Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (2024) Watched it a week ago. I thought the reboot trilogy ended beautifully and there was no more story to tell. It's a brilliant idea to do a time jump. Overall, I feel they have gotten the formula right with this (supposedly) reboot sequel trilogy.
The CGI still holds up really well (nothing groundbreaking but still stellar), with mo-cap performances that Andy Serkis would be proud of and most importantly a story that is worth telling. Highly recommended if you love the reboot trilogy
and can't get enough of the apes. Some pacing issues but not a big deal as the story holds up beautifully right until the end.
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Was looking out for every ounce of possibility of advancement to "space exploration" by the apes since the first movie had a brief trivia of a Mars mission failing on TV. While it was somewhat implied with the staring at the stars, the planet hanging models, the communication at the end, I think it might just be something to do in the final part of this reboot sequel trilogy if it eventually gets there.
8/10Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga (2024) What a lovely
day prequel! Anya Taylor-Joy and Chris Hemsworth performances are nothing short of extraordinary. It's a very worthy prequel to Fury Road. The action sequences and stunts were as good as Fury Road. However, I must say,
you might be wondering "why" and "what" if you didn't watch Fury Road. There's way too many references, callbacks and backstory that lays down the trajectory for Fury Road. You will still enjoy it, but you would not be able to truly appreciate it
without seeing Fury Road. Overall, for me, this is one of the best movies of the year I've seen, and I watched it on IMAX (I can't recall when was the last movie I watched on IMAX to be honest... probably pre-pandemic) and it was truly memorable.
It's a revenge story set in the wastelands with non-stop chase sequences and vehicular combat. George Miller has done it again though I will still say that Fury Road gets my vote over which is "better" (this is a prequel so comparing
the two may not be entirely fair to be honest). No noticeable footage was cut for Malaysian audiences, but some artwork being blocked out, no biggie. I think it's worth watching on IMAX, to me it was worth the ticket admission. Do I feel the urge to rewatch it again?
Probably not. Fury Road... I watched 3 times back in 2015; once on IMAX, second time on D-Box, and third on regular, and remains one of the best action movies ever made.
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I absolutely love how it was told from the perspective of the unreliable narrator with separated "chapters". Also, how the movie ends just moments into the wives getting into the new War Rig for Fury Road. I don't think any of the previous actresses made a cameo, looked like CG-ed faces. When the credits start rolling, selected Fury Road sequences were shown, albeit not from start to finish.
9/10