WAR FOR THE PLANET OF THE APES Director Matt Reeves Discusses Film's Influences
There is a saying that says all the best stories have already been told and every story told after is just a variation on the original. I love stories and believe this statement to be true, however, I also believe there are quite a few brilliant variations. That being said, it always makes me happy when filmmakers and writers do borrow from the old and learn from the greats to inspire their future. Which is exactly what director Matt Reeves and screenwriter Mark Bomback did to prepare for War For The Planet of the Apes.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the two discussed their process and where they looked for influence. Matt Reeves said this:
"Mark and I began by doing the thing everybody thinks writers do, but they don't because there's never time. We talked about our lives. We talked about history stories. And then we watched a lot of movies."
Not only did they watch all the original Planet of the Apes movies but also got inspiration from other sources. Reeves goes on to say:
"We watched Bridge on the River Kwai. We watched The Great Escape. We watched Biblical epics, because I really felt like this movie had to have a Biblical aspect to it. We watched Ben-Hur, The Ten Commandments. We didn't go, like, 'Let's take a little bit of this, a little bit of that.' When you surround yourself with something that feels emotionally right, there are connections that make sense to you that somebody else might not see... [the films] informed the vibe we felt about this thing."
I think it's awesome that the filmmakers are using great movies like this to inspire them, especially biblical movies. It's great to have a theme, and using one so epic for something like this franchise seems like a great choice, especially if it feels right to the creators. Hearing about this actually makes me more interested in this new Apes film. That, and Woody Harrelson. I freakin' love Woody Harrelson.
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