I really tried to like Wonder Woman. Really, I did. As one of my ultimate favorite superheroes, I was more than excited when they announced she would get her own standalone movie. Still, I found myself dazed, confused, and well…bored upon seeing her grace the big screen.
As someone who’s always prided himself on being one of the few people in my circle who can actually enjoy things without picking them apart, this was a hard pill to swallow. I went to see a movie with a 92% Rotten Tomato score, and I ended up being unimpressed with it as a whole.
A few things that really bothered me?
The Action
The action scenes were amazing…when they weren’t constantly interrupted by slow motion close-up shots. Diana would kick a bad guy. Said bad guy would fly out of a window in slow motion. Time would speed up when Diana turned around to face another baddie…only to slow down again when she reached for her sword. Every. Single. Punch. Nearly every step taken in an action scene involved the overuse of slow motion. It became jarring the majority of the time.
The Pacing
This movie was too long. Let’s face it. Much of its screen time could have been reduced, especially the scenes in the third act. By then, it felt like the movie was padding itself to make you wait until the inevitable final boss battle at its climax. Hopefully this doesn’t become a habit with DC’s movies being overlong just for the sake of it (looking at you, Justice League).
The Villain
For every wonderful superhero, there has to be a bad guy or a bad situation that truly elevates the story and raises the stakes. Ares’ anticlimactic reveal at the end of the film was both disappointing and boring. By then, I was ready for the end credits to roll, and the fight scene between the two was nowhere near as impressive as Wonder Woman’s fight against Doomsday.
You have to understand. Wonder Woman is one of the most iconic superheroes of all time, male or female. After the unnecessarily botched Batman v. Superman, much was riding on Wonder Woman’s big screen success. With Marvel continuing to kick DC into the ground in terms of consistency, redemption was necessary.
Enter Wonder Woman. No, literally. I’m still amazed at how someone can mess up a movie about Superman and Batman fighting each other, but it still happened. One thing many critics agreed on? Wonder Woman was the best part of the movie.
So, no I didn’t have a problem with Gal Gadot’s performance. I didn’t think the story was lackluster. I thought it was pretty consistent with its source material. I didn’t have a problem with the woman-only screenings or the ridiculous politics surrounding the film. I simply didn’t like it. Yet, I understand and respect its position as a game-changer for female superheroes (and female leads in general).