Wonder Woman 1984

Wonder Woman 1984, directed by Patty Jenkins, significantly underperforms compared to its predecessor, delivering a sequel that lacks the coherence and emotional depth of the original. Despite its vibrant 1980s setting and a promising premise, the film struggles with a convoluted plot, uneven pacing, and underwhelming character development.

The story follows Diana Prince, played by Gal Gadot, living in 1984 Washington, D. C., working at the Smithsonian and performing heroic deeds in secret. The plot centers around the Dreamstone, an artifact that grants wishes but at a significant cost. Diana's wish brings back her deceased lover, Steve Trevor, played by Chris Pine, whose return feels forced and undermines Diana's independence, making him a "masculine crutch" rather than a supportive character like Peggy Carter in the Captain America films.

Gal Gadot continues to shine as Wonder Woman, but even her strong performance cannot save the film from its narrative flaws. The script fails to give Diana the same level of complexity and growth seen in the first film, reducing her to a more passive figure. The return of Chris Pine's Steve Trevor, while charming, dominates the storyline unnecessarily and detracts from Diana's heroism.

Kristen Wiig's portrayal of Barbara Minerva/Cheetah and Pedro Pascal's Maxwell Lord add some intrigue but ultimately fall flat. Wiig's transformation from a meek scientist to a powerful villain is one of the more interesting arcs, but it is rushed and lacks depth. Pascal's Maxwell Lord starts strong but becomes increasingly cartoonish, failing to provide a compelling adversary.

The film's pacing is uneven, with long stretches of exposition and meandering subplots that detract from the main narrative. Key themes about truth and the consequences of wish fulfillment are lost in the cluttered storyline. The over-reliance on CGI, especially in the climactic battle scenes, makes the action feel less grounded and more cartoonish compared to the original.

Visually, the film has its moments, with vibrant colors and some well-executed action sequences, but these are not enough to compensate for the lack of a cohesive and engaging story. The opening sequence featuring a young Diana in an athletic competition is a standout, but nothing else in the film matches its visual cohesion or emotional impact.

Wonder Woman 1984 is a disappointing sequel that fails to capture the magic of the original. The film's convoluted plot, underdeveloped characters, and uneven pacing result in a lackluster viewing experience. While Gal Gadot's performance and the nostalgic 1980s aesthetic provide some highlights, they are not enough to overcome the film's significant weaknesses. Wonder Woman 1984 earns a 4 out of 10 for its missed potential and overall execution, leaving fans yearning for the brilliance of the first film.

Wonder Woman is not wonderful.

This wasn't the horrible movie some reviewers make it out to be. 1 & 2 stars is a bit exaggerated-- I save such ratings for worst of the worst. At the worst this is simply a disappointing, poorly-written, badly-directed comic-book movie (emphasis on comic book writing... and there have been better comic books).

Still, believe the negativity. This movie has so very many flaws. I'll sum the entire movie up in one scene: roping a lightning bolt and swinging from it.

Seriously?

WW'84 made me feel like I was watching the 1970s Wonder Woman with all its ridiculous camp. With almost 2000 reviews here I don't need to spend a lot of time writing this one. A bunch of people are going to see this movie. Some are going to love it because well... that's some people. Some people will like it because of Gadot or Pine. A whole lot more are gonna be justifiably disappointed.

There are worse movies out there. Wonder Woman is bad, but remember Batman and Robin? Electra? Catwoman? Some movie writers and directors need a lot more talent.

The first one was fun and well played out. This sequel is a total misfire. Not because it follows the trend of having women being the alpha characters and portraying men as either weak or stupid, but simply because it's a lazy effort. Except a couple of scenes, and hilarious over-the-top acting by Pedro Pascal, I found nothing here. It has "straight-to-DVD" written all over it.

The first film is outstanding, it's exciting, it's fun, and apart from looking amazing, it has depth.

The problem here, it's so slow, and goes on forever and a day, did anything actually happen in the first ninety minutes? There was absolutely no action.

Chris Pine felt wrong here somehow, eye candy only, Gal Gadot, I thought she was pretty good, the shining light here, I just felt like she was battling against a miserable script. You could almost sense that she knew the script was no good.

The Villains were generally inept.

I won't be watching again, 3/10.

I saw the first Wonder Women and kind of enjoyed it, even though I didn't grow up knowing the WW canon. But it was a fun film that played with the fish-out-of-water aspect. But this - WW1984 - what in the hell was this? Again, I don't know that much Womder Woman history, but this seemed like a huge conglomeration of crazy story line, special effects, philosophical ramblings... it was a total mess.

Gal Gadot and Chris Pine are pleasant, appealing actors, and certainly pleasant to look at. And Kristin Wiig had a great role that I'm sure she had fun with. But overall, this was just a total mess of a movie. And Pedro Pascal...I can't figure out if he was great, or just did one of the most over the top performances in recent memory.