She’s an enormous comedic talent, and I rejoiced at seeing her conquer the big screen with Bridesmaids. I like the Max Lord of this film, but the Max Lord from the comics is also a wonderful character who I’d have loved to have seen depicted on screen more faithfully.) (My only regret with this character is that it has little to no resemblance to Max Lord from the comics. Pascal’s wonderful performance had already brought. I loved the depth that added to his characters, on top of all of the levels that Mr. (Yes, his scheme escalates into world-wide mayhem, but that is wisely kept grounded in his small-scale personal desires - in this case, preserving his own health.) One of my favorite moments in the film was the brief montage, at the very end, showing us vignettes from Max’s life that gave context to the flawed man he grew up to me. His goals are mostly personal and selfish. I love that this villain has a very human scale. Pascal is so stoic and somber in The Mandalorian, it’s fun to see him play this very bombastic, very flawed character. Pedro Pascal (who plays the titular main character in The Mandalorian) is very strong as Max Lord. All the scenes of him being in giddy joy at the world of 1984 were very funny and joyous. Pine’s tremendous comedic chops to step into the forefront. I particularly enjoyed the way the film allowed Mr. All the best scenes in the movie are the scenes of the two of them together. Pine back for the film outweighs, in my opinion, the silliness of the necessary story permutations needed in order to bring him back. Is it a cheat? Well, yes, of course! But it’s done reasonably well in the story, and the value of having Mr. Gadot plays Diana’s internal conflict extremely well.Ĭhris Pine was terrific in the first film, and while I liked that film’s somber ending, I was sad that meant he wouldn’t be in the sequels! The filmmakers (the script is credited to director Patty Jenkins, talented DC comics scribe Geoff Johns, and David Callaham) found a pretty good way around that in order to bring Mr. This is a great story for Wonder Woman, and Ms. And so we get to see Diana’s difficult internal struggle, as what she so desperately wants (for Steve to live again) wrestles against what she knows in her heart is the right thing for her to do (to renounce her wish for Steve in order to undo the evil of the stone). The film’s best choice is that it lets the audience - and Diana - know right away that Steve Trevor’s resurrection is tied to the evil powers of the villain. She is able to play Diana as an innocent and yet also as someone with a spine of absolute steel when it comes to what she knows is right. She shows us Diana’s kindness and her soulfulness. She has the physicality that the character needs - strong and beautiful - but more importantly she’s able to embody all of the critical qualities of Diana from the comics. She is, once again, absolutely spectacular as Wonder Woman. Gadot proves that her strong performance in the first Wonder Woman was not a fluke. Most of the best aspects of Wonder Woman 1984 come down to my two favorite elements of the first Wonder Woman film: Gal Gadot and Chris Pine. But this is certainly not a sequel that goes beyond the original film, adding complexities and depth to the characters and the world (the way truly great sequels do). If the goal of this film was to tell an entertaining story that would allow you to spend more enjoyable time with Diana and Steve, two characters you liked from the first film, then Wonder Woman 1984 succeeds. Wonder Woman 1984 is nowhere near the greatness of most of the Marvel Studios films we’ve been lucky to have been enjoying for the past several years, though it’s far stronger than most of the DCU films from the past several years. But it’s uneven, and the unsuccessful Barbara Minerva aspect of the story - which I’ll discuss in more detail in a moment - serves as an anchor that keeps the movie from greatness. Wonder Woman 1984 is an entertaining sequel to 2017’s first Wonder Woman film. Also tied up in this story is Barbara Minerva, whose wish allows her to become the confident, powerful woman she’s always wanted to be and who does not want to allow Diana to undo anything the stone has done. Max wants to use the powers of the stone to grant himself the life of fame and fortune he’s always wanted, but the wish-granting powers of the stone, once unleashed, begin to wreak havoc upon the world. His resurrection appears to be tied to the powerful dream-stone which failed oil tycoon Max Lord uncovers. Joy returns to her world when Steve Trevor, her true love who sacrificed himself at the end of the first film, mysteriously returns to life. Diana is living a solitary, lonely life, helping people when she can while keeping her existence as a superhuman among mortals a secret. Wonder Woman 1984 picks up the story of Diana/Wonder Woman many decades after her first film (which was set in 1918).
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