Aquaman
15/12/18 Filed in: Cinema
Having made a few appearances in DC films over the last couple of years, Aquaman here gets his own outing in much the same way as Wonder Woman did last year. Will he be equally successful? Well, early box office returns look promising, particularly in China, but not all the critics are ecstatic.
Jason Momoa certainly fills the role splendidly, both in terms of physique and droll humour. Being half fish certainly gives him super powers, such as lifting a submarine and resisting conventional weapons. Plus, of course, swimming like a torpedo. As with Wonder Woman we get the back story. His mother, Atlanna, portrayed by Nicole Kidman, is washed up by a lighthouse and rescued by the keeper, Tom, with whom she then falls in love. Result, Arthur, aka Aquaman. His mother is forced to return to Atlantis in order to protect Tom and Arthur from Atlanteans who are far from pleased by her 'mixed' partnership. But Volko, his mother's loyal advisor, secretly schools Arthur in readiness for his ultimate destiny, as an Atlantean king.
Arthur isn't over enamoured with the king idea, but is eventually persuaded by Mera, daughter of King Nereus. The reason, Arthur's half brother Orm is planning all out war against the surface people, yes us, because of the despoiling of the oceans. You've got to admit, he has a point. But Orm is using dirty tricks to persuade King Nereus to join him in battle. Arthur and Mera return to Atlantis, but it doesn't go well, ending with them making a hasty retreat. Orm then co-opts the modern super pirate David Kane to track down Aquaman, Kane having a big score to settle following the submarine lifting episode during the opening sequence of the film.
And so everything is now in place for the classic fraternal rivalry that seems to underpin many stories. The action is continuous, the CGI amazing and the technological achievements in Atlantis quite unbelievable. In fact it's a bit like Wakanda in Black Panther. But this is a superhero story, so anything goes.
I've said it before, and will say it again. This type of film seems to me to be a CGI fest looking for a story. Momoa was great, Kidman also, but most of the time it was just a special effects extravaganza looking for a story. I suppose citing human pollution of the oceans was topical enough. But squeezing in undersea kingdoms fighting each other as a prelude to taking on the surface people, seemed to me just the latest incarnation of the Lord of the Rings type battle scenes. It seems that these days once a director has come up with a successful formula, it's then exploited in nearly every other situation where it's half credible to do so. Much like the repeated mass annihilation of cities, and we had a bit of that here as well. I'm obviously suffering CGI boredom!
If you like DC superheroes then you will undoubtably like this film. Don't rush out too soon at the end. You won't have to wait until the end of the credits, but hang on a bit for a clip that sets things up for what must surely be a sequel.
And so everything is now in place for the classic fraternal rivalry that seems to underpin many stories. The action is continuous, the CGI amazing and the technological achievements in Atlantis quite unbelievable. In fact it's a bit like Wakanda in Black Panther. But this is a superhero story, so anything goes.
I've said it before, and will say it again. This type of film seems to me to be a CGI fest looking for a story. Momoa was great, Kidman also, but most of the time it was just a special effects extravaganza looking for a story. I suppose citing human pollution of the oceans was topical enough. But squeezing in undersea kingdoms fighting each other as a prelude to taking on the surface people, seemed to me just the latest incarnation of the Lord of the Rings type battle scenes. It seems that these days once a director has come up with a successful formula, it's then exploited in nearly every other situation where it's half credible to do so. Much like the repeated mass annihilation of cities, and we had a bit of that here as well. I'm obviously suffering CGI boredom!
If you like DC superheroes then you will undoubtably like this film. Don't rush out too soon at the end. You won't have to wait until the end of the credits, but hang on a bit for a clip that sets things up for what must surely be a sequel.