Hello everyone and welcome to a new throwback review and we will be returning to the topic of DC Films for this one with what many like to consider one of the very best if not the best of the entire franchise, Wonder Woman! I remember when this movie first came out and how it was following up the incredibly polarizing (yet financially huge) likes of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Suicide Squad and it was seen as the potential savior of the series due to the character, and Gal Gadot’s performance being a praised aspect of the aforementioned Dawn of Justice, a solid marketing campaign, and the talent on display. It fortunately did help regain interest and was a huge, and leggy hit at the box office, was beloved by many, became a pop cultural phenomenon, and was an important blockbuster in that it was a big budget female led super hero movie (directed by a female director no less) that hit it in a big way! So now with the much anticipated follow up, Wonder Woman 1984, arriving both in theaters, and on HBO Max on Christmas Day I wanted to see how well the original held up since it first came out as DC Films reputation has greatly improved since then with their projects being mostly well received as of late. And while it may have it’s not without it’s issues I still have a blast watching it and it does so many things so so well. Now without further ado let’s join Diana on her exciting journey and see why it works as well as it does and how it impacted so many!
We first start out in present day Paris with Diana Prince working at the Louvre, and receiving a photo from her past from Wayne Enterprises. This leads her to recall this past all the way back when she was young girl being raised in Themyscira, a hidden island where the Amazons, woman warriors created by the Gods, reside. She’s a bit of feisty child and is raised by her mother, Hippolyta, who eventually informs Diana of their history and how Ares, the God of War, vowed to destroy humanity when he returned and how the Amazons must be ready for when that happens which leads her to (reluctantly though) let her sister, Antiope, train Diana to become a warrior. Years pass by and it’s the in midst of World War I and Diana has grown to become a formidable warrior who still has much to learn though. However everything changes when a plane crashes off the coast of Themyscira and Diana rescues the pilot inside who goes by the name Steve Trevor and it turns out he is an allied spy being pursued by the Germans for stealing an important notebook. After fighting off some Germans on the beach, Diana believes that Ares is behind all of the fighting going on in the outside world and thus grabs some armor, the Lasso of Truth, and the “Godkiller” sword to go off with Steve in order to stop Ares’s plans once and for all. But with Diana still being inexperienced with the outside world can she, Steve, and some fellow soldiers be able to accomplish this before it’s too late?
When it comes to making a good origin story it a lot harder than it sounds as the writers need to make the audience care for the main hero, give us insight into how, and why they become a hero, and of course giving the hero obstacles, and conflicts to overcome. Patty Jenkins was able to accomplish all of this with this movie as we spend a good amount of time with Diana at the beginning learning who she is and what her goals are as well as setting up her motivations to go out and find Ares nicely and it all is intended to make us care about her and in that regard the movie is very successful. It is able to maintain a nice pacing throughout the runtime with just the right amount of action spread throughout and plenty of solid character interactions that further add to the relationships, and development of each main player. What most impressed me though was how well it was able to nail it’s tone because it takes place during WWI which is about as depressing, and bleak a time period as any, and the movie does not shy away from showcasing that bleakness, and some of the horrors that come from war (though never overdoing it to such an extent that it becomes truly depressing). Yet despite that it is still able to have a sense of optimism and hope with the character of Diana always trying to look for the best in humanity and that aspect of the movie shines through constantly and adds a lot of weight to the proceedings and makes for some really inspiring moments as well as some well handled emotional scenes too. There’s also plenty of room for some truly hilarious comedy as well as we see Diana as the fish out of water reacting to an environment that is totally new to her and it’s amusing seeing her trying to adjust to doing what regular people do and the script provides some really sharp dialogue that made some entertaining scenes (like Diana, and Steve’s conversation on the boat being a great example). In fact I have very little problem with the first two acts of the film as I was consistently engaged, and found everything to click just right… though like most people a lot of my problems with the film stem from the third act of the film. Now its not that it’s bad by any stretch of the imagination but this is a situation not dissimilar to the Wolverine as just like that comic book sequel it the final showdown just feels a lot more conventional then the rest of the movie and feels shoehorned in just so there can be a big CGI battle when the movie really didn’t feel like it needed one. Ares’s revelation also sort of undoes a bit of the poignancy that came with Diana learning how people are more complicated then just good or bad but the more and more I re watch it the more I come to understand that the writers most likely wanted to end things on a more hopeful note to keep in line with the rest of the movie and so that doesn’t bother me as much as it did before and (spoilers) Steve’s sacrifice is very effective and it helped kept my investment. So while that final act does hold the film back a bit for me it still is watchable and isn’t enough to completely derail the feature which up until then was firing on all cylinders and on the whole it’s a great example of how to do an origin story well.
