Wonder Woman (Review)
Michael Scott
Wonder Woman isn't terrible. It's fine, almost good in fact. It has a few issues, but so do most movies, but it has a very glaring one, one that you can't ignore. And that issue is one of deja-vu. Better than Man of Steel and Suicide Squad, but it really was only better because it was a gender-swapped remake of Captain American: The First Avenger.
Dr. Poison (2017)
these guys... (2017)
Hydrogen Mustard Gas (2017)
Sensible love interest man (2017)
Red Skull (2011)
The Howling Commandos (2011)
Hydra Weaponry (2011)
Sensible love interest woman (2011)
From the scarred up villain, the experimental bombs, the superiors who are telling the villain the war is over, the giant suped-up plane at the end and the sacrifice to stop it.
I couldn't find the giant bi-plane from Wonder Woman, but IT EXISTS.
Plus the WWI howling commandos and the introduction then removal of a love interest to give our heroine someone to weep over (just like Agent Carter) It even does the whole "Superhero out of place" thing. Steve Rogers is from the 40s, and Diana is from antiquity.
Wonder Woman is to Captain America what Guacamelee (2013) is to Super Metroid (1994). And by that I mean, what is the measure of a knock-off?
Comic book source material is a sticky octopus I generally avoid, and DC and Marvel have had a history of ripping each other off, but there's no shortage of original stories despite what some old adages may say. The fact that the writers of Wonder Woman appeared to have done a Mad-libs style find and replace on the Captain America script to write their film makes me frown.
It's not that it's of poor quality, it's just nearly identical to a movie I saw 6 years ago.
If something is a really good imitation of a 7/10 work, is the imitation a 7/10? Does the fact that it's unoriginal count against it? I fall down on the "yes" side of the fence. It ain't bad, but it sure as hell ain't original. And it simply continues the DC pattern of mimicking Marvel at every turn while they play catch up. However, this film is the closest they've gotten to beating Marvel at their own game.
I know many women who felt abandoned by the male-dominated world of superhero fiction were happy to see a female lead who happens to kick ass and on that end I think it succeeded. But I know if I was a lady I'd want my hero to be more than just a gender swap.
OH and both movies had catchy music.
Real nice ;)