Battle has begun: 'War for the Planet of the Apes' divulges little, is eerily beautiful

First, we witnessed the Rise of the Planet of the Apes. Then, we experienced the Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. And soon, we’ll have a front-row seat for the War for the Planet of the Apes. The first teaser for the third and final film of this prequel trilogy has hit the interwebs and … well … it doesn’t tell us much. On the plus side, however, it’s eerily beautiful and seriously cool.

The term “teaser” has evolved quite a bit in recent years, but this spot is in line with the old-school interpretation of the word. It provides a quick reminder that the film is in fact on its way, but doesn’t actually show any footage from the film itself. It’s basically one big … you know … tease.

By contrast, the “teasers” for films like The Martian and Allied are just trailers that are slightly shorter than usual. It’s sort of annoying that we don’t know what to expect from teasers anymore, and, if you came here looking for footage of the titular war, you can blame Hollywood for muddying the waters.

What we do have here is a simplistic-yet-stunning sneak peek that starts out with an all-black background and the sound of howling winds. We then begin to see flurries of snow appear, which gradually accumulate and reveal the silhouette of Caesar, leader of the apes. As this is happening, we hear his strained voice say, “You must go before fighting begins. I am sorry. War has begun.”

It’s unclear whom Caesar is speaking to in this monologue, but they should probably heed his warning.

War for the Planet of the Apes stars Woody Harrelson (The Hunger Games), Judy Greer (Ant-Man), Steve Zahn (Dallas Buyers Club), Andy Serkis (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring), and Chad Rook (The Flash). The film is set to hit theaters July 14, 2017.