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. ;)

Not Worth The Risk..."Everest"

Everest (2015)

PG-13

Starring Jason Clarke, John Hawkes, Emily Watson, Sam Worthington, Keira Knightley, Josh Brolin, Jake Gyllenhaal, Robin Wright

Directed by Baltasar Kormakur

The Story:

In 1992, Rob Hall (Clarke) started a service to bring ordinary hikers of all abilities to the summit of Mt. Everest. In the ensuing 4 years, they never lost a climber. By 1996, many other upstart companies were looking to make money by doing the same thing. Just to avoid the logjam, Hall proposed taking two groups to the top with rival Scott Fischer (Gyllenhaal). Unfortunately, one of the worst storms in the history of Mt. Everest was just hours away.

This is their story.

And boy, is it a lousy one.

First, it's beautiful. The location, the scenery, all amazing. What's real and what's fake are pretty hard to differentiate, and that's great in a movie like this.

However, there really isn't a lot of suspense.

You know the storm is coming, and you know just about everyone in the cast is going to die.

And if...IF.. the way the story unfolds is the honest to goodness truth...

Well, okay, I hate to speak ill of the dead...

BUT...

This wasn't the storm's fault.

Look at the number of climbers that survived the trek up and back.

No, this was the fault of the professionals who decided to shrug their shoulders and say, well, okay hiker, we'll get you to the top instead of sending your butt back to base camp.

That's infuriating.

None of them "deserved" to die, but if you were to say this was a movie and not based on real life, then yes, several of them got exactly what was coming to them.

And several others died because of the stupid choices that were made along the way.

Ugh..

The more I type, the angrier I get.

Which is not what I want from a movie-going experience.

So, I can't fail the movie on those terms, as it's technically competent and has a phenomenal cast.

Instead, I'll just advise you to spare yourself 2 hours of misery and annoyance.

Just watch the trailer, that's where all the excitement is, and know that pretty much everyone dies.

The end.

:)

Final Grade: C-