I don’t know what sorcery James Wan had to use in order to get the executives at Warner Brothers to approve all the insane things that are in Aquaman, but whatever it is, God bless him for it. Even after one viewing, it’s pretty apparent that Aquaman is perhaps the most unapologetically go-for-broke superhero movie ever made, wholly embracing the long ridiculed premise and not holding back on anything, from its complicated lore to its epic aquatic warfare.
The story of Aquaman follows Arthur Curry (Jason Momoa), a half-human, half-Atlantean, who is forced to face off against his half-brother, King Orm (Patrick Wilson), who is planning an attack on the surface world. He does so with the help of Mera (Amber Heard), but their adventure is further complicated as a pirate/mercenary, David Kane (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II), is hired to track down and kill the them.
So, I left a lot from that synopsis. Like, a lot. I hadn’t mentioned the fact that Arthur is reluctant to go to Atlantis because he blames himself for the death of his mother, Queen Atlaana (Nicole Kidman) because her being with a landlubber is a huge no-no. I didn’t mention all the inner-workings of Atlantis politics and tribal connections since a chunk of the film involves Orm trying to unite all the Atlantean tribes, so they can collectively take over the world. And this is where King Nereus (Dolph Lundgren), who is also the father of Mera, is the most involved. There’s also the fact that David Kane – otherwise known as Black Manta – has a huge grudge against Aquaman because he killed his father early in the film. I also didn’t mention that Arthur and Mera have to go on a globe trotting journey to find an ancient trident. Oh, and in all this, there’s a few flashbacks to Arthur as a youngster being trained by Nuidis Vulko (Willem Dafoe), a royal adviser.
I hope you got all that. There will be a quiz.
The film is loaded with stuff, from beginning to end, the film is busy with information. The script, which was written by David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick and Will Beall, is incredibly ambitious, covering as many aspects of this character and the world he inhabits as possible. It can be feel a bit convoluted at times, but it remained reasonably coherent enough, but had it been under the wrong hands, it could’ve easily been a disaster.
Thankfully, James Wan is the director, and his commitment to the material is what made this all work as well as it does. Now, I’m not saying Aquaman is as good as the movies I’m going to compare it to, but the film reminded me of Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man films. Like with those films, Wan is unabashedly enthused about the material, and he taps into that particular style of superhero melodrama that takes bold characters, eccentric environments, and filters them through relatable emotional throughlines. Arthur’s story is that of finding yourself in a world that doesn’t seem willing to accept you for who you are, as he gets slurs like “half-breed” and “mongrel” constantly thrown at him. The context is definitely more heightened and weird, but the emotions are real and they ring true.
Plus, like with Raimi’s Spider-Man films, Wan brings an exciting playfulness to the way he utilizes the camera, thanks to his cinematographer, Don Burgess, who he has collaborated with before, and interestingly enough, also shot the first Raimi Spider-Man. Wan’s love of tracking shots are very much at home here, as there are multiple moments where the camera will hover and swirl around our characters in the middle of an action sequence. There’s dutch angles, zooms, clever transitions, pretty much every cinematic trick imaginable is used here. It makes you wish more superhero movies were willing to play with the camera, and truly capture that creative comic book spirit. Hell, to continue that Raimi comparison, there’s a sequence on a boat that’s basically Wan’s equivalent of that Doc Ock hospital scene in Spider-Man 2, in terms of leaning on his horror skills. It’s so great.
Jason Momoa certainly captures the physicality of the character, and his joyful swagger is enough to carry the film, even if some of his line deliveries feel a bit off a couple time. And as far as the rest of the cast goes, you got pros like Heard, Dafoe, Wilson, Kidman, and Lundgren who can sell the hell out of any line you give them, no matter how ludicrous it sounds. It’s also nice seeing Temuera Morrison shine in a fairly small role as Arthur’s father. And I’ll never not be amused by the fact that Julie Andrews, instead of doing a cameo in Mary Poppins Returns, decided to voice a giant mythical sea monster.
Aquaman can be overwhelming at times. It throws a lot at you, and it’s constantly on the move. It’s relentlessness may tire some people out, but I found it absolutely enthralling. Like with Mortal Engines not too long ago, I was always in awe of the designs, the costumes, the action, the effects, the ballsy straight-faced commitment to some profoundly silly ideas and wildly imaginative concepts, while also making sure to never lose focus on the emotional journey that Arthur has to take. For practically every other scene during its two and a half hour runtime, there would be a moment where I found myself thinking, “Oh my God, I can’t believe they actually went and did that.” For crying out loud, the film even ends on a freeze frame! There’s so many things that I love about this movie, I could honestly go on and on and on about it, but you’d be better served actually seeing it unfold on the big screen.