Wonder Woman 1984 Film Review

Directed by Patty Jenkins

Starring: Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Kristen Wiig

Rated PG-13 for sequences of action and violence

Wonder Woman 1984 is the second installment in the Wonder Woman series. In this film, we see Wonder Woman/Diana (played by Gal Gadot) in Washington D.C. in 1984. After coming in contact with a stone that grants anyone a wish, Diana wishes for her former lover Steve Trevor (played by Chris Pine) to return. Not only does Trevor return but the stone’s power is embodied into businessman Maxwell Lord (played by Pedro Pascal). With everyone getting a wish, the world turns into chaos.

Wonder Woman 1984 is a fun and exciting film, with some drawbacks. First, Gal Gadot is near perfect as Wonder Woman. She embodies the character and makes it her own, akin to the same way Sean Connery did with James Bond or Arnold Schwarzenegger did with the Terminator. Gadot is Wonder Woman and I cannot imagine another actress in the role. She is kind, funny, and tough when she needs to. It would be an understatement to say Gadot brought energy to the film and is the reason why the film works so well. In addition, the supporting cast is excellent. Pedro Pascal, who is slowly becoming one of my favorite actors, is fantastic as Maxwell Lord. Pascal brings a charm to his character and makes him quite likeable. You somehow root for the character although you know he’s the villain. This can be attributed to the fact that he is given some personality. We see why he acts the way he does and sympathize with him.

While I enjoyed the actors in Wonder Woman 1984 and have a soft spot for some of the story elements presented, I was not the biggest fan of the entire story. Unfortunately, the film does throw a lot at the viewer and asks of them to keep up. We have Steve Trevor coming back, Maxwell Lord having the power to grant everyone’s wishes, and Barbara (played by Kristen Wiig) who is slowly losing her identity, but also wants to become like Diana. While all of these plot lines are connected, it can become overwhelming at times. The film should have stuck to the Max Lord plot and maybe hinted at the Barbara/ Cheetah story for the next film. Speaking of Cheetah, she is only in the film for mere minutes. It’s disappointing to see Wonder Woman’s arch enemy on screen for a few minutes and its not done well. Again, the film should have saved this for a potential sequel and focused on Max Lord.

It also goes without saying that the CGI were not too great. In particular, the graphics on Cheetah were a miss. Normally, I wouldn’t mention an element like this as it does not take away from the film. However, considering Wonder Woman 1984 has been placed on the shelf for months due to the ongoing pandemic, you would have thought director Patty Jenkins would have saw this as a perfect opportunity to fix these the sloppy graphics. The CGI doesn’t ruin the film, but it does stick out like a sore thumb. And because how long the film has been collecting dust, I have to call out the mistakes of the filmmakers.

There are some clear issues with Wonder Woman 1984, but there is still fun with the film. Gal Gadot and the rest of the cast are clearly having fun with the film and rightfully so. It is an enjoyable piece that we sorely need right now. While fun and exciting on the surface, issues start to arise for Wonder Woman 1984 the deeper you look into the film.

3/4

Birds of Prey Film Review

Directed by Cathy Yan

Starring: Margot Robbie, Rosie Perez, Mary Elizabeth Winstead

Rated R for strong violence and language throughout, and some sexual and drug material

Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn is the newest addition to the DC Extended Universe, in which antihero Harley Quinn (played by Margot Robbie) must retrieve a diamond for Roman Sionis (played by Ewan McGregor). Quinn has recently broken up with the Joker, meaning she is no longer under his protection. This means that anyone can go for Quinn, who is trying to move on from the breakup and prove she is as menacing as Joker.

To start off, the film is filled with interesting characters, from Roman Sionis to Harley Quinn, who is the main star of the film. Sionis is a violent and a bit funny character who loses a diamond to a young girl and has Quinn retrieve the lost diamond. McGregor truly has fun with the character, as he almost plays the character as a cartoon villain. McGregor’s presence on the screen makes the scenes he is in more interesting because McGregor’s fun with the character. Quinn is another interesting character who is trying to make it on her own from a recent breakup. Robbie excellently plays Quinn as a smart person who does her best to keep herself alive, due to the fact that the Joker is no longer protecting Quinn.

