--David Kane, Aquaman
What a travesty it is that one of the only films to ever stand alongside Revenge of the Sith and James Cameron's Avatar as the best examples of how CGI can be used for worldbuilding and action is also based on one of DC's most pathetic scripts. Aquaman merges the sheer excellence of quality science fiction CGI, the spectacle of grand action sequences, the talent of incredible actors/actresses like Nicole Kidman and Patrick Wilson, and even one of the best superhero soundtracks of all time (alongside the likes of The Incredible Hulk and Zack Snyder's Justice League) with some of the most shallow, stupid attempts at pointless comedy in recent years--and given the influence of the increasingly stupid jokes popularized by later MCU films, it is quite an accomplishment for Aquaman's dialogue to sink so low. Oh, how far has the person who birthed Saw and The Conjuring has fallen! After rewatching Aquaman for the first time since its theatrical debut, I even noticed references to Lovecraftian cosmic horror, like Lovecraft's story The Dunwich Horror appearing in Tom's living space at the beginning and the deep sea creature near the end, things that hint at the director's familiarity with horror and make the contrast with the inferior quality of the script here all the more blatant.
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| Photo credit: AntMan3001 on Visualhunt.com |
Production Values
The one general thing that Aquaman does well all throughout its runtime is present superb visuals, something that is apparent as soon as the first action scene comes in less than 10 minutes into the film. This action sequence has an excellent single take that goes on for far longer than most movie directors are willing to let a shot run. If James Wan has shown anything from the movie other than the fact that he can seemingly find utterly asinine dialogue agreeable, he has shown that he could make a great science fiction director at least when it comes to incorporating physical/digital worldbuilding and clever action into a story. The Kingdom of the Trench, the Karathen (a Kraken-like creature that could be right at home in a cosmic horror movie like Underwater), and the final battle bring standout visuals in a movie that is already full of grand visuals--there are some aesthetically brilliant shots and scenes. James Wan's general filmmaking genius in horror projects even gets acknowledged in some cases. Unfortunately, despite a stellar cast and some great performances from them, the writing becomes atrocious as the film continues.
Cast members like Nicole Kidman and Patrick Wilson have shown in movies like Eyes Wide Shut (or Destroyer) and The Conjuring 2 that they are not just competent, but capable of delivering performances that capture the essence of entire genres or subgenres. Willem Dafoe likewise is capable of excellent performances, as is Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, who went on to prove himself with HBO's Watchmen. These four still stand out as major strengths in Aquaman because of their personal talent, no thanks to the contradictory nature of the various approaches used for other characters. Even the actor who plays Jango and Boba Fett in Attack of the Clones and The Mandalorian has a great role. Amber Heard has mercifully less asinine lines than Jason Momoa, but her character certainly contributes at times to the utter catastrophe of the dialogue. However, it is often the titular character himself that is ironically the weakest link in the chain. Even scenes that are otherwise dramatically strong are almost always given conflicting tones when Jason Momoa gives yet another asinine, silly line, just after something darker or important is said or done, that I can only hope was intended to not be anything other than cringe-inducing. The most cheesy lines of Wonder Woman 1984 are easily surpassed in pointlessness by those of Aquaman.
Story
Some spoilers are below.
Not long after Steppenwolf almost conquers Earth in Zack Snyder's Justice League (no matter what imbecilic executives at Warner Bros. might say, this version of Justice League is largely the original plan and clearly the superior film), King Orm of Atlantis attempts to wage war against the humans in order to expand his own power. The "Aquaman," son of Queen Atlanta, has long resisted the political ramifications of his mixed parentage, but dire circumstances lead him and fellow Atlantean Mera to search for the Trident of Atlan, the first king of Atlantis. As the potential war between Atlanteans and humans approaches, a pirate named David Kane seeks to kill Aquaman for the death of his father in the aftermath of a submarine takeover early in the movie, which leads to David becoming Black Manta.
Intellectual Content
If only the macro-evolution of the Atlanteans, the destructiveness of polluting the oceans, or the epistemology of Atlantis for surface-dwellers would have been given better exploration! It is especially strange that a director who has put such philosophically strong themes into much of his former work would toss most of that aside. After Zack Snyder and Patty Jenkins tackled very timely issues like the morality of power and the nature of true feminism in their prior DCEU entries, it is pathetic that Aquaman does not even try to make up for its emphasis on out-of-place jokes with an attempt at genuine philosophical or personal depth. Hell, even Wonder Woman 1984 at least had incredibly important themes that directly admit that truth is impossible to escape, and that truth is what all people need even when it is devastating. What viewers of Aquaman are left with is some of the best visuals in science fiction and superhero film history that have almost no additional substance behind them at all beyond the strong performances from actors and actresses that are so talented that it would be uncharacteristic for them to offer poor acting--even in a movie like this.
Conclusion
There was so much potential for Aquaman to build off of the character's introduction in Batman v Superman and Zack Snyder's Justice League while still emphasizing a more humor-oriented, lighter tone, all while showcasing just how rich the lore of Atlantis is for possible spin-offs and sequels that could honor both Zack Snyder's more mature, thoughtful approach to the DCEU and genuinely clever comedy alike. Instead, Aquaman fails to honor either by trying to mix them both while in very pure forms. With Saw and The Conjuring 2, James Wan has shown that he can make excellent, creative, thematically important movies that breathe extensive life into their genres. Unfortunately, he has thrown a great deal of that away with Aquaman. While I hope that Aquaman 2 will be vastly superior where it needs to be, the fractured and haphazard plans for the DCEU to move forward outside of the original "Snyderverse" framework are far from reassuring.
Conclusion:
1. Violence: The mostly bloodless, tame PG-13 violence that permeates the genre today is on full display here, meaning most of the fights and kills have nothing truly graphic about them at all.
2. Profanity: "Bastard," "bitch," "damn," and "shit" are used.
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