Aquaman is the sixth entry in the DC Films shared universe and the first to be centered around the titular superhero played by Jason Momoa, who reprises his role from last year’s Justice League and 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. The film also stars Amber Heard, Willem Dafoe, Patrick Wilson, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Temuera Morrison, Dolph Lundgren and Nicole Kidman. Director James Wan from the Saw and The Conjuring franchises oversees bringing the world of Atlantis to life and, if possible, righting the course of the DC Films universe.

As a film, Aquaman arrives at a strange moment in cinema history and some context is in order. Disney’s Marvel Studios created a template with their cinematic universe, tantalizing audiences with cameo appearances from their stable of stars and post-credit Easter eggs before finally delivering the goods with Joss Whedon’s The Avengers in 2012. In trying to catch up with Marvel and accelerating their slate, DC Films released the critically-maligned Dawn of Justice as a prelude to the following year’s Justice League, which in turn was plagued by family tragedy, studio meddling and corporate overthinking. Even Whedon, who had delivered two billion-dollar grossers for Marvel, couldn’t save the sinking ship. (No pun intended.)

This is how we arrive at Aquaman, with the DC Films universe teetering on the edge of a cliff. James Wan, eschewing the grim and gritty approach of the earlier films, doubles down on the wild, colorful and somewhat zany aesthetic of the kingdom of Atlantis as depicted in the comic books. And he does this by harnessing the natural charisma of his lead, Jason Momoa. After his portrayal as Khal Drogo on HBO’s Game of Thrones catapulted him to geek stardom, Momoa finally gets his shot at leading man status in this film. However, Momoa is still a character actor masquerading as an A-lister and he has a way to go towards handling dramatic weight, leaving that to his more experienced ensemble. To his credit, Momoa’s innate magnetism anchors the otherworldly proceedings. (No pun intended.)

Momoa’s casting was part of an effort to modernize and revitalize the character of Arthur Curry, aka Aquaman, who has historically been considered a laughing stock or someone with comedic, useless powers (talking to the fishes). To counter this, director Snyder presented Aquaman as a badass hard-drinking biker-esque rogue in Justice League, perhaps somewhat closer to his late aughts’ appearance in DC Comics’ New 52 reboot. But this was the “grim and gritty” Aquaman, more Lobo than Arthur Curry. A scene or two in Justice League leaned on Momoa’s goofball instincts, but in this film, James Wan pulls a much more charming, smart-alecky turn from his lead. Arthur Curry delves deeper into the kingdoms, mythologies and lore of Atlantis, learning along with the audience even as he feels like a fish out of water. (No pun intended.)

The cast assembled is better than I expected. Kidman (Queen Atlanna) and Morrison (Thomas Curry) give the film a beating heart with their forbidden relationship as Arthur’s parents; in fact, they’re the true romantic leads of the film. Wilson (Ocean Master) and Abdul-Mateen (Black Manta) have more motivation than your usual mustache twirlers, but not by much. Dafoe (Vulko) takes what could have been a thankless mentor role and injects it with Machiavellian slyness. Amber Heard as Princess Mera is fiery, more passionate towards saving Atlantis than being with Arthur. To be honest, the chemistry between Heard and Momoa is not all the way there and if there is a sequel, their romance will be a tougher sell. For now, it is sidestepped for the most part. Momoa almost falls into the same trap Henry Cavill did as Superman: a beefcake actor who has the looks but not the entire toolkit to pull off the character. However, Wan has built a solid vehicle for Momoa to utilize much of his capabilities as an actor, letting him play off the weirdness and even be a little weird himself. As far as this film goes, he’s fine as an energetic man of action and good for a chuckle, not having to deal with the morose environs of Man of Steel or Dawn of Justice. At the very least, Momoa doesn’t torpedo the film with a wooden performance. (No pun intended.)

The kingdoms of Atlantis are vibrant, luminescent and unapologetically weird. There is a bravery to the visual presentation of Aquaman: armored sharks and giant seahorses, futuristic seacraft patterned after aquatic animals, giant leviathans guarding ancient weapons, fish-people treated with regality and nobility. Usually, comic book adaptations try to stay somewhat grounded and avoid looking like a Saturday-morning cartoon. Aquaman is a Saturday-morning cartoon on steroids, wholeheartedly embracing its goofiness and colorful aesthetic, without the shame and confusion of films like Green Lantern or, I hate to say it, Justice League. Aquaman knows it is a comic book movie and does not pretend to be anything else or anything more, riding the wave of adaptations proud of their source material. (No pun intended.)

