“Dawn Of The Planet Of The Apes” isn’t a movie, it’s a chapter. It’s an excellent, well made chapter, but it’s only a small part of the saga begun in “Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes.” And while this chapter is closed for now, the ending of “Dawn” poses several huge questions about the franchise.
Here’s everything we need know about “Apes 3,” given where we left off in “Dawn:”
1. Is The Army Really Coming?
Everything we know about the Simian Flu in “Dawn” tells us that the population of Earth has been more than decimated. There’s clearly strongholds of immunity, as glimpsed in San Francisco, but are there really enough people in the United States Army to come mount a rescue of the remaining Bay City humans?
And even if they are, why are they coming? What do they want? Are they looking to bring the smack down on the Apes, or offer a peace treaty? Plus, perhaps there aren’t even that many of them left.
Point is, despite Guy At Communication Station #2′s assertion that the Army is coming, we don’t know exactly what that means.
2. Is Koba Dead?
You wouldn’t think he could survive getting dropped hundreds of feet under construction equipment, but the apes seem to be way sturdier than the humans. It would certainly undercut the emotional wallop of that ending, but we could see a world where Koba managed to survive. Particularly as Koba’s view of the world definitely fits where “Planet Of The Apes” is headed far better than Caesar’s. Speaking of which…
3. Planet Of The Caesar?
20th Century Fox
One of the biggest questions dangling at the end of “Dawn” is whether this new series will connect up to “Planet Of The Apes,” or just tell the story of Caesar. Despite the jump of a decade between “Rise” and “Dawn,” there’s still thousands of years until we reach the point of the 1968 original, a point the filmmakers have said we’re heading towards down the road.
So when “Apes 3″ hits, will it finish up Caesar’s story, or zoom ahead even further?
4. Series Love Humans More Than Apes?
Related: what about those damn dirty humans? Nothing against the actors involved, but they’re clearly not the selling point of these movies, and we know their story is one doomed for tragedy. That aside, will the third movie push humans back to the forefront, or the backburner?
And related, after James Franco’s surprising “return” in “Dawn,” will we see Jason Clark or Keri Russell back for another round, or a new group of Ape Chow?
5. Where On The Planet Of The Apes Will We Be?
With each installment, the series has expanded its focus, though kept things centered around San Francisco. We don’t know our geography very well, but one city ain’t a planet of apes, so will the third try to expand beyond the Bay Area? Maybe the Apes could take a road trip to Vegas? At the very least, now that we know what’s going on in San Fran, let’s see what’s happened with the apes in the rest of the world.
6. Apes In Space?
There’s one slightly dangling plot thread out there, in case you’ve forgotten. In “Rise,” a spaceship is sent off into the great beyond, the same spaceship that sent George Taylor (Charlton Heston) off in the original movie. There’s clearly a large time difference going on, but could we see either what’s happening on that spaceship, or maybe even end with the crash landing from the first movie?
And what if, in a shocking twist, it was Mark Wahlberg the whole time? What if???
7. Dr Zaius, Can I Play The Piano Anymore?
Of course you can.
What do you want answered in “Planet Of The Apes: Tokyo Drift?”
Alex Zalben
Writer/Editor at MTV News. You can follow him on Twitter, but not in real life because that would be weird.
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