Welcome to The Morning After, where I share with you what movies I’ve seen over the past week. Below, you will find short reviews of those movies along with a star rating. Full length reviews may come at a later date.

So, here is what I watched this past week:

A Single Man

It’s hard to believe that an astonishing debut feature like this would be directed by an acclaimed fashion designer. Tom Ford moved from the pages of Gucci to the pages of Variety with his 2009 drama about a gay professor (Colin Firth) struggling with the loss of his 16-year lover. Unable to grieve at his graveside, George descends into depression unable to figure out how to live without him.

Firth gives his finest performance, one of depth and profound sorrow. Julianne Moore is solid in her supporting performance as his longtime friend Charly. Matthew Goode live up to his last name as the late paramour. Nicholas Hoult is the only odd duck out here as one of Firth’s flirtatious students. Hoult is fine in the role, but after having seen him in so much else since, it feels a bit more hollow than it should.

Ford’s graceful camera captures grief in a rich and mournful way. Jump cuts and silence punctuate some of the film’s best moments. This is a work of forthright talent and a compelling exploration of a period where gay romance was often taboo and meant for an abnormally lonely existence when one lost a lover. Ford and David Scearce plum Christopher Isherwood’s novel for delicate and moving touches. A beautiful and touching film.

War for the Planet of the Apes

In the third and final film of the Planet of the Apes origin series, simian leader Caesar (Andy Serkis) prepares to guide his community towards a new destiny as the brazen and increasingly violent human population seek to destroy them. Tragedy strikes before they are able to flee and as he sends everyone off in search of a new home, he embarks on a journey of revenge against the vicious colonel (Woody Harrelson) who killed some of his own.

There’s a brazen humanity to this series of films that is uncommon to blockbuster entertainment. While some franchises push toward broadly appealing, light hearted fare to please their fans, these Planet of the Apes seek to explore society and its potential breakdown in an effort to understand the human condition through our genetic cousins. It also tackles the depravity and desperation of human civilization as it crumbles and seeks to enact its own brand of revenge.

Serkis turns in another solid performance as Caesar. He has delivered his best performances while in motion capture attire, no doubt a challenge. Focused on physicality, his performances are as lived-in as any method actor like Daniel Day-Lewis or Joaquin Phoenix even if his real face is never seen on screen. He deserves some manner of recognition for his brilliant work in the Lord of the Rings films, King Kong, and the Planet of the Apes movies. Whether he receives it or not depends on the Academy’s good graces. Regardless. While the film has serious missteps in the music department and is overly reliant on the comedic touches of Bad Ape, this is a movie that asks philosophical questions of significant importance and explores human nature in a fascinating and uncommon way.