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Thursday, July 20, 2017
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
ARTS
20th CENTURY FOX
Maurice gazes with fear
At first glance, “War for the
Planet of the Apes” doesn’t resemble
a modern war movie. Where most
films of the genre trade in bloody
action and bountiful shots of brawny
men shouting at each other, the final
chapter in the “Apes” reboot trilogy
is quiet. Contemplative even. Entire
sequences pass without a single word
of dialogue. Large scale battle scenes
are few and far between, replaced by
moving character drama, nuanced
acting and Biblical allegory. It’s full
of brutally intense scenes, of course,
but it’s far more interested in the
effects of war than the fighting of the
war itself. At its core, “War for the
Planet of the Apes” is a story about
hate, and for a trilogy that has always
used characters discovering their
humanity to tell stories of mankind’s
flaws, it’s a nearly perfect ending.
“War” picks up some time after
“Dawn of the Planet of the Apes”
ended with the beginning of a
conflict between the sentient apes
led by Caesar (Andy Serkis, “Star
Wars: The Force Awakens”) and
the United States military. Caesar is
struggling to manage the balancing
act between protecting his people
and maintaining hope for peace,
but after an unspeakable tragedy, he
embarks on a mission to assassinate
the military leader responsible,
a man known as the Colonel
(Woody Harrelson, “The Edge of
Seventeen”).
It almost goes without saying
that Serkis is perfect as Caesar. The
man is practically synonymous
with Oscar-caliber motion-capture
work, and his performance in “War
for the Planet of the Apes” is no
exception. In his first shot alone,
Serkis wordlessly communicates
Caesar’s weariness with the war for
the humans but resolve to fight for
his people. Every moment he is on
screen, he seems to be shouldering
a load that only grows heavier as the
story wears on. There isn’t a single
scene that he doesn’t absolutely
own, though Steve Zahn (“Captain
Fantastic”) bears mentioning as the
delightful newcomer, Bad Ape.
The same praise goes for the
effects that work with Serkis to bring
Caesar to life. They’re far beyond
anything we’ve seen on the big
screen. The faith that director Matt
Reeves (“Let Me In”) puts in these
effects and his performers is obvious.
Dialogue scenes — usually involving
a fair bit of American Sign Language
— are shot almost exclusively in
close-ups to take in the subtlety
of the acting and the breathtaking
quality of the CGI. It’s perfect
synergy between actor, director and
effects artists, almost unparalleled
in modern blockbusters.
All of this is put to work in a deeply
human story about hate that casts
humanity in the role of the villains.
The new “Apes” films have always
been about prejudice, and “War”
finds those feelings finally reaching
and threatening to consume Caesar.
The journey that he goes on that
finds him fighting those feelings
is spellbinding and lends further
credence to the argument that the
character ranks as one of the best
film protagonists of the decade. For
all his film’s epic ambitions, Reeves
never loses sight of the personal
nature of the story as it relates to his
lead.
But for all its exemplary acting,
effects and direction, the most
shocking thing about “War” is still
how little it resembles a modern
war movie. In fact, the whole
thing functions as an extended
metaphor for the biblical book of
Exodus, leading to a movie that
resembles Cecil B. Demille’s “The
Ten Commandments” more than
any war movie released in the last
decade. From Caesar’s struggle
to lead his people out of captivity
to the hard-hearted tyrant at the
heart of the conflict, the imagery
is obvious but never forced.
“War” is a rare class of film no
matter how it’s viewed. As a war
movie, it bucks convention with
its slow pacing and intimate plot.
As a modern blockbuster, it does
the same with its focus on flooring
performances
and
intelligent
script. As the third chapter in
a trilogy, it isn’t just good; it’s a
masterclass in character-based
storytelling. As the credits roll
not just on the movie, but on
the trilogy, there should be no
doubt that the rebooted “Apes”
franchise ranks as one of the best
of all time.
