Joe Hartwick Jr. and Jason T. Reed, stunt coordinator Glenn Suter, movement coach Alain Gauthier, visual effects supervisor Erik Winquist, hair and makeup designer Jennifer Lamphee, assistant stunt coordinator Marco Sinigaglia, special effects supervisor Rodney Burke, and actors Owen Teague, Kevin Durand, Freya Allen, William H. Macy, Neil Sandilands, Lydia Peckham, Ras-Samuel, Peter Macon, and Travis Jeffry.

“Zone” examines Ball’s approach to the film, sets and locations, cast and performances, various effects, franchise Easter eggs, stunts and action. This becomes an efficient overview of the production.

14 Deleted/Extended Scenes span a total of 32 minutes, 15 seconds. These mix fairly brief trims with somewhat longer sequences.

Of course, they vary in significance, but we find a few that offer some compelling material. The whole package becomes interesting to see.

We can view the cut footage with or without commentary from Ball. He tells us some background about the segments and why he gave them the boot.

Seven years after the last movie in the franchise, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes stretches the narrative centuries into the future, a twist that works. The movie still acts as a sequel but it develops its own characters and stands on its own in a positive manner. The Blu-ray delivers excellent picture and audio along with a few bonus features. I hope we get more adventures in the Apes universe