Written by Elliot Lines
We've waited all year for this moment, the return of a blockbuster to our cinema's (however short lived). With the bomb of Tenet earlier in the year, Warner Media made the decision to drop this into onto HBO Max adjacent to it's December 25 release date in the United States, but for those of us that don't have access Christmas came early with a December 16 release. The sequel to the 2017 shining light of the DCEU, Wonder Woman, there was a slightly underwhelming feeling to Wonder Woman 1984 that just can't be shaken.
With Patty Jenkins returning to the camera, you can certainly see the similarities to the first instalment. As a whole we've come to expect the DCEU roster to be a dark and dingy affair, but WW84 falls far from the trap some of these other films have fallen into. There is a brought and colourful tone throughout, even when we're flying through the darkness, the screen implodes with an array of fireworks to brighten up the screen.
Set in the 80's, the story hinges on that mindset that anyone can achieve their dreams, with a little help along the way. Pedro Pascal, the man under The Mandalorian mask, plays the role of Max Lord. His character is as fleshed out as it can be, he's obsessed with being at the top, but this has it's price, as it always does.
In turn this brings the return of Chris Pine as Steve Trevor. Watching the trailer it was difficult to see how they would manage to bring him back into the fold, but this was something they managed to do seamlessly, something that actually made sense.
Joining forces with Pascal was Kristen Wig as Barbara Minerva, a character that wants to be like Diana, and her wish is granted. She becomes powerful, a predator, someone who can compete with Wonder Woman herself. But this comes with an unfortunate look. At times the moments she is 'Cheetah' look like a CGI villain from last years musical "hit" Cats.
The same feeling was felt for some of the action scenes, they just seemed inconsistent. There were moments when these scenes were well choreographed, an absolute joy to watch, only to then be let down by some that were clunky in their delivery. It was as though you could see the green screen in the background, frustrating considering the budget these films have.
Although the film flowed well through its story line, there is a deeper lingering on the mind, could this be shorter. Sitting at approximately 2 and a half hours, there are scenes throughout that could've been cut shorter to tell the same story, and also scenes that could probably be cut completely. But where most of the story was solid, it was the resolution that stuck out. Don't expect a rick roaring blockbuster finish, instead you get a more polite talking down, diverting from that superhero stereotype end, that was needed to make this pop.
It's madness to say that we've waited as long as we have for a blockbuster like this to be released, but was the wait worth it. Even though these new characters are fleshed out and some action scenes looked cool, there was no shaking the underwhelming feeling felt walking out this screening.
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