The DC Hero We Finally Deserve..."Wonder Woman"

Wonder Woman (2017)

Rated PG-13

Starring Gal Gadot, Connie Nielsen, Robin Wright, Chris Pine, Danny Huston, David Thewlis, Said Taghmaoui, Ewen Bremner, Eugene Brave Rock, Lucy Davis, Elena Anaya,

Directed by Patty Jenkins

The Story:

Bookended by seeing Diana/Wonder Woman (Gadot) in action during modern day, a briefcase delivered by Bruce Wayne allows Diana time to reflect on discovering mankind and embracing the heroic ideal she was born to live.

So, I finally got around to watching Wonder Woman.

I tried not to let the hype surrounding this movie cloud my judgement of it.

While I might be firmly in the camp of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I totally root for DC to get it right and give the audience something worth going to see.

So naturally, I approached this one with cautious optimism.

Is the hype real?

Or is it just clamoring for something, anything from DC to erase the unwatchable bore of Batman vs. Superman or the entertaining in parts but ultimately unsatisfying Suicide Squad?

I suppose it will ultimately depend on who you ask.

I was never blown away by the trailers for Wonder Woman.

It seemed fine enough, but it was missing something for me, and I couldn't put my finger on it.

So the movie has come out, it's made more money this summer than anything else, and I couldn't be happier for the cast, crew, fans and Warner Brothers for finally, finally making a DC movie worth watching.

Depending on your point of view, it's been a long time coming, whether it was Superman: The Movie, Batman (1989) or the Nolan Batman Trilogy.

I finally got around to seeing it...

And much like the trailer, I liked it, but didn't LOVE it.

Again, there's something missing for me, and I can't quite put my finger on it.

I suppose if I have to try and isolate it, perhaps it's the sense of fun, entertainment or enjoyment that I have while watching a Marvel film.

While Wonder Woman is a technically a well made picture, the sense of fun just wasn't quite there. It bubbled under the surface through a lot of the movie.

Now to be fair, there were many, many, many enjoyable scenes and amazing set pieces that oohed and aaahed me as the movie went along.

So again, it's a tough one to judge.

Is it on par with what Marvel is giving me?  No. Close, but no cigar.

If I was given 4 choices of going to see any superhero movie again in theaters, I'd be going back for Guardians or Homecoming before I went back to see Wonder Woman.

That's just me being honest.

Is it better than what DC has been giving me? Absolutely yes.

I love that Wonder Woman has been this successful for DC and for all the little girls around the world that now have a superhero role model on the big screen.

It gives me hope that Captain Marvel and maybe Black Widow will someday headline a film for Marvel or maybe DC will offer up a Catwoman movie that doesn't suck.

: )

Final Grade: B... B+ if I'm really nice. ;)

You Might Need "Regression" Therapy To Remember This One

Regression (2015)

Rated R

Starring Ethan Hawke, David Thewlis, Emma Watson, David Dencik,

Writtena and Directed by Alejandro Amenabar

The Story:

A detective (Hawke) uses a psychoanalyst (Thewlis) to get to the bottom of a dad's (Dencik) confession that he raped his daughter (Watson).

And so begins a thriller that is dark, disturbing, and most depressing of all, not very thrilling.

There are twists and turns aplenty in the film, but there's never any real sense of urgency, dread, or real emotion whatsoever displayed onscreen.

Instead of putting thrills and suspense in a thriller, they almost try and make it a horror movie by ramping up the gore, but that doesn't really help this movie either.

It's a heinous crime that may or may not have happened, as Regression Therapy has been seen as both an amazing tool for recall as well as one that can plant false memories as well.

Which story you see here, you'll have to watch for yourself.

Not sure if the tale they used was an actual case, or just based in general off the litany of regression cases that have happened.

Nothing amazing, but not a total waste of time either.

It's average, which sometimes is more frustrating than being either a good or bad movie.

Pick a side at least.

Now streaming on Amazon Prime as of this writing.

Final Grade: C