We need a hero with an invisible jet, lasso and cute boots this year!
Wonder Woman 1984 is good rah-rah FUN that harkens back to the goofy superhero movies of yesteryear!!! Gal Gadot is filling the boots saving the world in Patty Jenkin’s sequel that is the right mix of action, girl power and making the choice to do the right thing even when nobody is watching. Patty has made a sequel that walks in the footsteps of the first film and then goes on a new path. It’s the little moments that really connect with me as a nerdy kid who loved comic books back in the day. WW84 keeps building Diana into a real person that Gal is able to show with not just speeches but small looks and connections with the other cast members.
It’s been almost three years that Wonder Woman fans have been waiting for the dynamic duo of Patty & Gal to team up again and I have to say it was worth the wait.
It’s 80’s bright as Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) goes from island girl to historian at the Smithsonian in Washington, DC where she’s been alone since WW1 nursing a broken heart. Diana has decided to go underground hiding her abilities and not allowing herself to get too close to anyone not even friends. All that changes when she runs into Barbara Minerva (Kristen Wiig) an overlooked gemologist that the everyone ignores that she chalks up to her looks. The tie between Barbara and Diana of being women and how the world treats them little moments that really builds the characters. When Diana is ignored by the cabdriver and Barbara by co-workers is a ‘can’t win no matter what’ it just depends on how the two women took it. Of course, when one has the power of a goddess it’s a lot easier to not find the attention threatening and expected. But despite how both women navigate the world I think it’s what draws Diana to Barbara and vice versa. One would be happy to be overlooked and the other not so much.
The spark of change all starts with an offhand wish after an ancient stone falls into Barbara’s hands after Diana foils an antiquity heist and the ancient stone makes its way to the Smithsonian from the FBI. This brings into their orbit Maxwell Lord (Pedro Pascal) an infomercial huckster selling the American dream like a timeshare as her pursues money, power and success.
The butterfly wing or domino effect that keeps spinning more and more out of control really keeps building and building to surprising consequences that kept the film going at a steady pace. Nobody is truly evil but they make bad choices and that’s what keeps the film running at a brisk pace. It all ties back when a pre-teen Diana competing in a Themyscira race where she decides winning is more important than following the rules/fairness and gets reminded of doing the right thing. It’s how you can feel her yearning for the reward of Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) that appears before her and she doesn’t question it.
The film crisscrosses the globe and shows how we need a hero <cough> heroine aka Wonder Woman. Patty Jenkins as director and co-writer with Geoff Jones and Dave Callahan are able to strike the perfect balance of humor, drama, and action without being a carbon copy of the first film. It isn’t a perfect film but it’s a great film for what we need now. Someone who is a hero, that wants to save us all, and has the heart to see the good in others even when they don’t see it in themselves.
I truly wish I could see Wonder Woman 1984 in theatres surrounded by other blerds, fangirls, fanboys, and casual geeks but I’m just happy to have been able to see it. It touched me in unexpected ways more than just laughing but also brought a few tears to my eyes. The writing, directing, and cast connected to bring depth to the roles that will be enjoyable for people of all ages as well great to talk about it over holiday dinner in person or video chat.
WW84 is available on HBO Max at 9am PT/ 12pm ET on December 25, the same day as its U.S. theatrical release and theatres on December 25th
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MPAA Rating: PG-13. Running time: 151 MIN
Production: A Warner Bros. Pictures release and presentation of an Atlas Entertainment, Stone Quarry production
Cast: Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Kristen Wiig, Pedro Pascal, Robin Wright, Connie Nielsen
Producers: Charles Roven, Deborah Snyder, Zack Snyder, Patty Jenkins, Gal Gadot, Stephen Jones
Executive producers: Rebecca Steel Roven Oakley, Richard Suckle, Marianne Jenkins, Geoff Johns, Walter Hamada, Chantal Nong Vo, Wesley Coller
Crew: Director: Patty Jenkins
Screenplay: Patty Jenkins, Geoff Johns & Dave Callaham
Story: Jenkins & Johns, based on characters from DC (Wonder Woman created by William Moulton Marston)
Camera: Matthew Jensen
Editor: Richard Pearson
Music: Hans Zimmer
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