Wonder Woman 1984 – 3/5 stars
Life is good! But it can be better
It is 1984 and Diana (Gal Gadot) is in Washington DC, saving people in secret and restoring ancient artifacts at the Smithsonian. Among these artifacts, she discovers a very powerful stone that makes the holder’s greatest wishes come true. And after getting their hands on the stone, Diana must face off against Maxwell Lord (Pedro Pascal) and Cheetah (Kristen Wiig) and stop them before it’s too late.
After waiting so long to see Wonder Woman 1984, I couldn’t help but feeling somewhat disappointed. I was underwhelmed with what we got after all the hype. The action was cool for the most part. I always enjoy getting to see Diana slide across the floor and make quick work of goons.
Some of the acrobatic action scenes, specifically during the flashback of the competition on Themyscira, looked a bit funky to me. The story itself was just OK, and while initially there was promise, it quickly spiraled way out of whack.
Beware Spoilers Ahead!
Beware Spoilers Ahead!
Here’s where it gets rough. If you’ve been following the other DC Universe movies, 1984 shatters the continuity established in them. In 1984, Diana learns how to fly, as in Superman fly with one arm extended and the other on her hip. But in Batman v. Superman and Justice League, she never once used her flight. She also got her Invisible Jet in 1984, which she also seemed to forget to use in either of the next movies. Not only that, but she used her own power to make the jet invisible, a power that sure would have come in handy while fighting against Doomsday and Steppenwolf.
In 1984, Diana’s Lasso of Truth was also much more powerful than in any of the previous incantations. Instead of just compelling people to tell the truth, she used it to block bullets and reach unbelievable distances that let her Spider-Man swing from airplanes and even bolts of lightning. Why even use a sword and shield when you have that? The film also never explained why no one remembered Wonder Woman in the present day, nor why no one seemed to recall the world erupting into chaos and on the verge of nuclear annihilation in 1984 – I mean, Batman and Superman were alive back then… They could have easily ended the movie with a mass mind wipe, or Maxwell Lord wishing the stone never existed in the first place to help explain it. But given that Zack Snyder and Geoff Johns both played a role in creating this movie, having these crater-sized plot holes is simply unacceptable.
Despite all of this, I did enjoy the movie and was glad to finally see it. While the story was weak, the acting was fantastic. Gal Gadot and Chris Pine brought their A-game, and did a great job with the more emotional scenes. And the addition of Wiig and Pascal were great. I thought all of the actors did a good job working with the mediocre story they had. Another plus was that 1984 was released for no additional cost on HBO Max, something I love to see.
Overall, I’d rate it 3/5 stars and just recommend for you to manage your expectations. If you enjoyed the first Wonder Woman movie, this sequel is definitely worth checking out. The drop in quality reminded me of the drop from Kingsman: The Secret Service to Kingsman: The Golden Circle, or Iron Man to Iron Man 2: cool characters, cool world, and a mediocre and forgettable story. And after just rewatching the first Wonder Woman a few days ago, 1984 was very underwhelming and not something I feel the need to rewatch anytime soon.