The film also features the characters of Huntress, Black Canary, and Renee Montoya. As much I give praise to Quinn and Sionis being interesting characters, I have mixed feelings for the roles of the other characters. The rest of the characters just feel like stereotypical characters that we have seen before. Huntress, who is played wonderfully by Mary Elizabeth Winstead, is the stereotypical person who is seeking revenge for the death of her family. Montoya is a stereotypical detective who is trying to break a major case. But I will credit the film for actually calling out the cliches of the character.

Birds of Prey begins the film with multiple flashbacks and the first act is nonlinear. It begins with multiple stories that are mixed up and ultimately can confuse the viewer. As mentioned before, the first act follows a nonlinear story line, but the acts that follow are not nonlinear and the story is told in order. I generally disliked the mixture of how the story was told because it can prove to be confusing and sometimes dull. In addition to the story, the main plot itself is a basic story that we have seen before. Harley Quinn is forced to get a lost diamond that was stolen from a young kid. I have seen this type of story I have seen before and actually done much better.

In the second act, we see Sionis places a reward for the capture of Cassandra Cain, the young girl who stole the diamond. Quinn goes to a police station to get Cain while other groups do so as well. I loved watching the biker gang trying to get Cain and Quinn trying to protect her because it forces Quinn to actually not think about herself for once. While this concept is briefly explored, it is quickly ignored for Quinn and Cain hanging out in an apartment and dragging the film down. While watching the police station scene, it brought back memories of a film called Safe, which starred Jason Statham. In this film, Statham has to protect a young girl from multiple gangs who are going after the girl for personal reasons. The reason why I bring up an obscure film from 8 years ago is because the story from Safe is done much better than Birds of Prey and I wish this film did explored the idea of Quinn having to protect a young girl from gangsters throughout the film. All I could think of while watching Birds of Prey is a film from 2012, that was largely forgotten, did this idea so much better.

Birds of Prey has intriguing characters that are played by excellent actors. While I have praise for the actors in the film, the story and the ideas they don’t explore bring the film down. The missed opportunities only make the messy story even more unbearable. A film is only as good as its screenplay and Birds of Prey proves that its weak screenplay brings down the entire film.

2/4

Joker Review

Directed by Todd Phillips

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz

Rated R for strong bloody violence, disturbing behavior, language and brief sexual images

I am in shock and awe of what director Todd Philips is able to achieve when given the right material. This is not a dig at Philips, but it proves that the director of “The Hangover” is able to make a dark and disturbing villain origin story. But “Joker” is not just a Batman villain origin story, but it’s a story that so much to say and sparks a dialogue. “Joker” takes place in the early 1980’s, but the message of the story feels so relevant to the present day.

“Joker” is the origin of Batman’s most famous villain, the Joker. Arthur Fleck (played by Joaquin Phoenix) is a middle aged man who has unfortunate events after events come into this life. Fleck has never given a golden ticket in life and is on the verge of breaking down at any moment. This is a different Joker, as we know the backstory and the reason why the Joker is what he is.

The clear standout in “Joker” is the acting abilities of Joaquin Phoenix. Phoenix had a daunting task of taking on a role that has been done multiple times, with different angles. But Phoenix’s Joker is not the same as Nicholson’s or Ledger’s or even Leto’s Joker. Mostly because the Joker is not in the film until the final act of the film. The entire film is a character study of Arthur Fleck, a mentally ill man who keeps getting beaten down by life. Phoenix’s role as the character makes him so sympathetic and makes Fleck so human. It is so unfortunate to see event after event bring down Fleck but he wants to keep a smile, as his mother tells him. His dreams of being a stand up comedian are dashed when talk show host, Murray Franklin (played by Robert De Niro) insults and berates Fleck’s comedy bit.

But back to Phoenix’s impeccable acting skills. Phoenix is almost unrecognizable as Fleck. As mentioned before, the last act of the film is Fleck as the Joker. When the Joker is on the screen, I almost forgot that Phoenix was acting on screen. There are multiple moments of Phoenix having to laugh uncontrollably, I just ponder how exactly Phoenix got into character. There is nothing but praise for Phoenix, there is not one false note in his performance and this role just reinforces the fact that Phoenix is one of the greatest actors working today. If this role doesn’t win him an Oscar, then I don’t know what will.

