Aquaman proves to be a visually wonderful movie and, though lacking in real substance, it is a fun time.

The most impressive part of the entire film is the sheer visuals. James Wan manages to create the most stunning underwater city: the best CGI in the movie works are on the display here. Part of it is the fun and imagination – jellyfish acting as lights, humpback whales serving as lorries in transporting goods. The film also works in its depth, it takes the time to differentiate between the different kingdoms and their styles – the old classical structures decayed away contested with the futuristic sci fi. This movie truly is a visual masterpiece and a standout in the busy market of comic book movies.

There are plenty of action scenes, and they range from decent to good. Wan also seems very fond of tracking shots in which the camera spins around the fight, making it somewhat dizzying. But for the amount of action included, the majority seems to work well. That is shown in the large scale battles best, with armies of Atlantians – becoming more mythic and looking like a classic comic.

Jason Momoa does indeed shine as Aquaman himself and carries the movie with his charisma. The unconventionally ‘uncaring’ hero introduced in Justice League is fleshed out better in his own standalone film. He is much more likeable and engaging, and able to sell a movie in which he is indeed talking to fish.

Amber Heard returns as Mera (though this whole movie does reboot all of Atlantis, as seen in Justice League). She is likeable, beautiful and powerful – and able to bring some nice comedic moments. Having said that, the relationship between Mera and Aquaman is strenuous – either the problem lies with their chemistry or just poor writing.

Indeed, there are several noticeable problems in the movie that do hold it back. The writing does occasionally dip into being simply being bad. Nicole Kidman (playing Aquaman’s mother Atlanta) bears the brunt of such bad writing – despite the fact that the actress could bring a lot more to the character. The poor writing is also mainly in the first few minutes of the movie, and is noticeably distinguished in its poor quality when compared to the rest of the movie.

The villains in this movie can also be said to be adequate. Ocean Master (Patrick Wilson) was an overall decent villain;. he has a great design, and what limited material Wilson has, he did act very well. One of the issues is that Ocean Master shares screen time with secondary villain Black Manta. Manta serves as a ‘henchman’ figure, and is given only a poor attempt at giving him depth and a drive. These moments were also not written well and fell into more corny territory. The time they gave to him prove inconsequential in this film, and took time away from Ocean Master, who had far greater relevance. It seems that Aquaman threw all its eggs into one basket and pushed all Aquaman’s biggest villains into a single movie.

Verdict:

Aquaman is best enjoyed if you don’t think to hard about it and enjoy it in the spectacle. It’s certainly not perfect, with the most important characters not having fully realised arcs in a movie that essentially throws everything into it. However, with likeable characters and some of the best CGI of the year – Aquaman is worthwhile watching and proves to be a highly enjoyable and visually wonderful movie, despite lacking much substance, but is an overall great time.

Rating:

7/10