ShopkeeperTriumph
06-06-17, 03:03 PM
Wonder Woman (2017)
3.5
http://digitalspyuk.cdnds.net/17/11/980x490/landscape-1489502614-wonder-woman-new-poster.jpg
I knew I would be in for something different than the previous three DCEU installments by the movie's ten minute mark. There's no big explosions, no prolonged character introductions, it's not big immediately at the start. You're quickly thrown into Themyscira without much explanation, and you learn more as you go along. This much more relaxed introduction will set up the tone, and pacing for the whole movie, and I thought to myself "if they keep this up, I know I'm going to walk out of here satisfied." And they did. Well, mostly, but we'll get to that.
The biggest thing I can give props to Wonder Woman in comparison to it's DCEU counterparts is that it feels very natural, tight, and straightforward. By the time Batman V Superman came out, it was The Dark Knight's 10th venture on to the big screen, and the Man of Steel's 7th. Wonder Woman has a significant advantage, since this is her big screen solo debut, and there's no demand for a big change in formula, so the film is allowed to keep it on rails, rather than Man of Steel, or Batman V Superman, which both felt like they had to be overly ambitious due to audience's familiarity with both heroes on the big screen.
But, enough with the comparisons to the other three movies. How does it stand as a standalone piece? Very well! Funny enough, Wonder Woman does not feel like a superhero movie, especially in comparison to this decade's sea of titles. It's more of a war drama/ fantasy. When something superhero-y does actually happen, like Diane jumping a billion feet in the air, Diane uses her lasso, or when you see one of the main antagonist, Dr.Poison's plastic filled face, you're kind of taken aback. I thought to myself several times "woah, I completely forgot I was watching a Wonder Woman movie!"
Now, I said this was a war drama, and even if there wasn’t all the big spectacle, and Gadot was just playing a larger than life optimist rather than a iconic DC hero, this would still be a pretty engaging one. It’s pretty interesting to see a complete outsider react to a war she knows nothing about, and there’s a lot of food for thought regarding the act of war, and human nature in general. It isn’t exactly deep, but I was engaged.
Gal Gadot is a pretty good Wonder Woman, too. You can tell it’s a character she completely understands, and she’s at her best when she’s the most curious. It’s definitely a Wonder Woman stripped to her key core elements, so don’t expect a revelation, or anything, but it’s a fairly standard interpretation that fits the movies nicely that feels like it was ripped straight out of the comic books, easily DCEU’S most essential character by far, and the one I’ll be looking forward to the most in Justice League. Chris Pine is a lot of fun too, and they have good chemistry together, he's a lot more neurotic, and flawed in this one in comparison to some of his other big budget roles, it's a nice change of pace. Most of the laughs in the movie come from this pair up. Most of them are pretty easy fish out of water gags, but they work, and they're never distracting, or forced.
So, what doesn't work in this movie? Well, it's at it's worst when it remembers it's a modern day superhero movie with a goal to reach at the end. Don't get me wrong, I love these kind of movies, I see every one of them. But, what works in something like Civil War doesn't fit in something that's significantly more grounded like this. Slow motion is used as a crutch, the amount of slow motion used for the action would make an excellent drinking game, and they use it in the most uninteresting ways. The ending is also incredibly uninspired. I like how the main villain is pretty involved, and reflective with the general theme of the movie, but it just comes out of nowhere, and the fight is underwhelming. I really do wish the director came up with a way to make the action more engaging, while also matching what the movie was going for up to the finale, but instead takes every "Snyderism" and desperately tries to mush them in without knowing what to do with them.
All in all though, I had a good time with it, and I think it succeeds because of how simple it is. It's easily the best movie in this universe by a longshot, even if I don't think it's quite the game changer some people say it is. But, I think it's an example of how these movies don't have to be all feel the same, and can work just fine by themselves. Hopefully this will be the spark for something even greater than has the same aspirations as this one. But, for now, it's more than good enough, if you ask me.
