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)

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)

Gal Gadot's natural femininity and old world elegance and refinement and the opening triathlon are about all you should (not) see Wonder Woman 1984 for, and I'm sure some editing of the top moments (about 3-4) will be quite enough. The rest is merely tired screenwriting filler that doesn't honor the main character's abilities and her character as such, nor the laws of physics, nor, in fact, any plot cohesion so that you can watch it in peace without rolling your eyes in disbelief. (01/10/2021)

If I never saw another Patty Jenkins movie in my life, I wouldn't mind at all. Not that I was looking forward to her Wonder Woman 1984 or was a big fan of the first film, but those two and a half hours with Gal Gadot went by as fast as, say, the Thirty Years War. And I'm convinced it's the fault of a director who just can't handle blockbusters and action movies. WW1984 has an extremely excessive runtime and unfortunately most of it is completely pointless filler. The 1980s setting didn't make much sense to me, the film could have been set almost any time before Batman vs. Superman. Virtually nothing happens, and when the action does come, it's mediocre at best. The only lighter moments are the romantic scenes where the film can lean on Chris Pine. But the biggest problem I see is that Jenkins clearly wanted to make something that would be reminiscent of the first and second Superman. That is, a naive comic book movie with a simple plot, easily distinguishable good and evil, and lots of hope and optimism. I don't disagree. It's just that the end result is more like Superman 3 and 4, which really aren't good movies. Overall, Wonder Woman 1984 doesn't feel like a big 2020 movie, but like something that was made two years before the first Iron Man, when Hollywood still didn't really know how to handle comic book heroes and heroines and the whole superhero genre was still in search of a new direction. And no, I don't mean that as praise for the old-school approach. Jenkins simply made not an old-school movie, but a movie that feels extremely old. Aside from the nice costumes and production design, I don't really know what to praise about it or why I should recommend it to anyone. (12/28/2020)