The DCEU as audiences are aware has experienced quite a bumpy start in terms of getting off the ground since it first began in 2013 with Zack Snyder's hit-and-miss
Man Of Steel. While that film was flawed, it still served as an entertaining and effective blockbuster, that was a hit with audiences spawning the horribly missed opportunity which was
Batman V Superman. The failure of that film on a critical level signaled that the DCEU was in serious trouble along with the misfire of David Ayer's
Suicide Squad. Patty Jenkins
Wonder Woman however provided hope that the universe would make a complete 180 with its strong critical reception and that
Justice League would benefit from having
Avengers director Joss Whedon take over as director after Zack Snyder left the film due to a personal family tragedy. While
Justice League wasn't horrible, it served as being just passable entertainment that lacked the impact needed to stick with audiences. With the latter film underperforming, audiences questioned whether the DCEU as we knew it was finished as their signature film failed to draw both critical acclaim and huge box office success (It became the lowest grossing movie of the DC Cinematic Universe). With James Wan's
Aquaman, the answer is that the DCEU is still alive and gives audiences hope that things can get better if the right directors are behind the project.
Aquaman is an extremely entertaining CGI driven superhero flick, that works due to the films appealing cast, particularly Jason Momoa in the films main title, as well as the exciting action that the film presents. What makes it standout much like Patty Jenkins
Wonder Woman while separating itself from Zack Snyder's movies in the universe is simply that
Aquaman knows it wants to be a fun popcorn blockbuster and goes about being just that while bringing its main title character to life in a way that's effective as well as appealing to audiences. With
Aquaman, James Wan turns out one of the three main good films in the DCEU thus far. (
Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and
Shazam).
The plot for
Aquaman centers around the main character going on a quest to prevent a war between the worlds of ocean and land. Being a human-born heir to the underwater kingdom of Atlantis, he feels compelled to defend both worlds from his half-brother's (Played by
Watchman and
Conjuring's Patrick Wilson) plan to destroy the surface. Despite
Aquaman being a DCEU movie, the story almost feels like a parallel to Marvels
Black Panther with the same set up with the fight for the throne with the main difference is Aquaman's kingdom is underwater and the story presented here could essentially be seen through Kilmonger's perspective from
Black Panther. Aquaman has themes that pertain to one struggling to choose their allegiance as they're split between two sides as well as the desire to be reunited with a long lost parent. Other themes that
Aquaman dives into are War, betrayal, discovering ones roots, treason, revenge, and forgiveness with the overall film carrying a message that says heroes fight for everyone, not just their own kind. Like
Wonder Woman, Aquaman's greatest asset which aligns itself with Patty Jenkins film as well as the newly released
Shazam, is that all three movies carry both heart and charm to them in regards to presenting their respective origin stories. All three movies present heroes and heroines that the audience can get behind and ultimately idiolize. With
Aquaman, the film never forgets that its main objective is to entertain its audience while presenting a new kind of hero to the big screen. If
Wonder Woman is meant to be the DCEU's
Captain America than
Aquaman is its
Thor. The film feels like a cross between
Black Panther in terms of story as well as James Cameron's
Avatar with the visual underworld being a bright and colorful experience.
In terms of acting performances,
Aquaman follows the tradition of recent comic book movies by putting together an all star cast and using them to help bring the story to life in the most epic fashion. The highest praise obviously goes to the films main lead Jason Momoa. As the main lead, he is charismatic and believable in the role of Aquaman, while possessing great comedic timing and being dramatic when the story calls for it. He also manages to allow his physicality to do much of the acting for him. Amber Heard shines in her role as Aquaman's love interest Mera, she shows strong chemistry with Momoa and could arguably be declared the stronger performance of the two. Not only do both leads look good together, but both share strong enough chemistry to promote solid laughs in between the explosions. Nicole Kidman shines as Aquaman's long lost mother Atlanta with William Dafoe turning in a strong supporting role as his trainer and ally Vulko. Patrick Wilson is quite good as Aquaman's half-brother and antagonist in the film showing both his menacing traits as well as his vulnerability upon realizing the truth. Dolph Lundgren, Yahya Abdul Mateen ll, and Temuera Morrison shine in their supporting roles with Lungren having a great comeback year appearing in both this as King Nereus and
Creed ll, Yahya stealing the show with his performance as a vengeful son Manta, and Morrison delivering a small yet heartfelt performance as a husband and father longing to see his wife again after sudden abandonment. In the acting category, the entire cast is fantastic here and delivers performances that are both on key and nail it.
