With the success of the first Wonder Woman film, DC and Warner Bros. were ready for another taste of success in a Sequel, where we went through the trenches and bombed European Villages of World War I, now we’re being moved into the Regan Era of the 1980s.
Wonder Woman 84 finds Diana (Gal Gadot) in a new place, a new era that is vastly different from the one she was first introduced to; Diana still fighting to the day keeping the world of man safe while reeling from the loss of her first love, Steve Trevor. It also introduces two of Wonder Woman’s infamous rogues, Barbara Minerva/ Cheetah (Kristen Wiig) and Maxwell Lord (Pedro Pascal).
“Diana Prince lives quietly among mortals in the vibrant, sleek 1980s — an era of excess driven by the pursuit of having it all. Though she’s come into her full powers, she maintains a low profile by curating ancient artifacts and only performing heroic acts incognito. But soon, Diana will have to muster all of her strength, wisdom, and courage as she finds herself squaring off against Maxwell Lord and the Cheetah, a villainess who possesses superhuman strength and agility.“
One of the main objectives of the film was to give movie-goers (Stream-Goers in this case due to the ongoing COVID Epidemic,) something for viewers to take their stresses, worries away even if it is for two hours and thirty-five minutes, it succeeds in that aspect. Patty Jenkins gives us a heroine who is an Amazon and a Warrior, but she also has the weight of the world on her shoulders; she was given a mission, to try to bring peace to the outside world. This serves as part two of her origin story, also adding onto the Wonder Woman Lore, but it also has quite a list of problems too, for example, the duel for screentime between the villains.
Barbara Minerva should have been given more screentime, while Maxwell Lord is one of Diana’s greatest enemies, it was the buildup for Minerva’s transformation into the Apex Predator, Cheetah that was underwhelming. Superhero films have had this problem Scientists who were “Nerdy” looked down upon by their superiors, and begin nurturing a crazy obsession for the titular heroes in some way, Sony’s Amazing Spider-Man 2 had this problem with Jamie Foxx’s Electro, DC Comics, and Warner Bros had this problem back to back with Jim Carrey’s Edward Nygma in Batman Forever, and of course Uma Thurman’s Pamela Isley in Batman & Robin. The desperate need for attention and desire is an overused trope, also it is wasted on Maxwell Lord, a failed businessman who turned out to be a horrible father with a backstory that didn’t hit home as they thought it would because it was introduced near the end of the film (after a bloated CGI battle between Cheetah and Wonder Woman.)
The movie isn’t entirely bad, it felt like it was a victim of plotholes and what you would expect for sequels of Box Office hit films. It is a good action flick with great actors and actresses but honestly felt that it missed potential with how well Kristen Wiig performed as Barbara Minerva, and the chemistry she and Gal Gadot had in their scenes. Chris Pine also was one of the best things in the film, trying to adjust to the 80s, he got a taste of what Diana felt when she was brought into the world of man in World War I.
Final Grade:
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The DC Comics Wave 2 Wonder Woman 1984 Gold Costume 7-Inch Action Figure based her look in the Wonder Woman 1984 movie. Wonder Woman accessories include detachable wings, flight stand, and base. Included collectible art card with Wonder Woman 1984 artwork on the front, and character biography on the back.In her Golden Armor, Wonder Woman is the ultimate embodiment of power, grace, wisdom and wonder. Wonder Woman is an Amazon warrior whose strength defies challenge and whose courage shines.
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