MPAA Rating: PG-13/ Genre: Superhero/ Stars: Jason Momoa, Amber Heard, Willem Dafoe, Patrick Wilson, Dolph Lundgren, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Ludi Lin, Temuera Morrison, Nicole Kidman, Randall Park, Graham McTavish, Michael Beach, Leigh Whannell; Voices of: Julie Andrews, John Rhys-Davies, Djimon Hounsou, Natalia Safran, Sophia Forrest/Runtime: 143 minutes
So I’m just going to start this review off by admitting a pair of distinct things that I think you have the right to know dear reader. Those of course being that I know a review for this film is wayyy overdue and also that growing up I was never the biggest fan of Aquaman. In my defense though, there is a reason for both of these things. For the first thing I would just like to point out how a lot of reviews I have done for this site are for older films, but I would also like to say that I felt that, in the aftermath of finally watching the Snyder Cut here recently, I could finally review this movie proper. A conclusion that was reached incidentally based off how I feel without spoilers that the way Snyder ended Aquaman’s story arc was leaps and bounds a much better lead-in to his initial solo outing from 2018 than what Whedon “did” back in 2017. As for the second confession I made at the beginning of this review, I will admit that I was guilty of being in that school of people who only watched classic animated cartoons like Super Friends from the 70s and 80s. A cartoon which incidentally typically portrayed our water-bound hero as little more than a very gifted SeaWorld employee. Thankfully, this mistake was quickly to be rectified by friends who introduced me to Aquaman as he was portrayed in the comics and I quickly came to realize that this was not a very gifted SeaWorld employee. Instead, this was who SeaWorld employees aspired to be to the point that I’m sure Aquaman has been an honorary Employee of the Month there every month since the parks opened.
Be that as it may be, I can say with certainty that in the wake of the comic book adaptation craze started by Marvel’s Iron Man in 2008 that eventually DC would get back in the game and eventually they would make an Aquaman movie. At the same time though such an endeavor did concern me due to how a lot of people still viewed the character. Thankfully, that was rectified by the announcement that Ronan Dex (Jason Momoa) from Stargate: Atlantis (cue the irony) would be the one playing the titular hero. Yet having an actor of Momoa’s clear skill was only half the battle. The other half was ensuring the film was able to find a helmer with a degree of both vision and talent and who could take this Triple-A league hero and bring him to the Majors in a way that was big, bold, and most important, true to the character and the world of the comics. Thank God then for the distinct filmmaking talent that is James Wan (yes the same James Wan who gave us such gems as Insidious, The Conjuring, and the 7th Fast and Furious). To that end, is the 2018 Aquaman a perfect superhero movie? Nope. Not even close. Points for effort though. Is it a fun and engaging sit through and through? Absolutely! Indeed from a group of terrific performances led by Jason Momoa as the titular hero to absolutely phenomenal and quite impressive work done by James Wan and his crew in bringing the world of the character to life in a way even I never thought possible, Aquaman “2018” is proof that even one of the most mocked heroes of all time can still surprise you and produce a fun and entertaining as hell movie that you will enjoy time and time again.
The plot is as follows: In the beginning it was just two people from 2 vastly different worlds who came together and against all odds fell in love. That’s right everyone: 2018’s Aquaman starts its riveting tale by going back in time to show us how the titular hero’s human father Thomas and Atlantean royalty of a mother Atlanna were brought together during a horrific storm, fell in love, had a son named Arthur who acquired some of his mom’s more…enhanced traits, and then were unfortunately separated due to warriors from Atlantis coming to take her home so she can marry who she was supposed to marry instead of Thomas. Jumping ahead to the present day, we see that, in the aftermath of Snyder’s Justice League Cut (because there’s no way this follows that mess Joss Whedon made), our favorite Gordon’s Fish Sticks mascot (I kid I kid) has continued to protect the world from various threats with his latest heroic act involving thwarting a vicious group of pirates from taking over a Russian submarine. However, when a warrior princess from Atlantis by the name of Mera comes to him with a request for help from an old mentor of his by the name of Nuidis Vulko, Arthur quickly finds himself embroiled in a deadly plot orchestrated by his half-brother Orm. A plot which involves no more and no less than a hostile takeover of all the kingdoms of Atlantis and in the process igniting a long-held grudge against the rest of the planet into a roaring conflict which could result in no more and no less than the utter annihilation of all life on the surface of the planet Earth…..
