DC Pulls a Marvel!

Rating: 8/10 (3 January 2019)

My issue with DC movies since Christopher Nolan's Batman Series has been that they've tried too hard to repackage the dramatic seriousness of those films, and have come up short multiple times. With Aquaman, DC has finally done a great job imitating the tried and true recipe for quality Marvel films... not taking itself too seriously.
Aquaman isn't supposed to be an overly dramatized superhero. He represents what Batman and Superman don't; a sense of humanity in an otherwise sideways world. With witty humor and a star who you'd be stupid to not want to grab a beer with, Aquaman hits in all the right notes.
James Wan brought to life a completely new vibe for DC films. From the masterful cinematography to the outstanding use of vibrant colors to bring to life the deep sea, nothing feels recycled or over the top.
If I had any drawback at all, it would be that the film kind of feels like a typical superhero movie that's hard to connect with on a personal level. It didn't do an incredible job of demanding your buy-in and emotional connectivity with the characters, and the final battle takes place in a relatively meaningless location, leaving a lot to be desired here.
Overall, the film was brilliantly well done and should quickly become a standard bearer for how DC films of the future should be made!