Wonder Woman 1984(2020)- Review
Wonder Woman 1984 is a superhero film, sequel to the original film Wonder Woman (2017). As its name suggests it is set in 1984 decades after Diana/Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) helped stop World War I with the assistance of Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) who was eventually martyred in doing so, at the end of the first film. 66 years after that Diana is living in Washington D.C. working as an anthropologist in the Smithsonian Museum. She majorly leads a quiet & lonely life, functioning as a vigilantly from time to time and assisting local authorities curb petty crimes. The primary story starts when Diana gets acquainted with Barbara Ann Minerva (Kristen Wiig) a new employee at the museum. Barbara is a learned woman but fairly anonymous & ignored by her peers. The FBI has asked for the museum’s assistance and in turn Barbra’s to identify a few antiquities that were seized by them after a failed robbery attempt. Among these artefacts there is a dreamstone, initially dismissed as a fake and of being of not much value, apart from its aesthetics, by both Barbra & Diana. Still, they unwittingly make individual wishes jokingly and instantly go on with their lives not giving much thought to the stone. Little did they know it was a real dreamstone and their wishes have come true. Maxwell Lord (Pedro Pascal), a businessman, knows the reality of the stone and when he learns it is at the Smithsonian Museum he displays himself as a donor and deceivingly acquires the stone. Maxwell takes a few rash decisions with the stone, the use of which can lead to Armageddon and the end of the world. Now it’s upto Diana to do all she can to stop him, in the process she gets help from an old friend & finds herself at odds with a new one.
It is a classic superhero story with the antagonist trying to the save the world from an evil protagonist. But with a female lead & a few elements the movie tries to give a good bit of swirl to the age old story. Gal Gadot does a satisfactory job in portraying Wonder Woman without many complaints. Chris Pine too tries to showcase a baffled man who finds himself in the future. Patty Jenkins meets the directorial expectations doing a good job. After all these years and his previous amazing work, it would be a surprise if the music by Hans Zimmer is not incredible. The background score is fit perfectly with the ongoing story that is building up.
Unlike the first movie this is very predictable and fails to deliver any surprises. As is with these kind of movies/stories some scenes/stories can feel absurd & illogical, but unlike others this film does not even try to connect the faintest dots to make it look logical. Not everyone will be stymied by this though. With a good chunk of hours that go in post-production for this genre of movies, it was surprising to see the CGI work leaky in few bits, that too visible without giving much attention.
Expectations need to be adjusted keeping in mind the attempts in the recent past by DC & Warner Bros. in trying to match the MCU. But it is not the worst film by them and will at the least meet the low expectations. If you are a superhero fanatic it will be enjoyable, can’t say the same for others.
Acting- 7.5
Casting- 7.5
Cinematography- 8.5
Dialogue- 7
Directing- 8.5
Editing & Effects- 7
Sound & Music- 9.5
Story- 7
Storytelling- 7
Rating- 6.5