Aquaman
Starring: Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, Willem Dafoe, Patrick Wilson
Directed by: James Wan
Rated: PG-13
It’s time to play a game: if you can guess the superhero based on the description I give, you win! This headstrong hero is the rightful heir to his kingdom’s throne. He’s being kept from it by his power hungry brother. In order to gain the throne, he’ll have to get his ego in check and defeat his brother. All for the good of his people, of course. If you guessed Thor, you’re correct! Wait…a second. I’m reviewing Aquaman today. Oh yeah, these superhero origin films have the exact same plot. The major factor separating them is that one exists on land and the other is at sea.
Aquaman is DC’s latest bombastic CGI-heavy super-hero film. It introduces us to Arthur Curry, the child of Queen Atlanna of Atlantis (Nicole Kidman) and Tom Curry, a lighthouse keeper from America. Queen Atlanna is quickly forced to return to Atlantis when Arthur is just a child. Arthur is raised on land by his father and taught the ways of the land and sea. Maybe he can bring peace to both worlds.
This is certainly not the worst DC comics film I’ve seen. Compared to Suicide Squad, Batman v. Superman, and even Man of Steel, Aquaman is a better movie. It’s entertaining and cheesy fun. There’s a little romance, a lot of action and some giant seahorses. Who doesn’t want to see a giant seahorse?
It’s clear most of the film’s focus is creating a visually stunning world for the audience. Obviously this couldn’t be filmed underwater, so the majority of the film is CGI. For some of the movie, the effects look quite good. The entrance to Atlantis is a highlight of visually striking sequences. Another equally impressive effect is a flashback technique that de-ages Willem Dafoe and Nicole Kidman to look 20 years younger. It adds to the story that they look their age throughout each time period the film explores. However, there are moments that the effects are taken too far. The ending sequence has so much CGI that it’s difficult to tell what’s even happening.
With a 2 and a half hour runtime, Aquaman wanders in a few too many directions. It’s a superhero origin story, a scavenger hunt, and a quest to be king. Ugh, that’s a little tiring. Not to mention, the film contains the worst superhero movie trope: two villains. One of which serves absolutely no purpose to the overall story. He just exists to add 2 fight scenes, 30 extra minutes, and then he’s gone. Can we stop having more than one villain in every single superhero movie that exists?
I have to forgive Aquaman’s two villain mistake due to its greatest strength. It has given me a scene I never knew could exist in modern cinema. For that, I am truly grateful. You see, I was just watching this CGI filled spectacle and suddenly, a text came across the screen to tell me all I needed to know, “The Battle of Brine”. Now, The Battle of Brine is essentially a bunch of crustaceans fighting evil. I should’ve been prepared in an underwater superhero movie to see something like this, but I had absolutely no idea that the pivotal third act would be the villains vs. CRAWFISH! It was incredible! I’m never looking at shrimp the same way again. There are thousands of crab-like creatures in this scene. They’re all crawling around, preparing for battle. They have their own war machines. And why wouldn’t they? How dare I ever underestimate them! I would love to meet the screenwriter who pitched this scene and thank them personally because I’m very obsessed with this ridiculous concept. I have no idea how this scene happened, but I like to imagine it started like this:
DC Exececutive: We have to finish the Aquaman script by next week. What do you have?
Screenwriter: The perfect finale. As you know, this is a movie that takes place underwater!
Dc Exec: Yeah, do you want to do something with stingrays? Sharks? Jellyfish?
Screenwriter: it’s so much better than that.
Dc Exec: Ok, is it a giant octopus? Or piranhas?
Screenwriter: Battle. Of. Brine.
DC EXEC: What?
Screenwriter: I want the final battle to be the city of Atlantis vs. a bunch of shellfish. Crustaceans, if you will. We’re gonna make them look like they just had some kind of industrial revolution in their city. So they’ll have robot-like creatures. Some of them will talk. One of them will be the King of the Brine.
DC Exec: *Wipes away a tear from his eye* That’s beautiful. I love it. You’re clear for the scene and the budget is 20 million dollars!
Ok I just remembered that other things happen in this movie besides lobsters fighting a war...it’s so difficult to focus on the other aspects though. Jason Momoa helps the crustaceans at war as Aquaman. He’s certainly up to the task as an intimidating physical presence, but underneath it all there’s a kindness to Arthur. You can tell he genuinely cares about his family and the good of the people around him. The screenwriters of the film attempt to give Arthur’s character tons of one-liners after anything happens to him and it never lands. It’s clear several moments are meant to be funny, but they fall flat almost every time. I wouldn’t blame Jason Momoa for this, but the corny writing.
There is a very strong supporting cast in Aquaman including Willem Dafoe, Nicole Kidman, Amber Heard, and Patrick Wilson.
Gone are the days of the Green Goblin Willem Dafoe! He’s having a career renaissance (a Dafoeaissance, we’ll call it) and part of it includes not killing superheroes anymore. Instead of trying to murder Aquaman, he trains him in the ways of the sea. I am happy to report that he is an ally to the Brine in the War of 2018. (Start studying kids, learn who you can trust.)
Amber Heard is Mera, an Atlantian princess who wants peace for the kingdom. She brings Arthur to Atlantis when his brother, King Orm, is threatening a war on land. Amber Heard begins the film a little shaky, but finds her stride as the movie progresses. She has pretty good chemistry with Jason Momoa.
Patrick Wilson is King Orm of Atlantis, a king who believes people of the land are evil. He wants a war between the land and sea. He communicates 90% of his lines through shouting. “It’s TIMMMEEE to show AQUAMAN that I AM THE Ocean MASTER!” He loves to call himself the Ocean Master. What can you expect from a guy who thinks he can defeat the brine?
Nicole Kidman gets her own little mini-movie at the beginning of Aquaman detailing how Arthur’s parents met. Their love story is a bit reminiscent of the most iconic film of all time, Aquamarine. As Queen Atlanna, she is regal, but fierce.
As the film drags on to its final act, it’s dizzying to keep up with what’s happening on screen. It’s as if so much money was spent on visual effects that the studio just went crazy with them. That is the core problem of Aquaman. It’s an entertaining film that suffers from being overstuffed with too much content. Oh well, at least we’ll always have The Battle of the Brine.
My Rating: 6/10
*All images belong to Warner Brothers