Welcome back to Rhode
Island Movie Corner’s annual End-of-the-Year list where I’m counting down my
Top 10 Favorite Films of 2020. Because of the negative impact of the COVID-19
pandemic on the film industry, which resulted in numerous films either getting pushed
back to a later date or moved over to streaming services, I was forced to do a
more traditional Top 10 for this year’s list rather than my usual Top 12. Ergo,
whereas the second parts of my annual End-of-The-Year posts usually focus on films
#9-7, today’s post will instead be covering the second half of this year’s list
as we go through my Top 5 of 2020. Also, for those who didn’t check out
yesterday’s post, which covered films #10-5 and my one Honorable Mention, just
head to the link that’s provided below. And so, without further ado, let’s
return to the list…
Seeing how Part 1
ended with a Pixar film, it’s only fitting that Part 2… starts with a Pixar
film. And yes, as you’ll soon find out, my favorite Pixar film from 2020 wasn’t
the more critically acclaimed Soul. Instead, it was a film that will
hopefully manage to overcome the terrible luck that it ended up having upon its
release.
5. ONWARD
As I’ve stated plenty of times at this point, a whole bunch
of films were royally screwed over by COVID-19, and I think it’s safe to say
that one of the films that was affected by it the most was Pixar’s first 2020
release, Onward. Simply put, Onward hit theaters here in the U.S.
on March 6th… barely a week before the pandemic started forcing
theaters to shut down indefinitely. Thus, it only managed to gross around
$141.9 million worldwide which, under normal circumstances, would’ve made it a
full-blown commercial flop since it had a budget that was around $175-200
million. After that, it was promptly moved to On-Demand services on March 20th,
just two weeks after it hit theaters, which then led to its debut on Disney+ on
April 3rd. However, it goes without saying that Onward’s
struggles at the box-office weren’t really its fault; instead, it was just the
unfortunate victim of some utterly bad timing. That said, though, there is a
part of me that wonders how the film would’ve fared if it wasn’t hindered by
the pandemic given its overall reception. Now to be clear, Onward wasn’t
critically panned or anything; at the time that I’m writing this, it boasts an
excellent 88% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. However, if you look at the site’s
consensus statement on the film, one of the main points that it makes is that it
wasn’t seen as one of Pixar’s best. Yes, this is yet another instance of what
I’ve been saying numerous times over the years in that the expectations for
Pixar films have become so monumental that any film of theirs that isn’t
considered an outright masterpiece ends up being overlooked completely. And if
you ask me, that’s a damn shame because I’d argue that Onward is another
Pixar classic.
Onward takes place in a fantasy world occupied by
classic mythical creatures; elves, centaurs, manticores, etc. The film’s
opening sequence establishes that while this land was originally full of magic,
a combination of technological advancements and the fact that magic proved to
be a hard thing to master resulted in it becoming nearly obsolete, thus
resulting in the fantasy equivalent of modern-day suburbia. And right off the
bat, I can sort of see why some felt that the film didn’t really do much with the
process of fully exploring its fantastical setting. Instead, it arguably plays
second fiddle to the main plot to the point where some have argued that you
could’ve told this same story without the fantasy elements and there
wouldn’t have been much of a difference. Still, for what it’s worth, the world
that this film creates is a genuinely fun one to explore even if it’s mostly
just the traditional visual gag of a real-life object being given a fantasy
overlay. Plus, due to the nature of the quest that the main protagonists go on,
the film ends up featuring a lot of affectionate tributes to role-playing games,
including, of course, Dungeons and Dragons. Now, full disclosure, I have
ZERO experience with Dungeons and Dragons in any shape or
form. But for those who are far more familiar with the iconic RPG than I am, I
bet that you’ll love all the references that this film makes to it, including a
climactic encounter with the most terrifying threat of them all… the Gelatinous
Cube!
