Review of Wonder Woman (2017) by Raj B — 05 Jul 2017

With stunning cinematography, jaw-dropping war scenes, and an iconic+hopeful portrayal not seen since Reeve, Wonder Woman is the film DC's 75-year old hero deserves. 9.2/10.

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Wonder Woman follows Diana Prince (Gal Gadot), an Amazon princess living on an faraway island of only female warriors. When a male spy posing as a fighter pilot (Chris Pine) washes up & tells the Amazons about the World War I ravaging the world, Diana dons the Wonder Woman name & costume to use her superpowers to restore order.

*Possible spoilers ahead*.

It would not be an unfair statement to say that the DCEU's fate was riding on Wonder Woman's reception. After a divisive and polarizing trio of films in Man of Steel, Batman v Superman, and Suicide Squad, both diehard DC fans (like myself) and DCEU haters were hoping to not have this endless debate again with WW and get a universally and critically-liked film that would perform well at the box office and please everyone. Well, thankfully, that's exactly what we got. In fact, not only is Wonder Woman the best DCEU film to date (a somewhat bittersweet compliment in likes of disappointments like Suicide Squad), it is the greatest superhero film I've seen since The Dark Knight. And here's why.

Let's start with the pros, almost too many to count. For one, the cinematography and location settings are absolutely BEAUTIFUL. You truly believe that Themyscira is a place of fantasy with how stunning (and colorful- a huge DCEU complaint for many, myself included) it looks. Even London, with its purposely dreary atmosphere to show the marked difference between Amazons and lower humans, is still well-shot and crafted in things like shots and mise-en-scene, especially in the action scenes, which I'll get to later.

Next, Diana's training. Her portrayal as a young girl who just always wanted to fight will be inspiring for many girls, and rightfully so as that is the power of Wonder Woman and what I'm sure Jenkins was trying to achieve. The feminism factor is certainly on full display here, and if some men write it off (which I'm sure sadly they will) that is just unfair. That's what Wonder Woman was BUILT ON, being a game-changer in the world of superheroes by showing that a woman could beat up bad guys just as well as a man, and in that sense Jenkins was spot-on in understanding the character and her legacy on pop culture.

The best part in the whole movie to me was action and war scenes in the film. They are absolutely jaw-dropping. Set in WWI, the portrayal of things like battles in the trenches and Wonder Woman fighting off a barricade of soldiers with guns is just stunning to behold, especially during my favorite scene of the movie and one of the most incredile scenes I've seen in a superhero scene: the No Man's Land scene. In the face of impossibility like charging a batallion of machine guns head-on, we get a hero who shines as a beacon of hope I have not seen or felt as invested in since the likes of Reeves' Superman when he flew into theaters in 1978.

The movie is also hilarious. It is so refreshing to see the DCEU not take itself too seriously as in the Snyder era, and actually have some fun too. Chris Pine and Gal Gadot's chemistry is so realistic and believable, unsurprising due to the fact that Jenkins revealed that entire scenes of the movie such as the Boat dialogue scene were entirely improvised and ad-libbed on the spot by Gadot and Pine. The jokes in the film were all spot-on to me, and judging from the rest of the audience, everyone else too, unlike Marvel movies in which a sometimes large portion of the jokes are insultingly juvenile/cringy, ala "Does anyone have any Orange Slices?" in Civil War or resolving a major battle with a Dance-Off in GoTG. It's nice to have this addition to DC movies while not making them a focus or distracting from the epic-ness and action.

Finally, Ares. No, THIS was my favorite moment of the film (really is hard to choose). It might just be one of my favorite moments in recent YEARS in CBM's (Comic Book Movies). The plot twist in Ares' identity reveal is downright shocking and threw me for an absolute loop. I will wait to even write it down here to save anyone from accidentally having it spoiled before the weekend's over because there is no possible way you could have saw that coming. It is one of the best kept secrets I have seen in a superhero film and an absolute gut-punch when it was revealed (heard gasps coming from the first-row of the theater it was so shocking), reminiscent of Bucky's killing of Howard Stark in Captain America: Civil War but even more shocking in my opinion.

