I commend “Aquaman” for its goofy fun in the style of last year’s DC Comics guilty pleasure “Justice League,” and once more, Jason Momoa is fun as the title hero. It isn’t a full throttle DC movie, but it does offer fans the charms they deserve.
A little family history about Aquaman, or Arthur Curry as his alias: His father (Temuera Morrison) is a lighthouse keeper, and his mother (Nicole Kidman) was the Queen of Atlantis, who was forced to return to her home world. She thought she could bring both their worlds together, but clearly, it didn’t work out.
The villains Arthur deals with are Orm (Patrick Wilson), his half-brother who’s set to become Ocean Master, and plans to wage war on the human world; and Black Manta (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II), a mercenary, who wants revenge on him for killing his father (Michael Beach) during a submarine raid.
Amber Heard plays Mera, the daughter of the King of Atlantis (Dolph Lundgren), who informs Arthur about Orm’s dastardly plans, and knows about a mythical trident. And Willem Dafoe plays Arthur’s mentor, who tells him how his mother died. Orm blames him for her death-being a half breed and all.
“Aquaman” was directed by James Wan, who started off with horror movies (“Insidious,” “Saw”), and was also able to expand his horizons with “Furious 7,” and now this one. There are elements in the movie that work, and others that don’t. Let’s start with the pros, then the cons, and see where it all goes.
The Pros:
The sense of humor is both flexible and honest, and even if some are cliche, you still drink up the jokes. Momoa is fun in the ways he brings out his manliness and how his character struggles to adapt to any situation. And he’s given some support from Heard, Wilson, and Dafoe.
The Cons:
What nearly drowns the movie is its overdose on special effects and plot points. They are colorful and swell, but too much of them can go a long way. The CGI effects seem to take over the movie, not in the style of Michael Bay, but more in the style of goofy fun superhero movies. At times, they’re impressive, and other times, they get excessive.
The Final Analysis:
Being a superhero movie, this is one of those “Ahh, see what you think” deals. It doesn’t offer a powerful DC story on par with “The Dark Knight” or “Wonder Woman,” but at least, it offers a lot of fun.
⭐️⭐️⭐️
In Theaters December 21
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