Movie Review: Wonder Woman 1984

There's nothing wrong with this movie. It's just so... ordinary.

Partly, that's a failure of the superhero genre. They're all identical movies.

1. I am strong enough to defeat common thieves!
2. Here is a baddie who is somehow stronger than you!
3. I will defeat you due to really believing in myself!
4. Fan service post-credits scene.

WW1984 hits all the tropes in all the right places. Superhero fans aren't interested in seeing anything new. They want to see the exact same story played out again and again with marginally better special effects. And that's what it does.

Speaking of special effects - I'm going to sound like an old codger here - CGI means that everything has the emotional tension of watching a cartoon. Nothing is real. The fights cut so rapidly between the stunt performers, that it's hard to tell what's going on. You're effectively watching someone play a computer game.

The film is nakedly cynical. The producers obviously saw the success of Stranger Things and wholesale recreated all the campy 1980s clichés they could. Malls! Poor fashion choices! Big hair! Anything to tickle the nostalgia part of your brain. They even throw in a "Nice cold, ice cold milk" advert for us Brits.

Five minutes after watching it, you won't be able to remember a thing about it. There are no real set-pieces. No witty one-liners. And nothing really to distinguish it from any other superhero movie.

If you like the genre, you'll probably think this is a good movie. You're not wrong - it is a good superhero movie. It's just that I find them so dull and tired.

Update!

My friend Zoe thinks I'm wrong. And I agree with her

Zoë Rose

@z_rose

Dear everyone who gave Wonder Woman 84 a ‘meh’ review:

My dudes, that story was told in a language you don’t speak.

It was a repudiation of evangelical Christianity and prosperity gospel tthrough Christianity, and it. Was. Excellent.

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Terence Eden is on Mastodon

@edent

Replying to @z_rose @z_rose that's a really interesting look at it - and one I hadn't considered.

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Zoë Rose

@z_rose

Replying to @edent @edent I mean it might also be a little bit about a man who was famous in the 80s for being rich turning out to be a dangerous charlatan who cons an entire population with catastrophic, potentially world-ending results...

🤷‍♀️🤡

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