In preparation for Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, I rewatched one of my favorite trilogies of all time. I’m elated that all three films have available audio description… somewhere. For me, I bought the trilogy in the Apple Store, to make sure I have all three. I have VlueRays of all three as well. I’ve seen Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes probably 4 times prior to this, Dawn probably twice, and admittedly I think I had only seen War once. Rise of the Planet Of The Apes has audio description provided by Deluxe, written and narrated by Roman Beard. Dawn also has audio description, and War is again Deluxe, narrated by Jedidiah Barton.

The first film in the trilogy, Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes, really is my favorite. it is the film that I really think Andy Series deserved an Oscar nomination for. Serkis has long been one of the preeminent motion capture actors, delivering stunning performances, and his work as Caesar, after a career of not being recognized for his work should have garnered him a nomination. The plot follows a scientist (james Franco) eager to find the cure to Alzheimer’s because he is watching his father (John Lithgow) slowly slip away. But, while developing a new drug, something remarkable happens, and he ends up with a test chimpanzee, Caesar (Serkis), who seems to have a rapidly growing IQ, which bodes well for the possibility of restoring what his father had lost. The first film also stars Freida Pinto, Tom Felton, Brian Cox, and Tyler Labine. Rupert Wyatt is the guy responsible for kicking off this bright new future for this franchise.

Not only is Serkis tremendous, but John lithgow is also delivering a fantastic performance as a man who has slipped away, only to regain his spark, and then sadly lose it all over again. The visual effects here were stunning, and while the audio description cannot quite capture just how realistic this looks, feels, and the emotion that the motion capture actors bring to their characters. There’s a large scale action sequence that takes place on the Golden Gate Bridge that is described very well.

Then, in Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes, we see a slight time jump, and humanity has struggled against a virus that is teased at the end of Rise, and is decimating human civilization. We see how Caesar is the leader of his simian cohorts, like an unofficial President, where his guidance and leadership is sought. Humans still exist, and Caesar runs into some who are struggling to survive, led by Jason Clarke and Keri Russell. But, there’s tension in the ranks as on of Caesar’s own risks the tentative balance the apes have in this new shared world. Gary Oldman plays a human villain, but it’s really Koba, who is introduced in Rise, that becomes the primary villain. The audio description on this allowed for all the changes that had started to happen to the physical look of the world to be described, as things don’t look the same as just a few years prior. It’s amazing how fast weeds can grow.

Then, is War For The Planet of The Apes, thanks to the battle Koba started, Caesar is left with a military force that is convinced that it is us versus them, while Caesar would much rather be left alone to help his ape community flourish on their own. Woody Harrelson clocks in as the human lead villain, and his performance is quite good. There’s also a little girl who is totally mute, and is taken in by the apes, helping to shape out the performances. Caesar also meets Bad Ape (Steve Zahn) who can talk like he can, and wasn’t my favorite thing in the film. Zahn really made me appreciate that Serkis really is the guy when it comes to fully rounded motion capture work. A near perfect film has this one blemish, and it’s in the form of this bizarre comedic entry.

The visual effects only got better, but it’s hard to talk about the realism of the snow hitting the fur on the apes, or how a shadow is cast on the ground just perfectly. but the visuals in War are really unmatched. The audio description does a strong job of trying to match that, while focusing on a non-verbal little girl, and the facial expressions of the other apes who mostly converse in sign language.

Three great films that I felt blessed to watch again, and with so many of these apes being relegated to using sign language, this is a franchise I would have lost without audio description. I don’t even know how I would have been able to enjoy this if it didn’t have at least some level or form of accessibility, but luckily Deluxe came in clutch with fantastic audio description.

If you haven’t seen these films, they really are that good. It’s funny how Rupert Wyatt and Matt Reeves (who directed Dawn and war) really put a director as big as Tim burton to shame. Burton’s remake, which was already maligned, becomes some kind of odd unwatchable oddity after this, once you realize how good this can actually be.

Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes- A+

Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes- A

War For The Planet Of The Apes- A-