Review Aquaman (2018)

[Doctor Omega]

Just got back from seeing it.

The Atlantis scenes were very beautifully realised; all colour, light and this artistically amazing underwater world that it would be tempting to live in.

And the realisation of the cast talking, moving, fighting and interacting underwater was very well done also.

But the story was an unambitious one at heart.

As if made by a studio that is scared to challenge it's audience.

All of the predictable, age old story beats were there.

And there seemed to be a little cribbing from Marvel too....

Spoiler

For Thor, read Aquaman.... Instead of a hammer, he has an all powerful trident.

He has an insanely jealous/angry brother who wants the throne of an amazing kingdom.

Sometimes the whole film felt like a by-the-numbers quest: go from a to b. Pick up another clue. Move on. Face the big boss, return home with your prize...

The entire tale was predictable, to the point where I was just ready and waiting for it to end eventually.

There was a dull revenge sub-plot, involving a mindlessly, stupidly 2 dimensional villain in a daft looking buggy costume, that could actually have been hacked out of the film without anyone noticing.

I enjoyed it. But it felt just a bit too safe and wasn't about to do anything to wrongfoot it's audience.

6.5 out of 10.

 

[Doctor Omega]

James Wan Calls For “Aquaman” Armistice





Don’t like a certain comic book movie? Get into line or you’ll feel the repercussions.

Some who expressed a lack of satisfaction with various Marvel films this year found themselves on the brunt of harassment and cyber bullying, and now the coin has flipped with some people who didn’t like “Aquaman” finding themselves the target of the toxic herd mentality within parts of fandom that crops up online.

It has already gotten bad enough it has come to the attention of “Aquaman” director James Wan who tweeted a response about the bullying, saying:

“It has come to my attention that some folks are getting harassed by some fans for not liking [‘Aquaman’]. Please don’t do that. Not the kind of support I want. Be respectful. Vice versa, it’s ok to not like my film, but there’s no need to attack me personally, or tag me on hates. Peace.”

The weaponisation of fandom has been a big topic in the past year. That most petty of competitive rivalries – corporate tribalism (eg. Coke vs. Pepsi, Windows vs. Apple, etc.) – has always been around. However, in the wake of Marvel’s ever-increasing dominance of the comic book movie marketplace and the fallout from “Star Wars: The Last Jedi,” along with the ubiquity of social media, online arenas are becoming war zones where dissent isn’t just disloyalty – it’s heresy.

Whatever you think of “Aquaman,” the film has passed “Suicide Squad” and “Man of Steel” as it soared past $750 million worldwide box-office mark this weekend and is fast approaching $1 billion.

 

[Doctor Omega]

James Wan says it’s “a f*cking disgrace” that the Academy snubbed Aquaman for Best VFX Oscar

Responding to a comment on his Facebook page from VFX supervisor Kelvin McIlwain, Wan stated: “Kelvin, you and your department are the unsung heroes of this film. The fact that your VFX peers in the Academy aren’t recognizing or appreciating what we/you’ve all contributed to the film and cinema is a fucking disgrace.”

 

[Doctor Omega]

“Aquaman” Is Now DC’s Biggest Film Ever





James Wan’s “Aquaman” has now passed Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight Rises” to become the biggest superhero film based on a DC Comics property and the biggest ever for Warner Bros. Pictures. Thanks to this weekend’s haul, the film has passed a worldwide gross of $1.09 billion.

Domestically the film came in third this weekend, adding a further $7.4 million to its $317 million U.S. haul thus far. It came in well ahead of the two wide openers this week “The Kid Who Would Be King” with $7.25 million in fourth place, and the divisive “Serenity” with $4.8 million in eighth place.

“Glass” and “The Upside” retained the top two slots with $19 million and $12.2 million respectively, but “Glass” slid by 59% in its second week – a fairly sharp drop which suggests it won’t have legs. Both “Green Book” and “The Favourite” reportedly scored the best box-office upswings in the wake of the Golden Globes last weekend.

 

[Doctor Omega]

 

[Doctor Omega]

Aquaman (2018) ⭐ 6.8 | Action, Adventure, Fantasy

2h 23m | PG-13

www.imdb.com

 

[Doctor Omega]

Aquaman reviewed by Mark Kermode