Wonder Woman 1984

If it’s going to be 1984, then with everything that comes along with it, was probably said by Patty Jenkins et al., and the second Wonder Woman was written and filmed exactly as it would have looked 37 years ago. That is, with a fairy-tale plot, in which there is also the threat of the Cold War and the victory of the most important human values, with the main (semi) divine protagonist, who distributes smiles in all directions, eliminates villains without killing (do not expect the sword and shield, Diana's only weapon is a lasso) and she is tormented by unhappy love, with a super-exaggerated and amusing villain whose plan evokes a smile, and with only a few action scenes. But we don't have to wait long for them, as some people complain, because what's between them is entertainment. I really like this concept. Gal Gadot clearly enjoys her relaxed position, absolutely great is Pedro Pascal, who plays Max Lord in exactly the same way Gene Hackman played Lex Luthor, Chris Pine has comedic talent and is still amazed by everything, and hats off to Kristen Wiig, whose Barbara, on the other hand, was obviously inspired by Selina/Catwoman, played by Michelle Pfeiffer, and who gradually transforms without any effects, only thanks to her acting and increasingly animalistic costumes. In the end, I have to do something I haven't done in a long time, and that is to praise the music of Hans Zimmer, who mixes a Williams orchestra full of jubilant Superman fanfares with Morricone romance, period synths and his typical drone (and the Lion King). (04/16/2021)

Maybe if some day I watch the original Superman movies and the naive and colourful comic-book flicks from the 80s and 90s, I will be able to appreciate this one as beautifully nostalgic and intentionally campy trash, but right now, other than the massive naivete and the contrived retro atmosphere, I don’t see anything special that would leave me flabbergasted in the good sense of the word; maybe only the celebrated parting of the love-birds, which some day may be seen as the most bizarre farewell of this mad 2020. Otherwise, I wonder how long Gal Gadot can keep on compensating her lack of acting talent with her inimitable beauty – in roles like this, it will still take some time. 50% (12/27/2020)

I was expecting worse based on the tragic reviews, but it's not that bad. The best part is at the very beginning, with the Olympic tournament of the Amazons, and it is captivating. Then the pace slows down significantly, and there is surprisingly little action for a comic book film, and even when it happens, it's not very impressive. But I enjoyed the idea of granting wishes, it kept me from getting bored, though Pedro Pascal failed to impress me with his acting for the first time. Had I seen it at the cinema, I would have left disappointed, but I watched it at home and it turned out to be okay. Story***, Action***, Humor**, Violence>No, Entertainment***, Music*****, Visual****, Atmosphere***, Tension***. 5.5/10. (12/30/2020)

The screenwriters meant well with the motif of "fulfilment of any wish" as a double-edged sword. They constructed a thoughtfully concise story on that foundation. I didn’t even mind waiting 80 minutes for the first action scene after the opening one. When there’s something to watch and it’s nicely handled in the Hollywood way (of which there was a dearth in 2020), I’m happy to wait. As a fairly long whole, WW84 is dramaturgically sloppy, sometimes needlessly slow and at other times too fast-paced, and mainly in its treatment of the subject matter, it’s naïve almost to the point of self-parody. I’m giving it a third star – very much for it’s guilty-pleasure aspect – because of my weakness for Gal Gadot, whom I like as Wonder Woman even more than my favourite Avenger. And for Zimmer, who reaches (yet another) peak here. With amazement and wonder, I listen to the soundtrack every day now, some tracks two or three times on repeat. (01/06/2021)

In WW84, there are scenes that are at best average for this genre or stupidly cut short and/or just plain stupid layering clichés upon clichés. All the eccentricities you'd expect and forgive from the Superman: The Movie because it was a pioneer of modern comic book movies and also because it was made in the year 1978, and here the creators try to sell this as a cool retro throwback thing, but it is very much lacking in terms of the screenplay and rests on its laurels. The action scenes are probably the weakest points of the movie as a whole. Patty Jenkins does not really succeed at shooting action using unnatural-looking CGI, like in the first movie, and putting a total of only 4 short and indistinct action scenes into a 151-minute giant blockbuster is almost a crime. Maybe that's why it didn't even bother me as much as in the first movie. Otherwise, this movie is in all ways a forgettable watch, which actually received more media attention than it is actually really worth. (12/27/2020)