Before you read this, let me be very clear here. There are SPOILERS AHEAD!
After the disappointment I faced watching Justice League last year, I honestly had no expectations from Aquaman. I was too scared to keep up my hopes from DC. But when I watched the Aquaman trailer, I thought to myself, this doesn t look all that bad. Once the international reviews began pouring in, I again thought to myself, "Have Jason Momoa and James Wan cracked it?" The reviews were good, but I wanted to watch it for myself. Now that I have seen the movie, here s what I think of it
What s it about:
The James Wan directorial primarily focuses on Aquaman s origin story. Aquaman aka Arthur Curry is a half-human and half-Atlantean who was born to a lighthouse keeper and the Queen of Atlantis. He grows up to learn the skills of an Atlantean and uses it to help the human world. He chooses to stay away from the underwater world since they killed his mother for marrying a mortal. However, his half-brother, King Orm, wants to rage a war against humans for destroying the oceans. His ulterior motive is to rule the waters.
Arthur decides to stop him with the help of Mera. Together they find the trident, which was originally made for the first King of Atlantis but can he defeat King Orm?
What s hot:
Aquaman is a visual treat. Wan has brought to life the fictional world of Atlantis in the most breathtaking way possible. From the word go, you feel like you ve been transported into another world - a world you want to be a part of. Right from the Atlantic sea to the Sahara desert and Sicily in Italy - every location is beautifully captured. The VFX does not disappoint at all.
Momoa, as the Aquaman, brings an end to all the he talks to fishes jokes. Yes, pop culture has deemed the superhero as someone who is only good at talking to fishes. However, Wan and Momoa have proved that Aquaman is more than just that. He is powerful, empathetic and boy, does he look good shirtless! In the establishing shot introducing Aquaman, Arthur s power has been depicted when he pushes up a submarine back to the surface. His empathy comes to play when he wins the trident by explaining that he wants to stop the war and not be a king. His good looks help the movie.
I want to especially mention the ladies of the movie: Amber Heard and Nicole Kidman. In the first fifteen minutes, Nicole, as the Queen of Atlantis, dives into a fight with the gatekeepers of Atlantis who have come to take her back underwater. The fight she puts up to save her husband and son is awe-inspiring.
Meanwhile Amber, too, has a good share of role to prove she s more than just a pretty face in the movie. The actress puts up a brave fight against Orm s army when they try to kill her for betraying the underwater kingdom and helping Aquaman. I enjoyed her witty side in a few places and I m hoping, if there is an Aquaman 2, I get to see more of her.
Patrick Wilson as King Orm puts up a decent fight in the form of Momoa s Aquaman and manages to keep the spotlight on himself.
The storytelling style used by Wan is good too. I loved the way he juggled between Arthur s childhood, his teenage life and his present life to share important moments from his past. For example, there is a scene where Mera and Aquaman take their first dive together and head to Atlantis. Wan chose to connect a back memory of Arthur s first diving lesson with Vulko (Aquaman s mentor) to explain how he knows so much about the underwater world.
The movie uses logic to tell the tale and you can never go wrong with that.
What s not:
The movie is a drag. You start to check your watch even before the climax has begun. There are portions that could have been fast-paced as well. For example, the part where they are tracking down the trident could have been fast-tracked a little.
The villain could have been stronger as well. I loved Black Manta s fight against Arthur but it wasn t long enough for me to remember him well.
Considering it is a DC movie, the background music did not impress. DC fans remember the hair-raising BGM take The Dark Knight series and Wonder Woman for example.
What to do
Judging by the recent DC movies released (except Wonder Woman), Aquaman is a good DCEU movie. It doesn t get you sea-sick. You can take your non-DC fan friends along too because they would understand the movie even without much DC universe background. Also, it is a great watch for kids.
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