Now before anything else, I just have to say that this movie, when looking at it from a visual perspective, is absolutely gorgeous. I mean not only does Wan bring us perhaps the most vibrant take on the legendary city of Atlantis that I have ever seen, but the outlying kingdoms are also gorgeously rendered so that each locale underwater is given its own sense of identity thus making it easier for the filmmakers, and by extension you the viewer, to figure out just where we are at any given point in time during the movie. This vibrancy however doesn’t just stop with the kingdoms; rather it also extends to the beings that make up those kingdoms as well. I say this because Wan manages to do a wonderful job at not only giving us phenomenal designs for all the creatures that we come into contact with during our cinematic journey, but he also even taps into his horror roots a little bit as well especially in a sequence dealing with the sinister creatures that make up the dark, ominous, and foreboding area of the ocean that is….The Trench!! In addition, I also have to praise Wan for being able to make everything you see occurring in the ocean actually look like it’s happening in the ocean. You see dear reader, the main reason that we had not gotten an Aquaman movie before this is not just because he was technically a joke to anyone save for the most avid of comic book readers. Rather, it was also because no film helmer had found a way to make it look like the characters were not only thriving under the water, but also able to engage in conflict with one and, most important of all, talk there as well. At least that was the case before James Wan got involved. Indeed through the utilization of truly incredible work done by both visual effects and computer wizardry, Wan and his crew manage to do an amazing job at making it feel like not only are we under the water with these characters, but that the actors themselves actually filmed this in the ocean as well. I mean the effects really are that phenomenal and if nothing else offer proof of true movie magic at work.
As for the work done in front of the camera, I can honestly say that not only does everyone involved do a pretty darn good job, but just as important for a film like this they all look like they are having an absolute blast every step of the way as well. This starts with lead actor Jason Momoa as our titular hero and he is absolutely fantastic. Indeed playing this iconic superhero as a mix of a biker, a bareknuckle brawler, and a Polynesian warrior, Momoa brings a life and an energy to this character that he so desperately needed. Not only that, but Momoa also is completely on board with giving the fans several moments that if you know anything about the character in the comics will make you giddy with excitement. Indeed I know he’s only played this character only one or 2 times, but I am convinced that Momoa was a phenomenal choice for this hero and I can’t wait to see where the sequel takes him. Now I know a lot of people might have issues with Amber Heard as Mera and not because of her performance. As it stands though for me I don’t mind her performance in this, but I do feel that there are other actresses who could have played this character perhaps a bit more three dimensionally than she does. I mean me personally I would have loved to have seen Jessica Chastain in this role due to what I have seen her bring to lesser action fare like The Huntsman: Winter’s War to say nothing of her phenomenal skill as an actress in general. As it is though, Heard is decent in the role, but again nothing truly special to write home about. The rest of the supporting cast though is actually pretty darn good from Patrick Wilson giving us an antagonist in Orm whose argument for why he is engaged in his course of action actually made sense to me, Willem Dafoe just continuing to show why he is one of our better underrated screen talents as Vulko, Nicole Kidman bringing a genuine sense of nobility to the role of Atlanna, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II who is just intimidating and downright ruthless in the best ways as iconic Aquaman villain Black Manta, and even Dolph Lundgren who I just thought it was fun seeing in a comic book movie of all things (even IF he’s not reprising his role of Drago from Rocky 4). Jokes aside, it should be noted that by and large this cast does manage to do a wonderful job of working with the astonishing work done by Wan and the crew behind the camera in bringing this aquatic tale vividly to life.
All in all it is not that difficult for me to see why when it was released in theaters all the way back in 2018 this distinct slice of cinematic pie was able to make a box office splash (pun intended) to the tune of over 1 billion dollars around the world. No, this superheroic slice of cinematic pie is not the say all, end all of comic book movies (especially where DC Comics is concerned), but at least it’s a hell of a lot of fun. Not only that, but when you combine this slice of cinematic pie’s sense of just being a fun time to be had with astonishing work in the visual effects department that brings the world of this character to life in a way even I never thought possible to say nothing of wonderful work from a game cast with particular regard to Jason Momoa who is an absolute blast as the titular hero, I can safely say that the 2018 Aquaman is proof that maybe in a lot of ways Disney’s The Little Mermaid movie might actually have been onto something all those years ago when they sang about how life is much better under the sea….. On a scale of 1-5 I give Aquaman “2018” a solid 3.5 out of 5.