3.5
http://digitalspyuk.cdnds.net/17/11/980x490/landscape-1489502614-wonder-woman-new-poster.jpg
I knew I would be in for something different than the previous three DCEU installments by the movie's ten minute mark. There's no big explosions, no prolonged character introductions, it's not big immediately at the start. You're quickly thrown into Themyscira without much explanation, and you learn more as you go along. This much more relaxed introduction will set up the tone, and pacing for the whole movie, and I thought to myself "if they keep this up, I know I'm going to walk out of here satisfied." And they did. Well, mostly, but we'll get to that.
The biggest thing I can give props to Wonder Woman in comparison to it's DCEU counterparts is that it feels very natural, tight, and straightforward. By the time Batman V Superman came out, it was The Dark Knight's 10th venture on to the big screen, and the Man of Steel's 7th. Wonder Woman has a significant advantage, since this is her big screen solo debut, and there's no demand for a big change in formula, so the film is allowed to keep it on rails, rather than Man of Steel, or Batman V Superman, which both felt like they had to be overly ambitious due to audience's familiarity with both heroes on the big screen.
But, enough with the comparisons to the other three movies. How does it stand as a standalone piece? Very well! Funny enough, Wonder Woman does not feel like a superhero movie, especially in comparison to this decade's sea of titles. It's more of a war drama/ fantasy. When something superhero-y does actually happen, like Diane jumping a billion feet in the air, Diane uses her lasso, or when you see one of the main antagonist, Dr.Poison's plastic filled face, you're kind of taken aback. I thought to myself several times "woah, I completely forgot I was watching a Wonder Woman movie!"
Now, I said this was a war drama, and even if there wasn’t all the big spectacle, and Gadot was just playing a larger than life optimist rather than a iconic DC hero, this would still be a pretty engaging one. It’s pretty interesting to see a complete outsider react to a war she knows nothing about, and there’s a lot of food for thought regarding the act of war, and human nature in general. It isn’t exactly deep, but I was engaged.
Gal Gadot is a pretty good Wonder Woman, too. You can tell it’s a character she completely understands, and she’s at her best when she’s the most curious. It’s definitely a Wonder Woman stripped to her key core elements, so don’t expect a revelation, or anything, but it’s a fairly standard interpretation that fits the movies nicely that feels like it was ripped straight out of the comic books, easily DCEU’S most essential character by far, and the one I’ll be looking forward to the most in Justice League. Chris Pine is a lot of fun too, and they have good chemistry together, he's a lot more neurotic, and flawed in this one in comparison to some of his other big budget roles, it's a nice change of pace. Most of the laughs in the movie come from this pair up. Most of them are pretty easy fish out of water gags, but they work, and they're never distracting, or forced.
So, what doesn't work in this movie? Well, it's at it's worst when it remembers it's a modern day superhero movie with a goal to reach at the end. Don't get me wrong, I love these kind of movies, I see every one of them. But, what works in something like Civil War doesn't fit in something that's significantly more grounded like this. Slow motion is used as a crutch, the amount of slow motion used for the action would make an excellent drinking game, and they use it in the most uninteresting ways. The ending is also incredibly uninspired. I like how the main villain is pretty involved, and reflective with the general theme of the movie, but it just comes out of nowhere, and the fight is underwhelming. I really do wish the director came up with a way to make the action more engaging, while also matching what the movie was going for up to the finale, but instead takes every "Snyderism" and desperately tries to mush them in without knowing what to do with them.
All in all though, I had a good time with it, and I think it succeeds because of how simple it is. It's easily the best movie in this universe by a longshot, even if I don't think it's quite the game changer some people say it is. But, I think it's an example of how these movies don't have to be all feel the same, and can work just fine by themselves. Hopefully this will be the spark for something even greater than has the same aspirations as this one. But, for now, it's more than good enough, if you ask me.