But above all, Onward is full of that great emotional
poignancy that we’ve come to expect from Pixar films, which makes perfect sense
since the main plot was directly inspired by the real-life experiences of its
director, Dan Scanlon. Onward follows a pair of elf brothers, Ian and
Barley Lightfoot, who learn that, before he passed away, their dad had managed
to come across the means to cast a ‘visitation spell’ that would allow them to
resurrect him for a whole day. And since their dad died before Ian was born,
this would allow him the chance to finally meet the father that he never got to
know. As it turns out, Ian proves to be one of the rare folks who can properly
wield magic; however, his initial attempt at casting the spell isn’t exactly
successful as it only manages to bring back their dad’s lower half (which, to
be fair, is a hilarious visual). And so, with only 24 hours before the spell
wears off, Ian and Barley set out on a quest to find the Phoenix Gem that they
need to properly complete it. Naturally, this journey helps the two somewhat
distant brothers bond more, which results in a pivotal moment where Barley
admits something that he never mentioned before. Earlier, Barley had told Ian
that the three memories that he has of their dad were that he had a scratchy
beard, a goofy laugh and that he used to play the drums on his feet. However,
in the middle of their journey, Barley reveals that there’s a fourth memory
that he has of their dad… and, unfortunately, it’s not a happy one. He reveals
that when he was going to see their dad right before he passed away, the sight
of him on life-support and in a state where he was far beyond recognition scared
him so much that he couldn’t go in. And so, from that moment on, he vowed that
he would never be scared ever again.
With that in mind, Onward’s ending is perfectly
executed as the brothers do manage to complete the spell and bring their dad
back to life… however, Barley ends up being the only one to be with him before
the spell wears off while Ian protects the two of them from their final foe, a dragon
made from the building materials of Ian’s high school. Despite Ian’s desire to
officially meet his dad, he ultimately lets Barley have that experience since
he recognizes that Barley was the one who had any sort of connection with him, thus
letting him finally have the closure that he couldn’t get when their dad died. It’s
a bittersweet ending, for sure, but at the same time, Ian realizes that he had
already accomplished all the things that he wanted to do with his dad, such as playing
catch, having a heart-to-heart conversation with him, and sharing his life with
him… he accomplished all that with Barley. Simply put, Ian and Barley are
another outstanding ‘Pixar lead duo’, especially thanks to the outstanding
performances from Tom Holland and Chris Pratt, respectively. Plus, as I pointed
out in my original review for this film, it’s kind of funny to note how Ian and
Barley are basically the animated equivalent of Holland and Pratt’s roles in
the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Like Peter Parker AKA Spider-Man, Ian is the good-natured
albeit socially awkward teenager with something to prove whereas Barley is a
lovable rogue who, despite being regarded as a ‘screw-up’ by other folks, is simply
haunted by the fact that he was unable to say goodbye to a loved one when they
were on their deathbed, just like Star-Lord.
In conclusion, I’d just like to reiterate that me preferring
Onward over Soul when it comes to Pixar’s 2020 slate is by no
means meant to be a dig against the latter. As I noted in the last part, Soul
is yet another beautifully poignant entry in Pixar’s prestigious
filmography that will surely be the major front-runner for Best Animated
Feature during this year’s awards season. At the end of the day, this all comes
down to personal preference, and with that in mind, I’d argue that Onward manages
to deliver a story that’s just as emotionally poignant as Soul’s, albeit
through obviously different narratives. Whereas Soul delivered a wholly
uplifting story that reminded us all of the joys of life, Onward produces
a powerful story of brotherhood while simultaneously mixing it with a fun
fantasy adventure that feels like it came straight from the iconic role-playing
games that its premise was largely inspired by. In short, I genuinely hope that
this film manages to gain more of an audience in the years to come after it was
tragically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. To go back to what I mentioned in
the intro about the lofty expectations that the internet has towards Pixar
films, I’m not one of those folks who strictly expects every Pixar film to be
a, to quote my friend Kyle Ostrum, “15/10 masterpiece”. We’ve seen this before
with underrated films like Brave, Monsters University, and The
Good Dinosaur, and in a lot of ways, that’s exactly what happened this year
with Onward. I mean, for the record, even I’ll admit that I don’t
necessarily consider this to be the ‘best’ Pixar film ever made, but even if
it’s not a ‘thought-provoking masterpiece’ like, say, Soul was, I don’t really
see how that’s a bad thing.
Given all the… well,
awful things that happened in 2020, I found myself leaning heavily towards
crowd-pleaser films this past year which, for long-time visitors of this site,
probably doesn’t sound that surprising since those are usually the films that I
tend to watch. And if you ask me, my Number 4 pick of 2020 is a near-perfect
representation of that mindset.
