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Rating: 4.5 out of 5
When you think of female superheroes, who is the first that comes to mind? Is it Storm? How about Black Widow? It could be the Scarlet Witch. It may be the Invisible Woman. Or even crazy-ass Harley Quinn (even though she is a supervillain)? I am going to place a wager and say that the female superhero at the top of your list is Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman is by far the best female superhero ever created. Some might say that is an opinion, but we all know it is a straight-up 100% fact.
Let’s do a quick history lesson. Wonder Woman was created in 1941 by American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston, aka Charles Moulton, and artist Harry G. Peter for DC Comics. Wonder Woman made her first appearance in All-Star Comics #8. Coming from her homeland and island nation of Themyscira, she is known as Princess Diana of Themyscira. Diana’s origin story has changed throughout the years, with one being she was sculpted from clay by her mother, Queen Hippolyta, leader of the Amazons. Then her story changed to that she was the daughter of Zeus and Hippolyta. I’ll roll with this one because Zeus couldn’t keep it in his pants. Diana is known for her arsenal of weapons, from her famous Lasso of Truth to her indestructible bracelets, a tiara that she throws like a frisbee, and sometimes an invisible jet.
Before the film came out, Wonder Woman was a TV show based on the DC comic books. I want to ensure we honor the past and respect the first OG. The TV show starred Lynda Carter, and OMG, was she the envy of all men in her outfit and when she did the spin to turn into Wonder Woman. The series aired from 1975 to 1979. It took all these years again for Wonder Woman to get a high-level movie of her own and it delivered.
In 2017, Wonder Woman dropped on the world and is the fourth installment of the DC Extended Universe. It is the best film in the entire DC Extended Universe. Directed by the great Patty Jenkins and written by Allan Heinberg, this is the second time Wonder Woman has appeared on screen. Jenkins did a marvelous job presenting this film as a play with three acts. In the first act, we learn about Diana’s past. The film begins in present-day Paris, where Diana Prince (Gadot) works at the Louve. She receives a photographic plate from Wayne Enterprises of herself and four men during WWI. As she looks at the photo, she starts remembering her past. The film jumps to thousands of years in the past, when Diana was a child on the hidden island of Themyscira. Themyscira is home to the Amazons, badass women warriors created by the Olympians to protect mankind. These women will whip the shit out of you. They are ruled by Queen Hippolyta (Nielsen), Diana’s mother. When giving Diana a lesson, she tells her the story of the God of War, Ares, who became jealous of humanity and his quest to destroy it. Ares wages war on the other gods and manages to kill all of them but Zues. With the last of his powers, Zues wounds the God of War and banishes him. Zeus leaves the Amazons a weapon known as the “god-killer” for the day Ares returns. After many tries of asking and wanting, Hippolyta lets her sister, Antiope (Wright), General of the Amazons, train Diana as a warrior.
The film’s second act begins in 1981 when US pilot Captain Steve Trevor (Pine) crashes off the Themyscira coast. Diana greets Steve only to be met by German soldiers. The Amazons manage to defeat all with the tragedy of Antiope dying from sacrificing herself to save Diana. Steve is quickly taken and interrogated with the Lasso of Truth. He tells them that the world is at war and that he must return to his home to tell them about the secret weapon. Diana quickly believes that Ares has come back and that he must be stopped at all costs. This is where all the action happens in the film with the war and how the group wants to stop a Nazi scientist and General.
The third act of this great film is the final 30 minutes of the film. It is when the audience learns the truth about Diana. We also learn who Ares is, which is somewhat of a surprise, but who Diana’s identity really is. Some of the film could have been cut out, but the third act was good. The final 30 minutes showed Diana’s power and why Zeus gave her his powers. The third act also puts a nice bow on the film, showing how love can overcome evil and war.
I want to put this on front street that this film is AWESOME. As stated before, this is the best film in the entire DC Extended Universe. First, the film shows female empowerment, and it is awesome. Diana asks questions about why women are sectaries and why they are far better than their male counterparts. Another scene that shows how fantastic Diana was when the soldiers are fighting in No Man’s Land. The soldiers are in the trenches and are ordered to attack. Seeing the pain and destruction, she rolls out as her cloak falls, and she whips ass. Even the film’s climax was spot on as it shows a hero accepting who she is and unleashing her power upon the world for good rather than evil.
Let’s take a second to talk about the cinematography of this film. Damn, it was good. First, the whole island scene was beautiful to look at. I like the way the film presented the Amazons. When we think of the Amazons, some shows make them tall women. In this film, they are presented as strong ass soldiers who train every day and make sure sisterhood is high on their list. It is sad that modern weaponry makes them look a little weak, but the way they seem to matrix across the air is fun to watch. Another scene that was the No Man’s Land scene. That scene was mind-blowing as it was slow in effect but memorable to the mind. Watching the bullets come at Diana and deflecting them with her bracelet was awesome.
What can I say about Gal Gadot as Diana Prince/Wonder Woman? She was the PERFECT choice for this role, and I highly enjoyed her running around and showing the strength of this character. She showed Diana to be a compassionate, caring person but also naïve to the world as she was isolated. She also showed a woman who was strong but also had doubts about who she was and her capabilities, even though she could whip major ass. What I liked was how opinionated Diana was. She didn’t play by men’s rules, rolled up anywhere, and told it like it was. She was oblivious to gender stereotypes when she came to the real world. Gadot is a beautiful actress who will forever be my Wonder Woman. I hope she can continue in this role.
If you watch any of the DC Extended Universe movies, make sure you watch this one. It is the best out of all the films. You will highly enjoy the performance of Gal Gadot and love the story made for the character. Wonder Woman will always be a top superhero for all, and I am happy that she got her own film. Give respect to the Princess.