‘Apes’ trilogy ends perfectly
JEREMIAH VANDERHELM
Daily Arts Writer
Tyler, the Creator
at Agenda Festival
Long Beach, CA — Agenda
Show arrived in annual fashion
this
past
weekend,
uniting
industry-insiders from streetwear
and performance gear for two
days of flaunting at the Long
Beach Convention Center, but
this year the SoCal trade-show
came with added muscle and
extra events, opening its doors
publicly on Sat., Jul. 15th for a
concert headlined by Tyler, the
Creator. At the inaugural Agenda
Festival, attendees could shop
at or interact with hundreds of
booths by skateboarding, surfing
and lifestyle brands before hitting
the show, which also included
sets from Ludacris, Cam’ron and
Lil Dicky.
The pop-up mall’s roster of
exhibits spanned from buzzy
fashion labels like Rip N’ Dip,
Staple and The Hundreds all the
way to record shops, Rainbow
flip-flops and indoor skateparks.
Some booths offered souped up
shopping
opportunities
while
others set up simple, inoperable
photo-ops. At Champions, custom
embroidery was available on
purchased items and at Herschel,
a limited number of festival tote
bags were given out. Yet, the
flashiest finds were at nationally-
acclaimed vintage collectors like
Versus ATL — that’s where I saw a
Louis Vuitton x Supreme sweater
marked at $2,000 and some
vintage rap t-shirts with not-so-
distant price points.
It’s foolish to shop lavishly at
an Odd Future fans’ get-together
though, especially if you plan
on standing anywhere close to
the stage. At Agenda, Tyler, the
Creator’s fans flocked to the pit
immediately after Lil Dicky’s
set ceased, Golf Wang garb
acting as a nearly unanimous
uniform
and
foreshadowing
their
impartialness
towards
other
upcoming
acts.
While
festival
organizers
seemed
intent
on
curating
a
truly
multifaceted
experience,
it
became progressively apparent
throughout the afternoon that
Tyler was the main attraction.
Cam’ron came out next, but
even with his figurehead-status
in hip-hop fashion offering an
apparent bridge to the youth,
he failed to ignite the crowd
of teens and 20-somethings to
its full potential, a key sign of
the afternoon’s disjointedness.
Opening track “Killa Cam” and
other dated hits like “Down &
Out,” “Oh Boy” and “I Really Need
It” earned somewhat emphatic
reactions, as did the Diplomats
songs “Bout It III” and “Dipset
Anthem.” Yet, beyond their hooks,
few audience members seemed
familiar with the songs’ lyrics, as
was the case on deeper cuts “Wet
Wipes” and “Get It In Ohio.”
Dressed in baggy designer jeans
and a careful combination of black
and yellow, from his sneakers
to his Simpsons t-shirt and
backwards hat, Cam’ron looked
like an artifact left over from a
former era of hip hop, especially
while performing the sexually
aggressive “Suck It Or Not,”
which fails to translate overall in
2017. He couldn’t truly connect
with the audience until he landed
on “Hey Ma,” the crowd-favorite
singalong from his otherwise
macabre discography, and by that
time, his set had ended. Next up
was Ludacris.
“Where the real Ludacris fans
at?”
the
rapper-turned-actor
asked the crowd after opening
with “Welcome To Atlanta” and
his verse from the gimmicky DJ
Khaled hit “All I Do Is Win.”
“They probably just ‘Fast &
Furious’ fans,” he told his DJ. “I
think we gotta test them out!”
Throughout the next 40 minutes,
Ludacris tore through a series of
hits that spanned across three
decades and two genres — pop &
hip-hop. “Act A Fool,” “Southern
Hospitality,” “Area Codes” and
“Roll Out” appeased his oldest
fans, while hits like Usher’s
“Yeah” and his own “Pimpin’
All Over The World,” “Money
Maker,” “How Low” and “My
Chick Bad” excited the entire
audience.
Ludacris engaged with the crowd
SALVATORE DIGIOIA
Daily Arts Writer
“War for the
Planet of the
Apes”
Ann Arbor 20 +
IMAX, Goodrich
Quality 16
20th Century Fox
CONCERT REVIEW
FILM REVIEW
See CONCERT REVIEW, Page 8