4. THE PROM
In my original review for this film, I said that it was sort
of like the modern-day equivalent of the 1984 cult classic Footloose. I
mean, if anything, both films do have generally similar plots in which the
folks of a conservative-minded town enact something that negatively affects
their teenage community. In the case of Footloose, we had a town that
banned public dancing in the wake of a tragic accident that, in the eyes of the
town council, was directly caused by reckless partying. As for The Prom,
we have a story that was largely inspired by a real-life incident in Itawamba
County, Mississippi when student Constance McMillen was banned from attending
her high-school prom in 2010 because she was planning on going with her
girlfriend. And in both films, these actions are then promptly challenged by
outsiders to the community who slowly but surely manage to convince the
townsfolk to start changing their ways. But whereas Footloose centered
on a single high-school student, The Prom follows a quartet of
self-absorbed Broadway stars who are mainly there in the hopes that it would
give them some good PR. As such, it goes without saying that a lot of the
humorous beats in this film poke fun at those celebrities who try a bit too
hard to contribute to social causes. At the same time, though, the fact that
these four Broadway stars eventually manage to overcome their egos and
genuinely do whatever they can to give main protagonist Emma Nolan the prom
that she deserves is a nice example of how there are still plenty of instances
where celebrities’ charitable actions are legitimate.
Really, above all, The Prom is simply a well-meaning
story that promotes love and acceptance, and when put under the direction of TV
producing powerhouse Ryan Murphy, who’s been a major champion for greater diversity
within the industry, you get an incredibly uplifting film adaptation of this
hit Broadway show. Now, admittedly, I have not seen The Prom in its
original form, so I can’t say anything about how effective this film was at
adapting its source material. The most that I’ve heard from Broadway fans is
that they felt that the humor flowed better in the show than it did in the film,
but overall, it seems like the film was as faithful of an adaptation as it
could possibly be. It also helps that The Prom sports an excellent
soundtrack that, to reiterate a point that I find myself making a lot when it
comes to musicals, is a great mix of catchy showstoppers and powerful emotional
melodies. In the case of the former, you’ve got tunes like the big ensemble
track ‘Tonight Belongs to You’ that closes out Act 1 in the show and the grand
finale ‘It’s Time to Dance’ when the gang has successfully managed to hold an
all-inclusive prom. And as for the latter, you’ve got ‘Dance with You’, the
first duet between Emma and her girlfriend Alyssa, and Emma’s big ‘solo’ (even
though she’s technically joined by the viewers of her video for the climax)
‘Unruly Heart’. The Prom also boasts an excellent cast headlined by both
big-name stars like Meryl Streep and Nicole Kidman and reliable supporting
players like Keegan-Michael Key and Andrew Rannells. Ultimately, though, the
biggest star of the show is newcomer Jo Ellen Pellman as Emma, who’s very much
the heart of the film.
However, there is one major elephant in the room when it
comes to the film’s cast, and that is James Corden in the lead role of Broadway
star Barry Glickman. Just like Emma, Barry is gay and has faced similar
struggles when it comes to being accepted for who he is, especially from his
parents. However, James Corden is not a gay man, and thus, received a
lot of criticism for his performance, with many noting it to be a highly
stereotypical portrayal of gay men. Now, like I said in my original review for
this film, while I’m not ‘defending’ Corden’s casting in the role (it probably
would’ve been more fitting for him to switch roles with Andrew Rannells, even
if Rannells is an undeniable standout as Julliard alum Trent Oliver), I don’t
think that he completely derails the film, either. Now, granted, there’s a very
reasonable counterargument to that since Barry is arguably the most important
character in the story after Emma and the major addition that the film makes to
the plot is that it expands upon Barry’s strained relationship with his
parents, culminating in a moment of reconciliation with his mother. However, at
the end of the day, the rest of the film’s ensemble makes up for any
shortcomings that stem from Corden, and like I said before, I’d argue that the
film’s heart is ultimately in the right place. Sure, it may not have been
entirely successful in its efforts to promote its universal themes, but
overall, this utterly infectious musical is the very definition of an
all-around crowd-pleaser.
At Number 3, we go
from one musical to another with a film that isn’t a direct adaptation like The
Prom was but did allow its viewers the rare opportunity of witnessing one
of the most iconic Broadway musicals of all-time in the way that it was
originally presented.
3. HAMILTON
Okay, so admittedly, I might be ‘cheating’ a bit when it
comes to putting this film on the list given the nature of its production.