Besides his reveal, Ares' powers, costume overall, and overpowered-ness are INSANE. While Marvel (while their movies are strong) has had a remarkable slew of weak villains in their on-going villain problem, DC absolutely shines in this category. From Ares to Lex Luthor (no matter how you feel about Eisenberg's portrayal) to Doomsday and General Zod, DC's villains are absolutely richly written and designed to be the perfect test of powers and opposite for their respective heroes, one reason why I love DC so much. The final Wonder Woman v Ares fight actually had my jaw on the floow with how epic and beautiful it was, as well as high-stakes and destructive but not overlong like what was holding back MoS' Supes-Zod fight from greatness in my opinion. Amazing.

Now, the cons, and while there are so many pros I am almost willing to almost completely overlook the cons, there were some present.

First, Ares' costume. While Ares is an incredible villain, perhaps my favorite in the entire DCEU which has had strong villain entries consistently, I have a problem with his appearance: his mask. I was always in love with Ares' blue costume from the comics as it clashed well with WW's red and gold, but the barer metal appearance in the movie version is good too. But, I don't understand why they didn't obscure his face a little better in the mask, creating the shadow in between his eyes that made him so anonymously frightening in the comics. It just takes a little wind out of the sails when we see the actor's face and mustache instead of just Ares' helmet and menacing darkness in between like the god of war he is. Also, the CGI could have been a little more even in parts of the scene, but it is not a big problem in the film overall.

Also, the beginning and ending framing were  unnecessary and I wish they weren't there. You have an incredible story, legendary in fact in its nuanced, meticulous crafting by Jenkins and Snyder (yes he wrote the story. What now haters? lol) and brilliant execution by Gadot and Pine, so why frame it with a modern-day look-back on the memory instead of just starting the movie in Themyscira? And throwing in Batman for no reason, I love Batman but why throw him into every movie even as an Easter Egg. Focus on Wonder Woman and let the character whose solo movie it is shine, maybe have an after-credits scene setting up Justice League or something (another disappointing decision in not having one but in fairness not one that affects the movie itself) but not during the movie.

Finally, Steve Trevor's ending. Chris Pine does a phenomenal job as Steve Trevor, having hilarious lines and natural chemistry and a satisfying romance with Diana that steals the spotlight. So, why must he end (will fill in after weekend so no one sees spoiler)? I get that WWI happened a long time ago from where Justice League is set, but Steve Trevor is supposed to be Wonder Woman's main love interest, and his end seemed premature in light that they could've at least had him in a sequel or something to make use of this screen-stealing romance. The ending works for this film alone, but should there be a sequel (which there almost certainly will be after its success in ratings and projections) it could pose a problem in the future.

Overall, while there are noticeable flaws, they are so minor that they don't really affect the movie as a whole. Wonder Woman is a triumph for superhero movies and perhaps my new 2nd favorite superhero movie of All-Time.

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Most Memorable Moment(s): 1. No Man's Land fight, 2. Wonder Woman v. Ares final fight and plot twist, 3. Diana training scene in Themiscyra and war on the beach.

Pros: Visually stunning form and cinematography, jaw-dropping action and war scenes, amazing fight choreography, Hilarious jokes a refreshing and welcome addition in DCEU, sure-handed direction from Jenkins, an iconic and hopeful portrayal by Gadot we haven't seen since the likes of Reeve in '78, Great chemistry between Gadot and Pine, overall strong acting and writing, incredible and shocking plot twist in the Ares reveal, Amazing new DC Comics intro (albeit not part of the film).

Cons: Ares' costume could've been a tiny bit better (helmet area more obscuring), the beginning and ending framing of the story were unnecessary, a little uneven CGI, Steve Trevor's ending, No After-Credits Scene (albeit not part of the film).

Overall Rating: 9.2/10.