Forged By The Gods, ‘Wonder Woman’ Is Still Made By Mere Mortals [Review]

In Warner Bros.’ “Wonder Woman,” the long overdue story of comic books’ most iconic super heroine, the Amazonian princess’ story is forged from clay by the Gods in a stylized epic flashback seemingly plucked from Zack Snyder’s “300” style guide. Various titans from Greek mythology clash including Zeus, Aphrodite and most pointedly, Ares the God of war. On the secret island of Themyscira, gifted by the Gods, the unconquerable Amazonian warriors rule far away from mankind and therein lies the young, fearless and impetuous Diana who grows to be one of the most legendary of them all. The tranquility of Themyscira, however, is broken when an American pilot (also a British spy) crashes on shore, irrevocably changing the order of life for its inhabitants. And soon, upon learning about the conflicts and horrors of WWI, and the good intentions of those opposed to its suffering, Diana realizes that her destiny lies elsewhere, much to the chagrin of her mother who has spent a lifetime warning her about the destructive world of men.

blankAs much as “Wonder Woman,” directed by Patty Jenkins (“Monster”) attempts to give insights about war, human nature and the barbaric impulses of mankind, this odyssey about heroism and fate tells an unsurprising allegory with a mostly preordained destination. Lacking much sophistication, nothing much is said beyond “violence ain’t gonna solve anything.” With the glut of super hero films today, standing apart from the pack is crucial. Especially for the first female super heroine movie to hit the big screen since 2005, but critical elements of the narrative are just as anonymous and banal as any other hero-in-tights fictions.

As a film fought on many battlefields, the super hero picture is often at war with itself. There’s three movies within. One them is really enjoyable and features a near-flawless light touch, another is a clumsy mixed bag with some highlights, and the last piece of the puzzle is largely terrible, clanging and indistinctive. It’s not as if the movie doesn’t know what it wants to be or who it is — Jenkins has a clear point of view — but some of its choices are just unfortunate, some of the story feels beholden to the Gods of vulgar third act noise, and ham-fisted dialogue mars it all the more. If you want the Reader’s Digest description, it’s bit like “Captain America: The First Avenger” (enjoyable exceptionalism and bravery) meets “Thor” (mythological mixed results) and “Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice” (give up all hope).

blankThe middle chapter of “Wonder Woman,” the fish-out-of-water archetype, is by far its most captivating. Diana (played by the distractingly beautiful goddess Gal Gadot) is thrust into Europe’s war and adamantly hopes to fly headstrong into the action. But the dutiful soldier (Chris Pine) tries unsuccessfully to help her blend in and acclimate into their ways of procedure and chain of command, confusing the naïve protagonist’s zealousness to right wrongs (What might frustrate in some regards is Pine’s character is far better written than his female equivalent likely would’ve been). There’s an ease between the actors and their back and forth quarrel that eventually turns romantic. Dare I say it’s the “It Happened One Night” dynamic of super hero movies.

Surprisingly, “Wonder Woman” is much funnier than you’d expect, much of it due to the misfit out-of-place paradigm — the movie gets a lot of comedic mileage out of Diana’s literal naiveté. The material here, while not perfect, really sings with heart and humor and tonally, the movie is at its best; Pine and Gadot have tremendous chemistry. It’s the movie herein that’s most convincing and hands down the most entertaining.blank

But it’s just not sustainable and the movie quickly decays. So, give “Wonder Woman” all the points for its nimble and pleasurable midsection, but subtract just as many for its uneven opening, its loud, airless ending and again, some tin-eared, cliché monologues across the board (“Now I know love can save the world!” Diana says risibly at one key apex in the movie). Also credit the screenplay with some pretty cheesy moments including a “NOOOO!” Darth Vader/Homer Simpson cry to the heavens and rather one-dimensional views on heroes and villains.

blankDC fans will at least be heartened to know that the film’s leads are compelling; the charismatic Gadot makes for a superb Wonder Woman balancing her zeal with some keen comedic timing, Chris Pine is perfect as the counterpart trying to keep Diana from exposing herself with that crazy-sounding, incessant talk of fables and myths. Bad guys are far less successful, however. Dr. Poison (lol) portrayed by Elena Anaya plays a thankless scientist role—seemingly a comic strip parody of “The Skin That I Live In” role— and Danny Huston as the main German baddie is a one-note, rather uninspired villain. Gender politicians hoping to make a meal here might find themselves a little out of luck, “Wonder Woman”’s focus is on a hero who happens to be a woman and it’s largely disinterested in grander statements of feminism other than the broad reversal of the female saving the world this time.

Action-wise, the movie is frustratingly inconsistent. Set pieces early on are kinetic, well-choreographed and, strangely enough, even speed-ramping is impressively used. Later on, however, this technique deadens. Deeper in, the action becomes cartoonish and silly. As much as Jenkins tries to make her mark, “Wonder Woman” does feel obligated to franchise prerequisites when wiping the slate clean would be best. You don’t have to dust too hard to find Zack Snyder’s fingerprints and unfortunate sensibilities (clearly some vociferous and devout fans won’t see this as a pejorative, but he’s an irredeemable filmmaker at this point to many): the speed-ramping, slow motion, fundamental story flaws and pedestrian views of legends (he has the first “story by” credit) and that “300”-esque scene, tonally inconsistent with the rest of the film. Then there’s that plangent Junkie XL-written musical theme of pounding drums and squealing guitars—the clarion call of which signals to the audience where all the DCEU movies begin to suck. And of course, the deafening “Man Of Steel,” and “Batman V Superman” ending—loud, incoherent, and pointless to the level that one’s engagement in the movie begins to quickly drop like an emergency room patient’s dying pulse.

blankThankfully, the rest of the DCEU connectivity is sparse. “Wonder Woman” is a largely stand-alone solo effort— it just deserves to be a better one. There’s one piece of substantive texture in “Wonder Woman” and it’s the notion that man’s civilization, mankind, is not as unworthy as the Amazons believe. And through determination and grit, “Wonder Woman” proves that the dudes ain’t so bad (which is perhaps more humanist than feminist). The crescendo of the movie lies in the betrayal of Wonder Woman’s belief system. Unfortunately for the viewer, rather than grapple with this existential sorrow and soldier on regardless, the movie says, “just kidding,” and reinforces her confirmation bias about good and evil.

All comic book movies are ultimately the same (as all hero’s journey parables are the same). The trick is disguising their models and smelling fresh. They all boil down to tales of champions of justice or accidental guardians of galaxies, but “Wonder Woman” is short on the finesse of moral grays that makes these films enjoyably “unique.” If you want to pit Marvel vs. DC (uh oh, we went there) the stark difference is all about beliefs. The problem with the latter, generally, is characters with the absolute courage of their convictions and red-blooded ideals. These characters rarely doubt themselves and oftentimes that’s pretty dull. And the idea of a steadfast, unwavering hero certainly applies to “Wonder Woman.” Sure, the foundations of these stories are largely built as black and white sagas, but that doesn’t pardon the movie’s lack of complexity or excuse its shallowness. Yet it’s the DCEU’s best film, but as we know, that’s not saying a lot. But, hey, that terrific second act that we should cling to even if it’s a distant memory by the time love defeats aggression. “Wonder Woman” might be molded by the mighty Gods, but as shaped by mere mortals her mettle and beliefs can only be so wonderfully divine. [C+]blank