Movies

'War For The Planet Of The Apes' Early Buzz: Matt Reeves' Sequel Is Apparently Spectacular

war for the planet of the apes poster
By Jacob Hall/

War For the Planet of the Apes is /Film's most anticipated movie of the summer and it looks like our faith that director Matt Reeves would make a sequel worthy of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes has been rewarded. Screenings have begun and according to the first reactions, this could be one of the best movies of 2017.

While those who attended these early screenings are not allowed to publish reviews yet, they are allowed to react on social media. That's a sign of confidence from 20th Century Fox, especially since the film doesn't open for another month. The most striking thing about these early reactions is not the fact that everyone likes the movie – it's the fact that everyone seems shaken to the bone by it.

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes was a powerful experience because it valued emotion over spectacle. It pulled off something truly unique, presenting the action (and violence) as something abhorrent, something we didn't want to see. It seems like Reeves has done it again.

Here are some of the early reactions:

A series of early War the For the Planet of the Apes screenings are being held on June 19, so expect another wave of reactions in just a few days. Once again, it's worth noting that screening nearly a month early feels like a sign of confidence from Fox. This is the kind of thing you see happen when a studio knows they have an actual good movie on their hands (sometimes a rarity in the summer!) and want to do everything in their power to get the word out. Our own Ethan Anderton and Hoai-Tran Bui will be attending these early screenings, so definitely keep an eye open for their reactions. We expect to be updating this post early next week.

War For the Planet of the Apes opens on July 14, 2017. Let's close this out with this very cool poster by artist Matt Ferguson, which was created as a wrap gift for the WETA visual effects crew.

Recommended