As far as writing and directing goes, James Wan delivers what essentially looks like what his version of
Avatar would've looked like in the comic book world. This movie is stunning to look at visually and carries a great deal of energy behind it in telling its story. Wan aims to entertain his audience with a popcorn blockbuster ride while humanizing his main character, both of which he does very well. Wan directs this film with absolute confidence knowing exactly what it wants to be which is silly fun with a sentimental message behind it about accepting ones role in life while forgiving ones enemies. Wan knows how to direct and entertaining film and brings his A game here while being accompanied by a strong script from writers Will Beall, David Leslie, and Johnson McGoldrick. The screenplay felt like it borrowed the best from the previous successful DC movies which were
Batman Begins and
Wonder Woman. Aquaman goes as far as to show him being trained by an instructor on how to fight and protect both the underworld and the surface in the same vein Bruce Wayne was taught by Ras Al Ghoul to fight injustice. Despite
Aquaman's orgin story being the strength of the film, the subplot involving Black Manta felt underdeveloped and rushed, making audiences feel as if it should've been omitted and saved for the sequel as it lacked the impact needed for audiences to truly care despite an impressive fight sequence with Aquaman later in the story.
The films writing is not the films strongest aspect nor original by any means as the film carries with it elements and subplots that are typical, cliched, and repetitive as you've already seen them before with one-dimensional characters also being present. An example is the whole subplot of the half brothers fighting for the title of King and even having a Gladiator style battle to fight for it which mirrors what audiences saw previously with
Black Panther. Despite King Orm being an effective antagonist, he's not as memorable nor as striking as Kilmonger was in terms of playing off the same style of character arc essentially. One can say that
Aquaman not only aims to reach for the stars with its story and by doing so borrows heavily from other great comic book and science fiction stories. However, Wan and the writers frame the script to have a strong foundation regardless of its overlapping issues with a concept, that has a strong message hidden deep in its core with a lead who helps to carry the film on his shoulders with Wan creating his own
Avatar style universe that audiences are clearly digging. Much like
Avatar, both that film and
Aquaman borrow from other great and iconic storylines with the strength of their filmmakers making them work on their own and connect with audiences in an impactful way. Like that film,
Aquaman carries with it strong environmental themes with the character of Orm having a motive to go after the surface with most of the seven underwater kingdoms because of the way the ocean is being polluted. The film at times feels like a condemnation of humans with the character of Mera admitting her disapproval of humans at one point for the way they've treated her underwater home though Aquaman admitting during one of their banters that the surface has idiots running it but not all humans are bad people. The themes of the film despite coming across as rather preachy at times, do a good job of placing the audience into the shoes of the main characters, both making them see Aquaman's standpoint while also questioning whether Orms stance though extreme and maniacal is justifiable in a sense.
On a technical level,
Aquaman is quite an impressive spectacle to be seen, especially for those who watched it in theaters. The film doesn't move at a fast-paced given its 2.5 hour running time and takes time to develop its story and characters, but there's plenty of action and entertainment to maintain the audiences interest with the films big payoff happening within its third act. In terms of visual effects, the film is both breathtaking and beautiful to watch with the vibrant atmosphere of the undersea world being on full display.
Aquaman's undersea world looks like a far superior upgrade from the Gungan underwater civilization shown in
Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace. The visuals are complimented by the equally awesome art-set decoration, cinematography, and costume design with a great attention to detail going to the first and latter categories. The undersea world has a great variety of set locations, creature designs, and a rather interesting mythology. The films soundtrack is also highly effective particularly within the moments where the action scenes take place as well as going into full synthesizer mode. The films sound effects and mixing do a great deal to bring the action in the films story to life making it loud, explosive, and a rollicking good time watching it especially with the films third act including an epic climactic battle sequence that screams comparisons to both
Black Panther and
Avatar.
For some viewers
Aquaman may come off as being a goofy and rather silly comic book film but given its a film in the DCEU, its rather refreshing to see a superhero movie knowing fully aware of what it wants to be and does so with the utmost confidence and energy. James Wan delivers a thrill ride that's driven by his talent to entertain his audience with the film centered around Jason Momoa's character. As fun and entertaining the rest of the film is, it wouldn't have been as successful without Momoa's charisma in the lead role much in the same way
Wonder Woman wouldn't have worked without Gal Gadot in the main title role or Zachary Levi as
Shazam. As all three of these movies show, the key to the DCEU's success is not only through their choice of directors but also their casting decisions as the actors and actresses present the talent, the dedication, and the heart to bring these characters to life. Is
Aquaman a perfect movie? No, the narrative is rather uneven at times particularly with the whole revenge subplot revolving around Black Manta, the dialogue has moments where its extremely cheesy, and the movie is longer than it needed to be but these are minor issues as the overall experience is one that's highly entertaining and ranks as being one of the strongest films in the DCEU this far (Though that isn't saying much given they've only had three official good movies with
Man Of Steel borderlining on being passable). With this film, Momoa and Wan managed to successfully bring a new kind of superhero story to the table, that's full of extreme amounts of fun and awe while building a new world of their own which they will inevitably return to with the sequels.
Aquaman shows that not all comic book movies have to be over the top dark and serious toned but can still be laid back and have fun while presenting a mature storyline, that has something to say about the pollution of the ocean as well as accepting ones rightful title. For comic book fans as well as fans of the DCEU, this film is a treat and worth seeing.
Final Verdict: If you haven't watched it yet, see it.
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