Instead of being a direct adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s rap musical Hamilton,
this was a filmed production of the show that was produced in 2016 before the
departure of several members of the Original Broadway Cast. It was originally
set for a theatrical release this year, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic
which, as you might have guessed, thoroughly ravished the theater industry just
as much as the film industry, it was decided to make it a Disney+ original and was
released a year early during the Fourth of July weekend. With that in mind (also,
let’s be real, most of the films on this list weren’t seen in theaters,
anyway…), I think that it’s perfectly okay to include this on the list, and I
wouldn’t be surprised if other folks have it on their ‘Best of the Year’ lists
as well. Plus… I mean, come on, it’s Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s
masterpiece of a production that gives audiences an utterly unique spin on
American history as presented from a modern perspective. Every song on the
soundtrack is impeccably produced and the Original Broadway Cast is so
perfectly assembled that those who are only in it for a few songs (e.g.
Jonathan Groff as the hilariously over-the-top King George III) are just as
phenomenal as the main leads; Miranda, Phillipa Soo, Christopher Jackson, Tony
Award winners Leslie Odom Jr., Renee Elise Goldsberry, and Daveed Diggs, etc.
Simply put, this film served as a perfect reminder as to why
Hamilton has become a staple of our current pop cultural zeitgeist. And
thanks to its release, it allowed Hamilton fans the opportunity to do
something that most of them had probably never done before… seeing the actual
show. Yes, Hamilton has been somewhat notorious for being a show that is
almost impossible to get tickets to; and so, because of this, I think it’s safe
to say that before 2020, the most experience that Hamilton fans have
ever had with the show itself was simply listening to the soundtrack. Now, for
the record, that doesn’t mean that this film is meant to be the ‘best’ way to
experience the show; if anything, it sort of reiterates why filmed productions
of hit Broadway shows have been a rarity, for the most part, since there’s a
good chance that they could hurt the show itself from a
financial perspective. But in this instance, I think that most would agree that
this release came at just at the right time since, at the time that I’m writing
this, Broadway shows are, unfortunately, not set to reopen until June (and
really, given the continuing devastation of COVID-19, that closure could go on
even longer for all we know…). Thus, one could argue that, at the end of the
day, the best thing that this film managed to accomplish is that it reminded
audiences of the undeniable beauty of the world of theater by way of what is
arguably the first show that comes to mind for most people when they think of
Broadway shows.
As we near the end of
the list, I should probably preface things by noting that these last two films
have been some of the more controversial releases of 2020. Case in point, at
Number 2, we have a film that has attracted a whole bunch of controversies that
have ranged from politically charged scandals to the method in which it was
initially released.
2. MULAN
Like all the other live-action Disney remakes that have come
before it, the live-action remake of Mulan has faced a ton of scrutiny,
but in this instance, it wasn’t necessarily due to the whole ‘Why remake a
beloved animated feature?’ argument that’s always the first thing that’s
brought up about these films. That’s not to say that it wasn’t a thing this
time around, but in this instance, Mulan faced greater backlash over,
ironically, the elements from its 1998 animated counterpart that it didn’t
include. First, there was the fact that the film wasn’t going to do a
live-action incarnation of Mulan’s love interest, Captain Li Shang, as the
filmmakers felt that this would’ve been an awkward development in the age of
the #MeToo movement. And then, it was reported that the film was also going to
exclude Mulan’s main sidekick, Mushu the dragon. While Mushu may be an
incredibly popular member of Disney’s long line of animated sidekicks, he
wasn’t as big of a hit with Chinese audiences, who felt that it was a disrespectful
portrayal of a creature that their culture holds in high regard. However, the
biggest change that attracted a lot of blowback was the reveal that the film
wasn’t going to feature any of the original film’s songs by Matthew Wilder and
David Zippel. Sure, Christina Aguilera produced a new version of ‘Reflection’
and said song was also covered in Mandarin by lead actress Yifei Liu, but those
only appeared in the credits. Aside from that, none of the songs from the
animated film were included in the remake. No ‘Honor to Us All’, no ‘A Girl
Worth Fighting For’, and yes, no ‘I’ll Make a Man Out of You’, a song that is
easily one of the most popular Disney tunes of the past few decades. Instead,
these songs were only referenced via lines of dialogue lifted straight from the
lyrics and musical hints that were peppered throughout Harry Gregson-Williams’
score.
