Wonder Woman 1984

Wonder Woman 1984

Wonder Woman 1984 is again directed by Patty Jenkins. But this time the movie is not that good as the first movie which is kinda bummer. In this movie, Diana Prince lives quietly among mortals in the vibrant, sleek 1980s -- an era of excess driven by the pursuit of having it all. Though she's come into her full powers, she maintains a low profile by curating ancient artifacts and only performing heroic acts incognito. But soon, Diana will have to muster all of her strength, wisdom, and courage as she finds herself squaring off against Maxwell Lord and the Cheetah, a villainess who possesses superhuman strength and agility.

My thoughts: The follow-up to the massive 2017 box office (& cultural zeitgeist) hit comes finally to HBO Max after sitting on the shelf for a couple of years (one year was due to the pandemic to be fair) with w/a lot of fanfare but not much else when it comes to this project as a whole. We find Diana, again played by Gal Gadot, prowling the streets of DC meting out her justice under the radar (in the opening action sequence where a bunch of jewel thieves are taken down by Wonder Woman but makes sure to take out any surveillance cameras) & living a solitary life working as an art curator still pining away for the love of her life Steve Trevor, played by Chris Pine. Into her immediate workspace comes a new sheepish & neglected employee, Barbara Minerva, played by Kristen Wiig, who's brought in to identify the merch recovered from the thwarted robbery by the authorities with w/a small vase being the runt of the curiosity litter. Meanwhile, Maxwell Lord, a proto-Trumpesque oilman, enters the picture to help with w/the vase's background (we learn he's behind the whole thing being this relic can grant actual wishes) sidling up to Wiig to get the vase for himself which he does turning himself into the vessel to grant other wishes (his wish) so he gains wealth & power. As it always is w/these cursed items (Diana discovers the vase was the handiwork of an evil god), whatever is granted must be taken away so although Pine reenters the fray (taking over a random guy's body but Diana only sees Pine) filling Diana's void & Wiig starts to turn heads, gaining respect & attention, but as night follows day, the bill will come due setting up an extended action sequence in Egypt as Diana & Trevor chase down Lord in an armored caravan & a final showdown between Wonder Woman & her famed arch nemesis Cheetah. Instead of taking the downtime to hone the story more sharply, we have a passably enjoyable romp (the opening mall gambit smacks of Superman III's comically laced first few minutes) which as I remarked to a friend of mine felt nebulous, which he retorted 'oh it's jello!' Instead of scrambling to the minor leagues to find some fresh-faced talent to repair the work done here, Warner Bros has decided to forge on for a third adventure to be helmed by Jenkins which makes sense because even the most critical of us can give a pass to many a Michael Bay abomination, so let Jenkins lick her creative wounds (which I don't think she should) & see how the next film can be better.

Trailer: