My Dinner with Aquaman

 

A Big Heart on an Orange Sleeve

Maybe it's just because I watched this movie at a very vulnerable moment with low expectations, but I was shocked to find myself loving Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. 

Why? 

Sincerity and genuine heroism. Above all else, a superhero movie should feature heroism, and far too often in this genre we've gotten what I would call surface-level heroism without the heart--witness especially the DC films of Zack Snyder. 

Yes, this movie is silly and cheesy, but it embraces those qualities and invites you to participate in that silliness. There's a moment where two characters reconcile and seal that reconciliation by shaking hands, and their gauntlets go "clang." But by that point of the film, you KNOW those gauntlets are going to clang, and it's okay because that's the tone this movie sets. 

But beyond the cheese we have a story about the importance of empathy and forgiveness told through the lens of broken families and climate catastrophe. There are no subtle metaphors here, but given the issues presented, I'm fine with that. 

This movie touched me with its aspirational qualities.  Too often, superheroes are really just keepers of the status quo who get involved in senseless fistfights, resulting in tremendous property damage and (presumably) loss of life. There are, of course, battles in this film, but the motivations feel organic and the crises authentic. Is it cheesy to call for a more united world? Is it silly to imagine people working together to fight climate change? 

Maybe what I appreciate most is that Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom isn't cynical; it doesn't try to be profound or gritty. Everything's on the surface--despite the movie being set underwater. 

Say what you will about the uneven quality of the DC Extended Universe films, but the project gave us a handful of good to great movies, and with this one, at least the DCEU ends on a high note.

Justice Reimagined

To my utter surprise - and maybe it's because my expectations were so low - I did not hate Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021). In fact, I can honestly say that I even enjoyed it, with reservations. This version of the film has more natural humour (though only in sparse doses), Cyborg and Flash are far better developed Batman gets a little more dignity, the action sequences are more effective overall, and the final battle in particular offers genuine jeopardy and suspense--it feels like there are real stakes. The plot actually makes sense now, for the most part. Even Steppenwolf's story is fleshed out, enough to make him an actual villain instead of just CG animation. And we get to see more of Jeremy Irons' Alfred and J.K. Simmons' Commissioner Gordon; both are treats. Amy Adams' Lois Lane doesn't fare quite as well, but she's still more important to the film than she was in the original theatrical release. 

On the downside, the score is terrible except when it includes snippets of Zimmer's themes from past movies. There are still moments that feel out of character for our heroes. There's way too much slow motion. The big new character cameo is welcome to fans, but still feels tacked on. Some sequences could be cut without hurting the film at all. Some of the humanizing moments from the theatrical cut are gone and I miss them, but on the other hand, those cuts make this version more tonally coherent - even if I'm not a fan of Snyder's portentous, somber take on the genre.

As a bonus, comparing this version of Justice League to the theatrical release is a great way to discover the importance of editing.

Lightning in a Beer Bottle: Shazam!

The real Captain Marvel makes his debut in Shazam! (David F. Sandberg, 2019). Inspired by the whimsical adventures of Captain Marvel and the Marvel Family from way back in the 1940s, Shazam! tells the story of orphan Billy Batson, an orphan boy who can transform into the World's Mightiest Mortal, Captain Marvel, by yelling "SHAZAM!"

SHAZAM, of course, is one of the most famous acronyms in comics, and it describes the powers bestowed on Billy:

S - Solomon's wisdom
H - Hercules' strength
A - Atlas' stamina
Z - Zeus' power
A - Achilles' courage
M - Mercury's speed

It's just a shame that DC surrendered use of the "Captain Marvel" name to Marvel Studios when the character and his family have so much history behind them. Kudos to the filmmakers, though, for avoiding what I feared most: calling Captain Marvel "Shazam." Sure, it leaves the hero without a proper sobriquet, but the search for a superhero name for Billy Batson's adult form becomes a fun little comedic thread woven through the film.

Minutiae aside, is this a good movie? Well, it's funny and family-friendly (in the sense that it honours the best family values, like caring, understanding, respect, and tenderness). It's well-acted across the board, and while the screenplay isn't brilliant, it does the job - though I found the pacing a bit rushed. It would have been nice to dedicate a little more time to Billy's arc. It works, but it would have been more plausible had the creators spent more time on character development and shortened the initial fight a bit. The creators also take some liberties with Sivana, turning him into a kind of low-rent Black Adam instead of the mad scientist he's supposed to be, but I can see why they made the choice for the sake of story economy.

That being said, these are minor complaints. As with Aquaman, I'm grateful that DC's characters are being treated with a little more playfulness and less grand import. Save the dark stuff for the Batman family (but maybe lighten them up just a little too, huh, Warner Brothers? Just don't go camp. No one will ever do a better camp Batman than the 60s TV series, so don't go there.)

Kudos, too, to the filmmakers for adding at least three references to Big, two obvious and hilarious, one a little more subtle but appreciated. 

Aquamaniac

Aquaman vs the Pirates

Piece-Meal Review of The Lego Movie

Everything about The Lego Movie is awesome, including its subversive "Triumph of the Will"-evoking theme song and its brain-bending but perfectly logical third-act pivot. Charming, self-effacing, clever, satirical and fun, The Lego Movie is one of those rare films that offers a straightforward and positive message without embarrassment.

Oddly enough, the film for some reason endorses Sylvia's view that Green Lantern is lame, a view I don't share but seems to have become some strange pop-culture undercurrent. I always thought Aquaman was the lame one, but perhaps not...

The Moonhaulers

When I first saw this calendar sometime back in 1977, I'm sure my face fell in slack-jawed wonder. Some villain had knocked the moon out of its orbit, and only the Justice League (and Supergirl) could put it back in its rightful place! The concept is ludicrous, but the great Neal Adams somehow makes it work. Those kilometres-long harnesses bolted across the face of the moon are wonderful, and look at the strain on the faces of Superman and Supergirl. Adams totally sells it. Everyone has a role to play; presumably Green Lantern is either shoring up the harnesses so they don't snap, or helping push; possibly both. Wonder Woman is using her lasso to help arrest the Moon's fall, even though in this era she couldn't fly under her own power, so I'm not sure what's going on there. Compared to the titans putting all their godlike energy into the effort, Hawkman's Thanagarian police cruiser probably isn't adding much thrust to the package, but all for one and one for all. I suppose Aquaman, Green Arrow and Black Canary are on board to provide damage control if the ship blows some fuses.

As for Batman, well...thanks for coming out, Bruce, but standing there and yelling "Push! Harder!" can't be that helpful in this situation.

Four-Colour Banter

Adventure Comics #446 is one of the oldest issues in my collection. Dated July-August 1976, I probably purchased it at the Leaf Rapids drug store a few months earlier, comic book cover dates always shifted somewhat into the future. Sadly, my copy's cover was ripped off many years ago.

In this scene, Aqualad, going undercover on a cruise ship to capture some diamond smugglers, is captured by a thug. As a six-or-seven year old I thought Aqualad's cool witticism was hilarious, but these days I find the goon's reply even funnier - perhaps because his dialogue's cadence matches Aqualad's quite nicely. Gun in the ear, bullet in the brain; there's a pleasing rhythm to it, and I think the thug deserves credit. And I love his sneer.

A few pages later Aquaman arrives to save his sidekick, tossing in a pop-culture reference that's already seeming dated, just a few years after Cousteau's death. One wonders how Cousteau's work may have differed in the DC universe, seeing as he would have had to contend with Aquaman, his underwater nation of Atlantis, the reality of telepathic contact between Atlantean humans and undersea creatures, super-villains like Black Manta (above), the Fisherman, King Shark, etc. One presumes Cousteau and Aquaman would have inevitably met at some point, but alas, it either never happened or I never stumbled across that particular story.

Priorities

Aquaman, aside from being the most-mocked member of the Super Friends, is also the King of Atlantis, the underwater kingdom comprised of the ancient cities of Poseidonis and Tritonis. In his role as King, Aquaman has certain duties as head-of-state. But see how he blows off his responsibilities in this late 1970s issue of Adventure Comics:



Canada gets little respect in the comics. Is meeting the Canadian ambassador so dull a task that Aquaman will grasp any straws necessary to avoid it? Testing Mr. Weisbogg's robot, indeed.

Of course, I suppose they couldn't call it Adventure Comics if the stories revolved around diplomatic meetings...