There is something kind of twee about Patty Jenkin's Wonder Woman movies, that reminds me of the cheesy Sam Raimi Spider-Man films of the early 2000s. That's long enough ago to be considered old fashioned, especially when compared to the gritty reboots of other DC properties, and the smug "Whedonesque" cynicism of the MCU. Wonder Woman 1984 finds a third way by going for unabashed sentimentality.
By day, Diane is an anthropologist in 80s Washington DC, and also by day she is a crime fighting superhero. This risks a plot hole for Batman Vs Superman, which says the public was not aware of Wonder Woman prior to the modern day. A supermodel in a garish costume beating people up with a glowing magic whip might be a thing that sticks out in people's minds, so Diane gets around this by occasionally smashing security cameras with her tiara and telling the people she rescues to keep quiet. It's a big stupid handwave, of the magnitude you'd see in the likes of Spider-Man 2.
A lot of WW 84's story works on handwaves. A magic wishing rock is introduced to the universe and is stolen by sleazy businessman and blatant Donald Trump-expy, Max Lord. How precisely the wishes work, along with Lord's ability to take what he wants in exchange for granting them, is never spelled out. We see a world descending into chaos and war following a spree of careless wishes, meaning no one apparently wished for World Peace at any point (thus contradicting all those people who wish to nuke the people they don't like). Another handwave comes in the reappearance of Steve Trevor, a man who was very dead by 1918 in the last movie. Diane accidentally wishes him back to life, causing him to takeover the life and body of another man. She never considers the ethical concerns of replacing another person out of existence, and the movie hopes you don't either.
Whilst the plot has more holes in it than a moth family's winter wardrobe, the movie gets away with sloppiness through a soft and light hearted tone that whispers "don't worry about it". Sure the World is on the brink of nuclear war, but there's plenty of time for glowing sunsets and fireworks and Diane making cow eyes at people. Sometimes it is cloying, but I appreciate a story that harkens back to the idea of superheroes being morally upstanding people who try to appeal to the best in others. I'm so used to seeing arrogant jerk heroes it makes a nice change.
In terms of action and special effects, WW 84 is a mixed bag. The movie opens on a race in Themyscira island, portrayed with the graphical fidelity and excitement of a Play Station 3 game in 2023. There are good set piece scenes in the middle, and a final five minute appearance from the Supervillain Cheetah that is shot in the dark to obscure how bad it looks. I want to be kind to WW 84, but taken altogether I can say it is an okay movie, benefitting from the lack of anything better out there that is anything like it.
Greed is Bad, Actually. You Should be Ashamed of Yourself!
There is something kind of twee about Patty Jenkin's Wonder Woman movies, that reminds me of the cheesy Sam Raimi Spider-Man films of the early 2000s. That's long enough ago to be considered old fashioned, especially when compared to the gritty reboots of other DC properties, and the smug "Whedonesque" cynicism of the MCU. Wonder Woman 1984 finds a third way by going for unabashed sentimentality.
By day, Diane is an anthropologist in 80s Washington DC, and also by day she is a crime fighting superhero. This risks a plot hole for Batman Vs Superman, which says the public was not aware of Wonder Woman prior to the modern day. A supermodel in a garish costume beating people up with a glowing magic whip might be a thing that sticks out in people's minds, so Diane gets around this by occasionally smashing security cameras with her tiara and telling the people she rescues to keep quiet. It's a big stupid handwave, of the magnitude you'd see in the likes of Spider-Man 2.
A lot of WW 84's story works on handwaves. A magic wishing rock is introduced to the universe and is stolen by sleazy businessman and blatant Donald Trump-expy, Max Lord. How precisely the wishes work, along with Lord's ability to take what he wants in exchange for granting them, is never spelled out. We see a world descending into chaos and war following a spree of careless wishes, meaning no one apparently wished for World Peace at any point (thus contradicting all those people who wish to nuke the people they don't like). Another handwave comes in the reappearance of Steve Trevor, a man who was very dead by 1918 in the last movie. Diane accidentally wishes him back to life, causing him to takeover the life and body of another man. She never considers the ethical concerns of replacing another person out of existence, and the movie hopes you don't either.
Whilst the plot has more holes in it than a moth family's winter wardrobe, the movie gets away with sloppiness through a soft and light hearted tone that whispers "don't worry about it". Sure the World is on the brink of nuclear war, but there's plenty of time for glowing sunsets and fireworks and Diane making cow eyes at people. Sometimes it is cloying, but I appreciate a story that harkens back to the idea of superheroes being morally upstanding people who try to appeal to the best in others. I'm so used to seeing arrogant jerk heroes it makes a nice change.
In terms of action and special effects, WW 84 is a mixed bag. The movie opens on a race in Themyscira island, portrayed with the graphical fidelity and excitement of a Play Station 3 game in 2023. There are good set piece scenes in the middle, and a final five minute appearance from the Supervillain Cheetah that is shot in the dark to obscure how bad it looks. I want to be kind to WW 84, but taken altogether I can say it is an okay movie, benefitting from the lack of anything better out there that is anything like it.