I also want to praise the storytelling of Todd Philips. Once again, it amazes me that the director of “Old School” was able to tell a complex story like this. Along with screenwriter Scott Silver, Philips tells more than a story of how the Joker became to be. It has a message of how mental illness should be taken seriously. Without revealing too much, Fleck visits a therapist and is given medication for his mental illness. But the city decides to cut this on their budget, therefore Fleck not having access to medication and a therapist. In addition to this, it has a comment on how a revolution is started. A viewing of the film makes this message so self explanatory, I don’t think it would be fair to talk about this point without giving any spoilers.

The supporting roles of Robert De Niro and Zazie Beetz are well executed as well. But their roles were very limited, I would love to seen more of them on screen, however, this is a character study of Arthur Fleck.But I will admit that Beetz’s role as a love interest did not add much to the film, I would have preferred more from her or the role be cut altogether. But speaking of De Niro, the final act of the film brought so much tension and suspense that I have not experienced in a long time. It felt as if I were watching a horror film.

In short, “Joker” is a career defining role for Joaquin Phoenix who brings humanity into a villainous role that has been taken on multiple times over the decades. “Joker” will leave the audience guessing what will happen next and have them ask more and more questions as the film progresses. “Joker” is not only a film that commands to be seen but it’s one of the best film of the year…thus far.

4/4

Shazam! Film Review

Directed by David F. Sandberg

Starring: Zachary Levi, Mark Strong, Asher Angel

Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of action, language, and suggestive material

Everyone at one point in their lives wanted to be a superhero. When I was a kid, I always imagined being a superhero saving the day. Shazam is a film that asks the question, what if a regular kid had superpowers? Would he use them for the greater good or play around with them for fun?

Shazam is the newest DC Comics installment in which 14 year old Billy Batson (played by Asher Angel) is an orphan who is given superpowers when shouting the phrase, “Shazam!”. When shouting this phrase, 14 year old Batson is suddenly transformed into a a grown adult with superpowers (played by Zachary Levi) . But Batson is not the only person with this type of power. Dr. Sivana (played by Mark Strong) has the power to summon the seven deadly sins but is also seeking the powers that Shazam has.

Shazam is a superhero film but it is actually a family film. Batson is trying to find his mother and is placed in a foster family. Batson feels left out in his foster family and the film asks the question, how does it feel to be left out? This is also something that the villain, Dr. Sivana also faces within his own family. The family arc in the film is very heartfelt and warming, and at time emotional as each character is likable. Batson is in a foster home along with other foster children with distinct personalities. Darla is one of the foster sibling and is played very well as lovable little sister.

But when we are not focusing on the family, we see how Batson deals with his new powers. At first, Batson does not use his powers for good but for entertainment. This is something we would all do if we all had newfound powers, well at least I would do. Levi who plays Shazam brings fun and excitement when he is on the screen. His humor is what makes this film worth watching. Shazam is accompanied by his foster brother, Freddie (played by Jack Dylan Grazer). Freddie is a comic book nerd who points out what the superhero has to go through. Shazam/Billy Batson and Freddie do have good chemistry when on screen. At one point in the film. Freddie refers Billy as his best friend and I can see the two characters best friends. But the true standout is the evil Dr Sivana.

Early in the film, we see why Dr Sivana has the motivations he has. When he was a young boy, Sivana was bullied by his brother and father and eventually causes a rift between them. He wants the powers Shazam as it something he has been seeking all his life and eventually has the demons of the seven deadly sins inside him . Dr. Sivana is not your regular villain, he is a villain who is willing to kill children and throws innocent people out of a building. He is a good villain who has a tragic backstory, so there is some reasoning on why he does what he does. But in the end, it does not justify the actions he does. The kills and the demons that represent the seven deadly sins are a bit dark for a lighthearted film.

The third act with consists of Shazam and Dr Sivana battling in at a carnival and in the city. Shazam is helped with his foster siblings in a fun little twist. Although some of the CGI is not believable. I know in a superhero film there will be CGI used heavily but there are some moments that you can tell the CGI is not done well. Fortunately this is something that is not major nor does it bring the film down.

Shazam is fun, exciting, and heartwarming. I highly recommend this film, especially if you are a comic book enthusiast. The villain is memorable and the overall theme is something we can all relate to. There is enjoyment and humor to be had, in the end you will be shouting, “Shazam!”.

3.5/4