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Though Wonder Woman has been published since 1941, her Rogues Gallery isn't as robust as her male counterparts'. Is her #2 archenemy enough to match or surpass the stakes of the first film? Not quite. Wonder Woman 1984 does not have the same impact or gravity as the original. On the upside, the villains are more complex and memorable and director Patty Jenkins’ take on the 80s does offer some nice material to chew on.

In 1984, Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) befriends Barbara Ann Minerva (Kristen Wiig) while studying the “Dreamstone” - an ancient artifact that supposedly grants wishes. After it brings Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) back to life and fulfills Barbara's deepest desires, the stone is taken by businessman Maxwell “Max Lord” Lorenzano (Pedro Pascal).

The first movie was about Diana learning of mankind's potential for both good and evil. This time, the themes are desires, loss, and acceptance. Diana is still heartbroken over Steve Trevor. You don’t blame her; Pine and Gadot were so good together you crave to see them as a couple again. Barbara idolizes Diana and wants the same kind of beauty and strength she has. After seeing her get harassed and then attacked by a drunkard while walking home, you understand her envy. There's even a message there about the fact that once her transformation begins she's still taken advantage of by a rich man and that both she and Diana are constantly receiving unwanted advances by would-be suitors. It isn't the focus of the film but does circle back to the idea of "be careful what you wish for".

If there's one characteristic that defined the '80s, it's greed and indulgence. Lord's desires are like all of humanity's at the time; understandable at first but ultimately, unsustainable. His quest for more - more oil, more power, more resources, more respect - risks a global conflict. The "wishes with a toll" thing has been done before but it's given some new tricks in this story. I particularly like the way Max Lord finds ways to circumvent the "one wish per person" rule.

A few aspects of this sequel make it a lesser film than its predecessor. Last time, we had a coming-of-age story. Now, Diana’s world-savvy. Steve is the one catching up to her - a nice reversal - but the plot has her powers diminished. Our heroine isn't the same powerhouse we saw traverse No Man's Land. Combined with the 151-minute running time and this Wonder Woman lacks a bit of punch.

Having just rewatched Wonder Woman, I was hoping this sequel would deliver the same level of emotion. Unfortunately, it doesn't. Though this makes it a slight disappointment, the conclusion is more emotional and truer, the romance between Diana and Steve is just as good as before, and the villains are better fleshed out (an upside of that length). If you want to see more of the character, you'll be glad to see Wonder Woman 1984. When you do, stay tuned for an extra scene mid-way through the credits. (December 27, 2020)

2020 certainly threw most everyone for a loop, but for a handful of pre-scheduled blockbuster releases, the whole landscape was thrown into disarray, and the outlook was uncertain in regards to what the future held.  Wonder Woman 1984 found itself in the unique position of not only being delayed to an unknown date, but maintaining a high profile due to a healthy number of adjacent promotional campaigns.  As the year wrapped, however, Warner Brothers Studios made the shocking announcement that all 2021 films would be released on HBOMax concurrently with their theatrical releases for a period of 30 days, and the first up to bat was Wonder Woman 1984 on Christmas Day.

In the year 1984, 66 years removed from her World War I adventures, Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) spends her days working for the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C. as a renowned anthropologist (while continuing to fight crime as Wonder Woman in secrecy).  A chance encounter with new Smithsonian employee Barbara Minerva (Kristen Wiig), who is studying the recovered artifacts from a burglary that Wonder Woman stopped, leads to both women encountering a strange stone (later identified as the Monkey’s Paw) that, unbeknownst to them, grants them both a wish.  Meanwhile, celebrity and failing philanthropist Maxwell Lord (Pedro Pascal), who is fully aware of the stone’s powers, steals the Monkey’s Paw and makes the wish to transfer its powers to himself, turning him into a living wish stone in hopes of leveraging power from others to boost his profile.  Like any situation of exchange, however, bad outcomes stem from the wishes, leading Wonder Woman towards an inevitable showdown with Maxwell Lord in hopes of restoring balance.  

Wonder Woman 1984 isn’t going to save the DCEU, but it does take all of the best elements from its predecessor while making some tonal and pacing adjustments congruent to the new era the film is placed in.  With no need to build the backstory or the love story, Wonder Woman 1984 is allowed to introduce its key elements swiftly and put them into motion in ways that gives the first act a deceptively strong showing.  Once Maxwell Lord really sets the narrative into action, Diana’s dilemma kicks into gear with similar pace, mirroring our main protagonist and antagonist journeys while leaving room in the middle for Cheetah to emerge as a threat.  The overall shrinking of Diana’s world mixed with this volatile and multilayered character development is a benefit to Wonder Woman 1984, as it gives it a unique feel from Wonder Woman’s other appearances in the DCEU.  The only real misstep is the shoehorning in of the Steve Trevor romance… while very important in Diana’s development of her character and understanding of the people she protects, it would have been nice to introduce a newer, more organic romantic element, or possibly none at all.

The film is also very aware of what it is, setting aside the loftier view of the world presented in the latest Superman and Batman films and presenting a much more direct view on the capitalist and materialist practices of the 1980s.  Maxwell Lord and his gifted power fly in the face of the truth, character and honesty that has built and shaped Diana, and despite a minimal use of Themyscira in Wonder Woman 1984, the parable presented runs strong enough to drive the arc to a well-earned landing spot.  By the time the film does dwell a little bit on the preachy side (while pulling the double duty of framing the antagonist’s past), the viewer has either completely bought in or checked out, depending on how analytical they chose to be for their viewing.  It seems as if the Wonder Woman franchise is doing an extraordinary amount of the heavy lifting for the DCEU, which can put the films under a bit of a harsher microscope than they likely deserve, but Patty Jenkins is doing a fantastic job making films that hold up under the scrutiny of those looking to pick films apart.

For as dark and gritty as the previous Wonder Woman movie was, this one is popping with the life and optimism that the 1980s and its promise for the future held, utilizing bright primary colors, plenty of gold tones lots of visually stunning architecture.  The cinematography and choreography mixture really brings Gal Gadot’s action scenes to life, and the special effects used on the lasso really pop on this outing.  Thankfully, the film did not lean on a corny stream of 1980’s pop hits, opting instead for a Hans Zimmer score that stands up the character of the film’s titular character.  A few old school practical effects were even used to great impact, key among them being the slight breeze that accompanied wishes granted by the Monkey’s Paw.  While Diana’s ability to fly did come from out of left field, the flying effects were some of my favorite seen on screen since Chronicle.

Gal Gadot feels a bit more comfortable in the Diana skin, using a calm and collected assured nature rather than a headstrong drive towards a need for proof.  Kristen Wiig is delightful as always, bringing a grounded sense of comedy to her initially awkward performance before embracing the remaining two stages of her character evolution with great aplomb.  Pedro Pascal puts aside cool and overbearing pride to portray a bubbling maniacal sense of someone struck blind by the madness of power.  Chris Pine did not necessarily break any new ground, which was not really any fault of his own, seeing as his character did feel a bit forced into the narrative for a bit of fan service.  Robin Wright and Connie Nielsen return for brief appearances to reprise their roles, while supporting appearances by Doutzen Kroes, Amr Waked, Kristoffer Polaha, Natasha Rothwell, Gabriella Wilde, Lucian Perez, Stuart Milligan and one special but familiar cameo, round out the affair.