Colourful extravaganza

Rating: Null/10 (28 January 2019)

In my mind Aquaman has the honour of being the second honestly good DC film after Wonder Woman. And once again it's due to it straying away from the usual DC/Zack Snyder/Christopher Nolan clichÃ©s. This is a colourful action blast full of good humour, interesting locations, bright lights, majestic set pieces and enough eye candy to paint a house with. True, the story is still bit of a mess, it's trying to do perhaps a thing or two too many at once, but it's more than entertaining enough to rise above such petty concerns.
Two great things to single out. First is the direction of James Wan. Mainly a horror director before this, he brings with him this great energy and passion. This feels like an epic. Like a great superhero film should. He also has a really good style when it comes to action scenes. Like in Wonder Woman, all the action scenes in this film are easy to follow, mostly shot at wide view, with very little shaky cam employed. And surprise of surprises, it makes it really entertaining to watch when you can actually see what's going on and can appreciate all the effort that went into making it.
The second great thing is Jason Momoa as Arthur Curry, the eponymous Aquaman. Amazing physical presence, very good with action scenes and practically made for the role, despite his looks being rather far from the original character. And he has some serious comedic chops, which this character sorely needs. Because, let's face it, a superhero who talks to fish is not the easiest sell in the world, but Momoa makes it work.
Granted, the villain side of things is still a bit lacking, the story is messy, some of the side characters are rather weak, and there are more than a few hiccups scattered throughout.
But, the film still delivers. I walked out of the theater with a big smile on my face and I'd more than gladly see the film again. And that's the most important thing.