Origin story benefits from a WW1 backdrop

Rating: 6/10 (21 December 2017)

Another day, another superhero origin story, this time from the DC Comic stable. What I appreciated about WONDER WOMAN is the WW1 era setting, which gives for a fresher and more unusual tone than the typical contemporary superhero action. The little-known Israeli actress Gal Gadot acquits herself well as the fiery Amazon who goes gunning for the god Aries during the First World War, taking her anger out on some dastardly Germans at the same time. Chris Pine plays her spy ally and eventual love interest, but there's little time for character work in a film dominated by CGI-assisted action. Generally the fights are well staged, but I thought the 'superpower' FX were quite ludicrous - the scenes of Gadot performing superhuman leaps and the like look crazily bad. However, the amount of explosive mayhem taking place on screen is quite impressive, and the slug-fest climax works for once. The solid supporting cast includes another baddie turn for the reliably hissable Danny Huston, alongside the stuffy David Thewlis, the funny Ewen Bremner, and the unrecognisable Lucy Davis, best known for her role as Dawn in THE OFFICE all those years ago.