Also, James Wan should be commended. He and his writers have taken great strides to correct the direction DC Films was headed in (Wan has story credit along with DC impresario Geoff Johns). After his experience with 2015’s Furious 7, Wan has shown he can handle the scale of a film like Aquaman without losing the charm of earlier genre schlock. He balances camp with grandeur and danger with excitement, even leaving a little room for nuance. For example, the interracial relationship of Arthur’s mother and father is never directly brought up as a negative or a point of contention for any of the other characters. Arthur is referred to as a half-breed more for his surface-dwelling side than his Asian heritage, but the parallels are there.  In fact, Arthur Curry’s biraciality as a visual metaphor for bridging two worlds is a genius move, bringing sociocultural insecurity and doubt brimming to the surface. (No pun intended.)

DC Films is making better choices, treating the strangest parts of their decades-old characters as assets. Indeed, Arthur Curry uses his once-mocked ability to talk to sea animals in a key moment late in the film. Communication is his number-one superpower; that’s an inspiring thing to consider in these days and times. Aquaman is proof that Justice League was made far too early, as was Dawn of Justice. Audiences needed a chance to get to see these characters in action, as they did with last year’s Wonder Woman, and now they have a solid, fun action-adventure film that will regain enough goodwill to keep the DC Films Universe afloat.

Okay, that last pun was intended.

Rating: 3.5/5 stars ⭐⭐⭐½

ABOUT WARNER BROS’ AQUAMAN

From Warner Bros. Pictures and director James Wan comes an action-packed adventure that spans the vast, visually breathtaking underwater world of the seven seas, “Aquaman,” starring Jason Momoa in the title role. The film reveals the origin story of half-human, half-Atlantean Arthur Curry and takes him on the journey of his lifetime—one that will not only force him to face who he really is, but to discover if he is worthy of who he was born to be… a king.

The film also stars Amber Heard (“Justice League,” “Magic Mike XXL”) as Mera, a fierce warrior and Aquaman’s ally throughout his journey; Oscar nominee Willem Dafoe (“Platoon,” “Spider-Man 2”) as Vulko, council to the Atlantean throne; Patrick Wilson (“The Conjuring” films, “Watchmen”) as Orm/Ocean Master, the present King of Atlantis; Dolph Lundgren (“The Expendables” films) as Nereus, King of the Atlantean tribe Xebel; Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (“Baywatch,” Netflix’s “The Get Down”) as the vengeful Black Manta; and Oscar winner Nicole Kidman (“The Hours,” “Lion”) as Arthur’s mom, Atlanna; as well as Ludi Lin (“Power Rangers”) as Captain Murk, Atlantean Commando; and Temuera Morrison (“Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones,” “Green Lantern”) as Arthur’s dad, Tom Curry.

Wan directs from a screenplay by David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick (“The Conjuring 2”) and Will Beall (“Gangster Squad,” TV’s “Training Day”), story by Geoff Johns & James Wan and Will Beall, based on characters from DC, Aquaman created by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger. The film is produced by Peter Safran and Rob Cowan, with Deborah Snyder, Zack Snyder, Jon Berg, Geoff Johns and Walter Hamada serving as executive producers.

Wan’s team behind the scenes includes such frequent collaborators as Oscar-nominated director of photography Don Burgess (“The Conjuring 2,” “Forrest Gump”), his five-time editor Kirk Morri (“The Conjuring” films, “Furious 7,” the “Insidious” films), and production designer Bill Brzeski (“Furious 7”). They are joined by costume designer Kym Barrett (“The Matrix” trilogy, “The Amazing Spider-Man”) and composer Rupert Gregson-Williams (“Wonder Woman”).

Warner Bros. Pictures Presents a Safran Company Production, a James Wan Film, “Aquaman.”

Aquaman hit theaters on December 21, 2018, in 3D and 2D and IMAX, with a run-time of 142 minutes and is rated PG-13.

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