WONDER WOMAN 1984 – Rated PG-13

WONDER WOMAN 1984 – Rated PG-13 – 2 hrs. 31 mins.

DIRECTOR/WRITER: Patty Jenkins

WRITERS: Geoff Johns, Dave Callaham

Based on the DC Wonder Woman Character created by William Moulton Marston

STARRING: Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Kristen Wiig, and Pedro Pascal

Okay, I’ll have to admit I’m about a week late to this party, as WW84 hit in theaters and on HBO Max on Christmas Day, but this time of year, family and friends always come first, so now I’m back to my love of movies for the remainder of the next 364!

I also am adamite about not reading any reviews before I share my own thoughts, but once WW84 hit last week, it was really hard not to hear the rumblings of my fellow critics, who were apparently not too enamored with Patty Jenkins take on my favorite DC girl! But, as usual when things like this occur, usually from the critics in NY or LA sharing their thoughts long before the films head here for us to review in the Midwest, I decided to take a chance on checking out WW84 today to kick off the New Year, doing my “favorite thing” watching and reviewing films.

And as this 80’s vibe film and storyline unfold, Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) is taking us all the way back to her childhood, with allows for a very quick cameo from one of my favorites cast in these films, Robin Wright, so as they say, so far so good with being enamored from the start of this next installment… and as we continue venturing back into Diana’s life, we rather quickly meet a new, and rather clumsy fellow Smithsonian employee, Barbara Minerva (Kristen Wiig), who seems to be rather envious of both Diana’s brains, and her beauty. Well, it doesn’t take long before Barbara’s has a new suitor that comes calling, the rather flamboyant, and totally creepy bad guy this time around, Max Lord (Pedro Pascal), who has his eyes set on one very valuable crystal in Barbara’s possession, that can change his world, and everyone one else’s for that matter, in an instant! And as this particular crystals’ “superpower” is revealed, it seems to have assisted Diana in reuniting with her one true love, Steve Trevor (Chris Pine), when he mysteriously returns from the great beyond. Now, with Diana content in her life with Steve by her side, all is right with the world…Right? Hold on a minute, not so fast, as Max Lord, and Barbara, aka The Cheetah, have other plans for Wonder Woman, and her super sexy, leading man instead… ultimately forces them all to face the “truth” about their lives, which as we all find out soon enough, is the only way to live…

Now, with a storyline focused on Truth, and complete with another exceptional performance by Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, how can anyone bash this next installment in the DC Universe? Well, I was wondering this myself along the way, as most of this film totally harkens back to one of my favorite times in cinema “the 80’s”, as Patty Jenkins and her team manage to drop you right smack dab into the era of my youth as they continue this premise perfectly throughout every inch of this film! I mean, we even manage to cast a President that totally favors one of my favorite Presidents of all time, Ronald Reagan (1981- 1989), that throws you into a time warp that you literally cannot escape. I mean they didn’t miss a beat at all with this one, constructing the world of the 80’s – From the crowded mall scenes, the attire throughout, or the closet scene with Chris Pine (one of my favorites), I mean, even the CGI that they created harkens back to the 80’s style of film making, which all in all, I personally thought was a fabulous way to make this film! I mean scenes even harkened back for me, to the Superman films of yesteryear too, which I once again thought was a really nice touch! But with all that in its favor, there were a few aspects of this film that I could have done without too, like the Cheetah part of this film for me, could have hit the cutting room floor, as I would have been okay with that whole aspect of this film and storyline going by, by. I also think that the length of this film could have been shortened, as there are a few scenes that could have made the same impact in the storytelling process, without being so drawn out. But, with that said, I must also share that once we got past the Cheetah part of the film, the last 10 minutes of WW84 are sheer heaven, as Jenkins also manages to give this film an ending that makes it a total “Chick Flick”, wrapping up storylines as perfectly as possible, as they will warm your heart, just like all Wonder Woman films should, thus making this one of those films that if you can’t head out to the theater to catch it on a big screen near you, you should definitely take the time out, especially with the girls in the your life, regardless of their age, and check out Wonder Woman 1984 on HBO MAX before she’s gone!