Acceptance of this fourth Apes film will rely greatly on your swallowing the presentation of its world in microcosm – a solution often employed in sci-fi to circumvent the hassle of the 'big ideas vs tiny budget' conundrum. If you don't, you'll sit incredulous as to how a pack of simians rioting on what looks like a Thamesmead housing estate equates to world domination.
But even for more forgiving fans of the story so far, Conquest feels a bit like going through the motions. As we follow Caesar on his journey from secretly intelligent but peaceful young ape to angry revolutionary, slavery and fascism analogies are drawn, and a few key moments hitherto alluded to in Ape law are checked off.
It's also the end of the series' strongest drawcard – the downbeat endings. When the chance for another memorable catastrophe is presented and not taken, it's a cue for all concerned to hang up the simian suits. Sadly, this went unheeded.
