I've spent the greater part of the past five or six years attending or working for a comic convention. I have had so many incredible experiences with that stuff, and I truly am grateful and absolutely lucky to have been a part of it all. If I were to speak about one negative aspect of my involvement in that community, it would be that I've come to find out that some people let their fandom get the best of their brain and capacity for logical, reasonable, grounded thought. Simply put, some fans are idiots.
Look at what fans have done to the
Star Wars franchise. "Episode VII" was too similar to "A New Hope." Disney switched things up for "Episode VIII" and fans were outraged that the movie felt too
different. I remember staying up way too late the night after I saw "The Last Jedi," just for the sake of checking out the online comments sections. Fans of the franchise have created
change.org petitions to have "TLJ" stricken from Star Wars canon and cyber-bullied directors and actors to the extent of convincing them to
abandon their social media accounts altogether.
I forgot how ridiculous some of this stuff was. It's truly spectacular.
The other major offender such fandom felonies is, without a doubt, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Don't get me wrong - I
love Marvel movies. But to swear by one particular brand of the superhero genre as if every movie made by the rival studio is trash would be silly.
I have met many such fans, who believe that everything made by Marvel a masterpiece and anything coming from DC is a dumpster fire. (Note: Critics are equally guilty of this, if not even more so.) I have a couple co-workers who refuse to see "Aquaman," simply because it isn't Marvel. They have even turned me down when I ask whether they would go see DC's hottest new commodity should a friend pay for their ticket. Look, if they had gone and seen the movie and didn't like it, that's fine; I have no problem with that. But I don't understand why they are so violently opposed to going to a movie that they haven't even given the time of day. I'm sure my curiosity annoys them to no end, but I have yet to receive a valid response to the question, "
Why?"
In the spirit of full transparency, I have seen "Aquaman" twice now, and I'd like to offer my thoughts about A) why it is a good movie and B) why no one should immediately dismiss it as garbage without seeing it.
"Aquaman" showed me something new
As a fan of comicbook-to-film adaptations for as long as I can remember, even I can admit that the genre is getting a bit tired. I even experienced a bit of "Marvel fatigue" after "Black Panther" (which was undoubtedly dispelled after seeing "Infinity War," which was tremendous). There is no sign that superhero blockbusters will slow down any time soon, so it is what it is, but I was pleasantly surprised with a lot of the stuff I saw in "Aquaman."
I enjoyed "
Justice League," but I admit that it wasn't a great way to introduce three new heroes (Aquaman, Flash and Cyborg). Bruce Wayne tracks down Arthur Curry in some frostbitten corner of the globe, Arthur subsequently disappears for a good chunk of the movie, and he re-emerges to help the Justice League take down Steppenwolf. I thought Aquaman seemed like a cool character, but I just didn't really learn a whole lot about him. "Aquaman" gives us a proper introduction, showing us more about Arthur's character, including his childhood and inevitable acceptance of his heroic role. I feel much more connected to the self-proclaimed "Fish Man" now than I did beforehand.
Although we got a quick peek at the existence of an underwater society in "Justice League," we only saw a brief glimpse at what might be going on down there. "Aquaman" takes a literal deep dive into the Lost City of Atlantis, teaching us about its history and culture. The scenes where Arthur (and the audience) are introduced to the vibrant colors and jaw-dropping visuals of Atlantis are, arguably, the best scenes of the entire movie. Oh yeah, that scene heading down into The Trench was outstanding, as well.
As the film accustoms the audience to what life might be like under the ocean, we get some truly awesome stuff: really cool-looking ships, new weapons, incredible armor and PEOPLE RIDING SHARKS. And seahorses. And whales. The CGI is (almost without exception) pretty strong. Watching the characters' hair flow in the water is fascinating. As if that stuff wasn't enough, we get underwater fighting! I had heard that early reviews of "Aquaman" called it "underwater MMA," and that turned out to be pretty accurate. I can't remember ever seeing something like that in a movie theater. The gladiatorial bout between Arthur and
Orm was a blast - much better than the trailers made it look - and the final battle is a flat-out special effects bonanza. If you can't have a good time with this movie - even the silly banter between Arthur and
Mera (Saraha scene, I'm looking at you), I don't know what to tell you.
IMAX - a price worth paying
According to the way Warner Brothers was hyping it the movie, "Aquaman" viewers get "26% more screen" by seeing the show in IMAX, as opposed to a standard theater. Furthermore, I just learned that
90% of the movie was optimized for IMAX, as opposed to, say, "
Mission: Impossible - Fallout," which I loved, but which I also knew only filmed the helicopter scene in IMAX; the rest of the movie was shot in standard definition.
