Wonder Woman 1984 (2020)

 2017's 'Wonder Woman' was surely the best received, most fully functional movie to come out of Warner Brother's lackluster DCEU. Retaining both that films capable star Gal Gadot, and director Patty Jenkins, and with it's 1980's setting promising some fun possibilities, all seem set for a big hit both creatively and at the box office. Covid-19 of course kept the film out of the theaters this summer, instead getting a strange bifurcated roll out on Christmas Day, a more modest theatrical release and streaming as the tent poll film for the newish HBO Max. I made a point of seeing the film on the big screen, and watched it with roughly 30 people in a 3pm showing on Monday. I'm glad I saw it theatrically because I was going to see it eventually and the film doesn't have much beyond it's visuals to recommend it. 

Now I was with the thing at first, I even enjoyed the appropriately goofy 1980's style fantasy plot, a wishing stone proves to be at the center of strange goings on. I like that the villain played by Pedro Pascal was motivated not by a desire for revenge, or to rule the world like all too many movie villains', but by simple greed and ego. I liked Kristen Wiig's awkward, shy, nerdy girl turned gorgeous knock out bit, a stock comedy arc and very 80's. I thought that it kind of worked ridiculously bringing Steve Trevor back for a role reversal on the fish out of water schtick from the first move. The action sequences at the mall and in the desert were fun as well. 

However about half way through this endearingly quirky superhero plot the whole movie goes completely off the rails. It gets ridiculous, try's to make the story too big, get's increasingly stupid and chaotic, character motivations stop making sense, it gets lazy, and preachy, and annoying. The coda at the end feels slapped on, and the mid credits teaser scene is offputtingly gimmicky and kind of desperate. So this movie is about 40% enjoyable cheese, and 60% mistake. DC proves again that it is no Marvel. One of the worst movies I've seen this year. *1/2