Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes ★★★

THE Planet of the Apes film franchise may have run its race.

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes is the fourth of the recent reboots and 14th instalment overall.

In terms of spectacle it’s fine, but the story meanders along a well-worn path and, at film’s end, doesn’t leave you intrigued enough for the future.

The franchise originated with the 1968 film starring Charlton Heston which was based on Pierre Boulle’s seminal sci-fi novel.

That film featured a devastating climax that set a direction for the franchise that has continued to the present film.

The problem is the direction is now being recycled to the point where it becomes almost repetitive.

In fact, the latest film is almost a repeat of the original with apes interacting for the first time with humans who have the power of speech.

There are some terrific special effects, as usual, and the visual world-building in the first act of the film has some outstanding moments.

The highlight of the film is, of course, the motion capture process which features all-round good performances, the stand-out being Peter Macon as orangutan Raka.

Watched at the cinema.