In one of the most influential comics I read as a teen, just as I was starting to look for more meaning in my media and comics, Wonder Woman saved the world from the evil villain, not by defeating him in battle but by showing him truth. It was rather revelatory for me at the time. Superhero stories were always about overpowering the "bad" guy. The hero won through a contest of strength. Here was something different, something new to inspire me and my young idealistic world view. This story was a big part of why this hero specifically went on to be meaningful for me. As Wonder Woman 1984 played out I realized I was experiencing that again and it not only brought me back to a rush of emotions of my younger self, but also renewed much of those feelings for me.
Wonder Woman 1984 starts out showing us some typical superhero movie tropes, but through the course of the film it transforms that, subverts that, showing us something different. Jenkins takes the "superhero" movie and shows us that heroism often doesn't look like saving people from crime but from bringing people to truth, transforming how we live our live our lives, and bringing us into a new world. The film starts out with a cool traditional "superhero" style scene, played by leaning quite hard into its cliches, only for the film to eventually subvert these ideas into examining what heroism might truly need to be beyond stopping criminals. That's the kind of superhero movie maybe we need right now, but it is often not what we are expecting and often it's not what we want.
Sequels often give us more of the same. What was refreshing right off the bat with 84 is that it is completely new movie. While it is connected in many ways to the first Jenkins Wonder Woman film it is clearly not trying to make lightning strike twice in the same spot. It is saying it will give us something new. Are we ready for it or do we want the more traditional, beat-em-up action movie that we're used to seeing? Jenkins starts us there, in familiar superhero territory, but takes us on a very different journey. So many superhero sequels just reproduce what happened in the previous films, but with a new villain. This one avoids that entirely.
Jenkins wastes no time. We get thrown into the story. Diana has lived into a new era, more than 60 years after the events of the first film. But she hasn't moved on. She is alone. She has lost most of the passion and spark which motivated her in the first part of the century. All of this is established efficiently and effectively right away allowing this story to begin. We are in the 80s, an era that encapsulates the themes of this tale so well, the greed, the selfishness, the precipice of self destruction the world rested on. And the film is shot with 80s stylings, making it feel like a film of the era. We're all there in a moment and the story is set in motion quickly.
And this manages to be both action film and character study. The nature of this story is one of self examination as much as it is of set pieces. Jenkins uses this story to build a narrative of personal accounting. Wonder Woman is needing to decide who she is going to be, and who she really is. And I was taken right back to that comic of my childhood, coming to a new understanding of what heroism means, what doing what is right means. Seeing it play out again on the big screen was a moment of affirmation for me.
Technically this is a great film. Zimmer's score is fantastic. The visuals are impeccable. The film mimics 80s action movie film style, evoking the era classically, not only visually but in the way its story plays out as well. Catch little easter eggs like a photo of Diana and Etta Candy (as an old woman) showing they remained friends well into the latter's late life. Catch no-so-little easter eggs like the film finding a way to introduce the invisible jet. The cast each do great work but for me the standout was Pascal, walking a delicate tightrope of over the top 80s villain and the melodrama needed to sell this story. that just clicked for me in all the right ways. It just came together like a lovely treat. My only wish was more Cheetah. Wiig was fantastic in all that she did, and her character, like Diana's spent more time wrestling with her sense of self than fighting in spectacular set pieces. But her design was amazing and a part of me wanted to see her kick more butt. But then I was reminded that 84 isn't trying to be that film and it has different plans for this character. What we do get is worth it, as is the whole ride.
There are some parts where the film stumbles. There is a problematic plot device involving Steve Trevor's return in the body of an unsuspecting man which never feels like it's resolved well. I have to sort of head cannon it to be that Steve swaps places and the other man isn't there until he returns to make it okay. There is an action sequence set in the Middle East which is visually spectacular but has some issues with it. So the film never quite reaches the greatness of the film it follows but still manages to overcome these to be quite rewatchable.
And long time fans need to stick around for a worthwhile post-credit scene, a scene that simply needs no explanation.
Starring: Gal Gadot, Kristen Wiig, Chris Pine, Pedro Pascal, Robin Wright, Connie Neilson, Lilly Aspell
Director: Patty Jenkins
Writers: Geoff Johns, David Callaham, Patty Jenkins
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