Wonder Woman 1984 (2020) Review

RATING: 5/10

WHILE it isn't a terrible watch by any means, WW84 fails to live up to its predecessor following unexpected delays and by-the-books storytelling.

Following the events of the first film, Diana Prince (Gadot) finds herself lost in an ever-changing world during the 1980s.

But when her long-lost love Steve Trevor (Pine) returns from death, seemingly because of a mystical stone, Diana must search within herself to discover whether the past is best left behind after natural disasters begin to occur across the world.

Much like the first film, Gadot and Pine's chemistry carries the drama and adds different dimensions to an already thickly-layered plot. Whether the two are walking through streets as Steve finds himself dumbfounded by this new world, or Diana expresses her genuine love for him during intimate moments, this love interest left a positive impression on WW84 and never felt forced.

On the other side of the morality coin, Pedro Pascal does a phenomenal job as leading villain Maxwell Lord, and was a breath of fresh air when compared to recent DC supervillains as he opts for a redemption arc rather than a giant CGI monster battle to close out the flick.

Unfortunately not everyone has a good character to work with as Kristen Wiig, who is otherwise fine throughout, was dealt a dreadful hand for playing her character of Barbara Minerva.

Minerva's arc of having an implied dissociative identity disorder felt disingenuous and came off more envious than anything, and even worse, her story is left with little to no payoff as she is quickly pushed aside during WW84's climax.

Earlier I touched on how CGI battles were harming the failing DC universe; now the same can be said for all CGI in general.

Whenever Diana is running or even flying through the air, the effects look incredibly unnatural and felt inferior to the digital effects three years prior. Although it didn't ruin the movie for me it, without question, took me out of the experience and left an unsatisfying taste in my mouth.

WW84 isn't all doom and gloom though as the overall message for the superhero flick was the saving grace.

Much like the 2017 feature, Wonder Woman 1984 shows Diana to be a true superhero, saving citizens during each battle and offering any foe she faces redemption no matter how devious their crimes were. The film also decides to humanise Diana during a portion of the flick, which was a nice change-of-pace and a well-welcomed decision for a modern superhero movie.

Wonder Woman 1984 may not be as good as the 2017 feature, feeling overbearing and stuffed at times, but that doesn't mean there isn't anything wonderful to enjoy.

Messages of overcoming adversity and being true to yourself brought humanity to an other-world super heroine, and showed that not all action movies have to revolve around the action.