I saw "Aquaman" in IMAX both times and I don't regret it at all. It's not the first time I've paid to see a movie in 70 mm, but it may be the most memorable experience I've had. I really enjoyed it. I would definitely recommend going with IMAX if you're on the fence about which format to choose. There is so much to see - particularly during those Atlantis scenes - that I think that having the biggest possible screen is the only way to go.
Introducing: Black Manta
Overall, I can't argue that the MCU is generously ahead of the DC Extended Universe right now, but I can contend that DC has a leg up in a couple areas: TV shows and big-screen bad guys. There are a couple Marvel villains that have ended up being really good (Loki and Thanos, primarily), but I'd say that, more often than not, the MCU misses on giving us truly interesting, memorable antagonists. In fact, one of the Marvel villains I remember the most was
the Mandarin from Iron Man 3, but that's only because of how terribly
Marvel botched that one.
Although I felt like they made
Black Manta a little
too empathetic in the beginning of "Aquaman," he is certainly one of the coolest-looking supervillains I've seen on-screen in a long time, regardless of the studio. Plus, that water-powered gun? Hoooooo boy, that was nice. While DC continues to figure out what it's doing with the Justice League (as speculation continues to swirl regarding the contracts of
Henry Cavill and
Ben Affleck), they appear to be setting Black Manta up as a recurring character for the foreseeable future.
The face of the future
The number one gripe about the DCEU is that it has been too dark, especially in contrast to Marvel's flashy style and (at times, overwhelming) sense of humor. Christopher Nolan's "Dark Knight" trilogy, although unrelated to the current batch of films, really set the tone for the DCEU, so we got a dark Superman movie in "
Man of Steel" (did
anybody really want Angry Superman?), followed by the much-maligned "
Batman v Superman." We eventually got "
Suicide Squad," which was basically a poorly received response to Marvel's "Guardians of the Galaxy." DC righted the ship in 2017 with the critically acclaimed "
Wonder Woman" origin story, which gave audiences an uncharacteristic glimpse of hope in their dismal world.
"Aquaman" continues the trend of a lighter, more humorous tone for DC movies. One particular scene set in a biker bar (you know the one) had me laughing out loud. Arthur is "a bro" in many ways, and watching him reluctantly accept the mantle of leadership as a proverbial bridge between worlds was delightful. It may have been a rocky road to get to this point, but fans can feel confident that, for now, the Justice League is in good hands with Diana Prince and Arthur Curry.
Conclusion
If you're undecided about seeing "Aquaman" - or if you're a DC hater and have sworn off the DCEU completely - I ask you what I've asked my co-workers time and time again: "Why?"
For the Marvel superfans and the DC haters: To you, I would say a couple things. Not everything that Marvel touches turns to gold. Look at all those Netflix series that just got cancelled. Look at that show "
Inhumans" that barely lasted a season. The "Thor" and "Iron Man" movies are anything but bulletproof. Get off your high horse and realize this: YOU CAN LIKE BOTH. It is totally fine to enjoy Marvel
and DC movies. There is nothing wrong with that at all. If you lost faith in DC after that 1995 travesty known as "
Batman Forever," like one of my co-workers did, know this: this is
not "Batman Forever." I puked up pizza 25 years ago, but that isn't going to stop me from eating it now. This is a different age of filmmaking and, thankfully, you can raise the bar on your expectations quite a bit at this point. Give "Aquaman" a shot. And, while you're at it, go back and watch "Wonder Woman," because that was a pretty great movie, too. But, after all of this, if you, like that same co-worker, will absolutely not go see this movie under any circumstances go see "Aquaman" or any other DC property, lighten up and stop being such a brat.
For the rest of you: If you simply just don't know which movie you should check out this weekend, I'd definitely recommend "Aquaman," even for people who haven't fallen in love with superheroes. It's fun and doesn't require any prior knowledge of other DC movies. It's a good-looking movie and it will introduce you to some concepts that have never been this well-executed. It's a good movie for the family. Thirteen and up should do it, but there is nothing terribly objectionable and there isn't a particular demographic that would be inherently opposed to anything you'll see. And finally, it's just a good time. Sure, some "suspension of disbelief" is necessary, but if you've got an open mind and are looking to have some fun, this is the perfect movie for you.
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Have you seen Aquaman? If so, what did you think? If you haven't seen it yet, what are your reservations? Let us know in the comments below.
