From one of the most disappointing film franchises, comes its second best entry to date. Although I should probably make it clear that there is only one good DC film so being the second best isn't quite a good thing. While it boasts some fun, Aquaman is ultimately an enjoyable mess.
The film takes place after the events of Justice League, with Arthur Curry (Aquaman) helping out people in need within the seven seas. His half-brother and king of Atlantis plans to wage war upon the surface, so Arthur is forced to fight for the throne in order to avoid mass death and destruction.
Arthur is played by Jason Momoa, and he does a solid job. This is by no means brilliant acting, but he embodies the character well physically and verbally, and has some really funny moments. The woman that helps Arthur and convinces him to help Atlantis is played by Amber Heard. Heard has some moments of strong acting, but also some rough moments. She gives a speech in the final scene that is absolutely ridiculous in both writing and presentation, and has a lot of tacky moments throughout. The king of Atlantis is played by Patrick Wilson, and is solid throughout except for some overacting in the last scene. Arthur's mother is played by Nicole Kidman, and she is great as always. She is much better than most of the other actors in the film, so at times she feels a bit out of place but that is in no way her fault. Alongside Kidman is another actor recognized by the Oscars in Willem Dafoe. He's great in the film and it almost feels pointless to say, as he is great in basically everything. His scenes were a lot of the highlights of the film for me. The film presents a secondary villain in Black Manta, played by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. He is pretty good in the film and his character is one of the more interesting. He is unfortunately heavily underused and does not get the screentime he or his character deserve.
James Wan is a great director and producer, with countless horror hits under his belt. This film does not live up to his pedigree unfortunately. There is a great scene towards the end of the second act that allows Wan to flex his horror muscles and it is one of the best in the film. For the rest of the film however, it seems as though he is too tied down by the studio to create something as good as his past work. The writing is pretty weak throughout the film. There are numerous cheesy and tacky moments, and throughout the film it seems as though the filmmakers assume that the average Joe has a strong grasp on Atlantian politics, which I certainly don't. The CGI in DC films has been a constant issue, and there are times in the film that have quite great CGI. Unfortunately there are also brutal scenes, especially the last scene. The final scene should be a big exciting moment, but it is riddled with horrible writing, weak acting, awful lighting, and really bad effects. The soundtrack of the film has some fun points, but also a remix of Africa by Pitbull at one point, so it clearly isn't all good.
There is a lot of fun to be had with this film, and some of the acting is decent, but as a whole the film is messy and has some really weak scenes. I enjoyed it for the most part but I can't say it's a good film.
Rating: 2.4/5
Written by Matt McKenzie
The film takes place after the events of Justice League, with Arthur Curry (Aquaman) helping out people in need within the seven seas. His half-brother and king of Atlantis plans to wage war upon the surface, so Arthur is forced to fight for the throne in order to avoid mass death and destruction.
Arthur is played by Jason Momoa, and he does a solid job. This is by no means brilliant acting, but he embodies the character well physically and verbally, and has some really funny moments. The woman that helps Arthur and convinces him to help Atlantis is played by Amber Heard. Heard has some moments of strong acting, but also some rough moments. She gives a speech in the final scene that is absolutely ridiculous in both writing and presentation, and has a lot of tacky moments throughout. The king of Atlantis is played by Patrick Wilson, and is solid throughout except for some overacting in the last scene. Arthur's mother is played by Nicole Kidman, and she is great as always. She is much better than most of the other actors in the film, so at times she feels a bit out of place but that is in no way her fault. Alongside Kidman is another actor recognized by the Oscars in Willem Dafoe. He's great in the film and it almost feels pointless to say, as he is great in basically everything. His scenes were a lot of the highlights of the film for me. The film presents a secondary villain in Black Manta, played by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. He is pretty good in the film and his character is one of the more interesting. He is unfortunately heavily underused and does not get the screentime he or his character deserve.
James Wan is a great director and producer, with countless horror hits under his belt. This film does not live up to his pedigree unfortunately. There is a great scene towards the end of the second act that allows Wan to flex his horror muscles and it is one of the best in the film. For the rest of the film however, it seems as though he is too tied down by the studio to create something as good as his past work. The writing is pretty weak throughout the film. There are numerous cheesy and tacky moments, and throughout the film it seems as though the filmmakers assume that the average Joe has a strong grasp on Atlantian politics, which I certainly don't. The CGI in DC films has been a constant issue, and there are times in the film that have quite great CGI. Unfortunately there are also brutal scenes, especially the last scene. The final scene should be a big exciting moment, but it is riddled with horrible writing, weak acting, awful lighting, and really bad effects. The soundtrack of the film has some fun points, but also a remix of Africa by Pitbull at one point, so it clearly isn't all good.
There is a lot of fun to be had with this film, and some of the acting is decent, but as a whole the film is messy and has some really weak scenes. I enjoyed it for the most part but I can't say it's a good film.
Rating: 2.4/5
Written by Matt McKenzie
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