Also working in the film’s favor is the craftsmanship on display which is just very impressive on the whole. Right off the bat this is just such a gorgeous movie to look at and it almost feels like a rebuttal to how dark the previous DC movies looked and the crew decided to make all of the colors pop out when we’re in Themyscira yet what I really like is how cinematographer, Matt Jensen, was able show off the two contrasting environments of Diana’s home, and the world of man during WWI. The former is all bright, and mostly lit in daylight yet the latter has a grimier, and foggy look to it that captures the time period in which the movie takes place as well as making Wonder Woman herself stand out all the more in her costume as a sign of hope, and optimism. Also helping evoke that time period, and locations are the production design by Aline Bonetto which does a fantastic job making the audience feel like their in the grand island of the Amazons, the cloudy city of London, or the harsh landscape of No Man’s Land during a battle, and costumes designed by Lindy Hemming which succeed in a similar manner. Now as for the action well that is another area in which the film excels as there are a number of thrilling set pieces that are equal parts well choreographed, and shot, and instantly memorable. The beach battle against the Amazon warriors, and German soldiers is very exciting, and intense as this is the first time Amazons have faced opponents with weapons like guns and it’s awesome getting to see them in action while the iconic No Man’s Land sequence is perfectly executed and crowd pleasing as we finally get to see Wonder Woman lead the charge and show what she’s made of on the bad guys and it is just glorious and I like how we see the rest of the characters have a moment or two to shine (they also use just the right amount of slow motion, never over doing it to such an extent). As mentioned though the climactic showdown between Diana, and Ares is fine for the most part even if some of the CGI is pretty noticeable and it definitely doesn’t leave as much of an impression as some of the others I just mentioned though it’s serviceable all the same. Oh and there’s also the matter of Rupert Gregson-Williams’s score which is really well done and the theme for the character one of more recognizable super hero themes as it does a great job of hyping up the proceedings and is just a ton of fun to listen to. Just some phenomenal work all around from Patty Jenkins, and co. to bring the movie to life.
Throughout the years there have been many superhero casting decisions that have cemented the portrayals as pop culture icons (like Christopher Reeve as Superman, Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man, and Hugh Jackman as Wolverine to name a few) and I’d argue that Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman should (and is rightfully) be treated as such. She is just perfect in the role having a great screen presence whenever she’s the focus, and capturing who the character is and what she stands for beautifully and helps in conveying the many different layers to the character as she isn’t just shown to be a butt kicking character but also has a lot of vulnerability to her, and even can be a bit naïve at points. Plus the whole fish out of water element isn’t just used for comedy but also to help develop the character more instead of turning her into the butt of the jokes. Just a fully developed character with a great performance at the center and what also helps add to the character is her relationship with Steve Trevor which is a big highlight of the feature as we see them both teach each other things about their world and both learn a lot from each other over the course of the journey. It also helps that their chemistry is spot on and Chris Pine is very charismatic in the role and does well as the straight man type. They are the true heart of the feature but the other cast members do get some important roles to play and make it into a fine ensemble. On the Amazon side we have Connie Nielson as Queen Hippolyta, and Robin Wright as Antiope who both serve as mentor type figures for Diana who care about her and want her to be ready for the challenges that await her and the latter’s death in the beach battle does leave an impact and is a driving force for our hero. As for Diana, and Steve’s allies well they mostly serve to add some levity to the situation they are all fun, and interesting characters in their own right as Lucy Davis is a blast as Steve’s secretary, Etta Candy, who gets some of the biggest laughs of the picture while the three allies that accompany Diana, and Steve, secret agent, Sameer (Said Taghmaoui), sharp shooter, Charlie (Ewen Bremner), and smuggler, Chief Napi (Eugene Brave Rock), each stand out in their own way and are nice company to be around. Then we have the villains of which there is actually quite a few of them but they are unfortunately the weak links in terms of the cast. First there’s Danny Huston’s as the iron fisted German Army general, and his assistant an evil chemist known as Dr. Poison played by Elena Anaya who is trying to come up with a deadly poison in order to gain the upper hand in the war. While on the surface these characters have potential, their pretty standard comic book movie baddies and the performances from both were a little too campy compared with the rest of the film. Then again (spoiler) the purpose of the former was mainly to serve as a red herring for the true Ares which turns out to be a once former ally of our heroes who helped them get to where they needed to be, Sir Patrick Morgan played by David Thewlis who admittedly is a lot more convincing as the seemingly kind hearted general who wants to bring about an Armistice to potentially end the fighting than as the war loving God of War. Still though while he was probably not what a lot fans (myself included) expected to be he still serves as an appropriate foil to Diana and his backstory (told in a neat 3D story book like way) is interesting and gives him some motivation for his actions. It’s just that I’ve seen similar villains who are just more interesting. Still though he gets the job done and everyone else does really strong work in making this a compelling batch of characters.
All in all I still really love Wonder Woman and find it an absolute blast to watch! Yes the weak third act, and relatively unmemorable villains do prevent it from being my favorite entry in the DCEU (that’s probably still Man of Steel for me) but it does everything else so well from the compelling origin story, to the balanced tone, to the fantastic action, to a star making lead performance, to the game cast! It all just comes together for a rousing spectacle that fun, and inspiring all at once. It’s not hard to see why this film left such a huge impact on many and I’m glad that it did as well as it did paving the way for more big budget female led adventures in the future. I am very much excited in seeing Wonder Woman 1984 eventually as I remember coming out of this one being very excited about the prospect of a sequel for many good reasons. Pardon this cliché but it truly is wonderful!
Rating: A-
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