Warner Bros’s start with their cinematic universe has been a bit of a struggle, to say the least. Man of Steel, while I enjoyed it, was a hit or miss with movie audiences, with it’s dark tone & overuse of Jesus symbolism. It’s follow-ups were much worse with BvS & Suicide Squad, due to those movies bad writing (Martha!) & bad story threads. Zack Snyder has a cinematic universe that is dark and menacing, which doesn’t allow for the characters or movies to break out of his monochromatic vision. Even with Patty Jenkins helming Wonder Woman, I feared that because of that, she would be hamstrung by the limitations of this DCEU. It’s feels good to be wrong.
Wonder Woman is set in the present world with Diana (Gal Gadot) telling what happened before & during World War I. This is a different Diana from the one near the end of Batman v. Superman, where she fought Doomsday alongside her male opposites. Determined & skilled but not a polished fighter compared to her Amazonian counterparts. Her mother and queen of Themyscira, Hippolyta (Connie Nielsen) doesn’t want her to fight out of fear of losing her, while General Antiope (Robin Wright) is willing to train Diana to the point of perfection in order to be the best, if she’s to be great against foes like Ares. As she’s going through her training, she discovers a man, Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) has infiltrated Themyscira (No man is ever to be on that island at all times). Trevor is evading the German army after he stole something important from them to stall their plans for the War. Only it led him into the island against his will. After the fight on the island, Steve’s confession & Diana’s perservance, Diana decides to join Steve to end the war & stop Ares.
The biggest difference this movie has from the other three films in the DCEU? Simple. It’s not monochrome like it’s predecessors, which may not seem like much, but for a woman as optimistic as Wonder Woman, it’s definitely helpful (thanks, Geoff Johns). It’s a rich world with the right touches in the world. While grim things happen, it’s never overwrought like past films. Jenkins, I think, gave Gadot more range with her character than Zack Snyder, because she’s able to add more things to her character. Again, Gal did fine in Dawn of Justice, unfortunately, she hamstrung by Snyder’s limitations with story and subtlety. Being that Jenkins has directorial pedigree with 2003’s Monster & other television work, you can see why this feels different from other DC films. Chris Pine’s really good here & I’m glad the studio didn’t try to shoehorn him in to take the moment away from Gal.
More than anything, I’m glad this was the one DCEU to go on without slipping up to the masses. Man of Steel is still a favorite of mine, but it lacks WW’s subtlety, hope & humanity. While I have no hope for Justice League, this is a trajectory the DCEU should follow.
4.5 out of 5
Good: Gal Gadot & Chris Pine’s chemistry, Patty Jenkins, Colorful! (No muted colors)
Bad: Final Act underwhelmed, So-so villains
The Film Wanderer 