But if that wasn’t enough, Mulan has also been
subject to some controversies of a political variety. In fact, there’s so much
to unpack here that this film could literally spawn its own thesis on all the
scandals that it’s faced. There’s a thing about lead actress Yifei Liu showing
her support for Hong Kong police right in the middle of the recent Hong Kong
protests. There’s a thing about parts of the film being shot in Xinjiang, a
region in China that’s faced heavy scrutiny for its internment camps, which was
only made worse by the fact that parts of Xinjiang’s government were listed in
the credits. And there’s a thing about the fact that while this female-led
story was directed by a female director, Niki Caro, she and some other key
members of the production crew were not of Chinese descent. In other words,
this film has attracted so much negative publicity that it even makes me nervous
about placing it at this high a spot on the list because, for all I know,
someone out there may end up using the fact that I liked this film against me
somehow. However, given what I stated in the intro to this year’s list about my
decision to not delve into too much detail about any of these films’ political
controversies, let’s just say that this film is the prime example of why I ultimately
went that route. As always, this doesn’t mean that I’m ignoring any of the
issues that have arisen in the wake of this film’s release. Instead, it’s just
a reminder that I’m not even remotely qualified when it comes to talking about
politics.
So, with that out of the way and given the fact that I’ve
liked all the other recent live-action remakes of Disney’s animated classics,
it goes without saying that I loved this new take on Mulan. Despite
being Niki Caro’s first major foray into the action genre, she handles all the
action sequences incredibly well and the film, in general, boasts excellent
cinematography. And as for all the parts from the animated film that the remake
didn’t include such as Mushu and the songs… personally, I don’t think that this
was that big of a loss. If anything, I understand why they were taken out as
the filmmakers wanted to present a more grounded take on The Ballad of Hua
Mulan. Now, granted, I’m well aware that this ‘grounded’ approach has been a
recurring issue that folks have had with some of these recent remakes since
they feel that it takes away many of the most memorable parts of these beloved stories
(e.g. Jon Favreau’s The Lion King was dinged a lot for this very reason).
That said, though, I also recognize that not all the elements of Disney’s
animated classics translate well to live-action, and this remake of Mulan is
arguably one of the best examples of how these remakes can work around that. For
example, it may lack the original’s songs, but it doesn’t outright ignore them
either thanks to the neat little nods to them that are peppered throughout the score.
And while this Mulan may not have a wisecracking ancestral guardian to help her
on her journey, it means that she’s able to play a greater role in her efforts
to prove herself to her commanders and fellow soldiers, whereas in the
original, it could be argued that Mushu was often the one who got her into most
of those situations.
In other words, this new version of Mulan isn’t
trying to be the classic Disney musical that its animated counterpart was.
Instead, it’s a more traditional war flick, and in that sense, it does succeed
in being that kind of film. Really, the only downside to this take on the story
is that because of its overly serious tone (which, to be fair, is usually the
case with war films), there aren’t many instances that would’ve allowed the
film to include some much-needed moments of levity. And yes, I do think that
something like this could’ve been accomplished without having to bring in a
character like Mushu. Despite this, however, the live-action Mulan is
still a beautifully crafted film that boasts a phenomenal cast headlined, of
course, by Yifei Liu in the title role. Yifei’s experience in the action genre
naturally results in her having no problems asserting herself as a badass
action heroine in this film’s excellent set-pieces. At the same time, though,
she also does a great job handling Mulan’s big emotional beats that were key in
making her one of Disney’s most noteworthy heroines. Yifei is then backed by an
equally excellent supporting cast that ranges from esteemed veterans like Tzi
Ma as Mulan’s father Hua Zhou to promising newcomers like Yoson An as soldier
Chen Honghui, who basically serves as the live-action equivalent of Shang even
though the film doesn’t really try to develop any sort of romance between him
and Mulan. Plus, it’s not every day where you have a film like this that
features two of the most prominent action stars to ever grace the big-screen, Donnie
Yen and Jet Li.
But if I were to note the one major advantage that this film
has over its animated counterpart, it would be that it has stronger villains. When
it comes to the original film, Hun leader Shan Yu wasn’t exactly one of
Disney’s most memorable villains. As imposing as he looked, he was a rather
one-note antagonist. Granted, I wouldn’t call this film’s main antagonist,
Rouran leader Bori Khan, ‘that much’ of an improvement over Shan Yu, but
overall, Jason Scott Lee does an excellent job in making Bori Khan an utterly ruthless
and all-around imposing foe. Plus, unlike Shan Yu, Bori Khan has some notable stakes
when it comes to his conquest of China since he seeks revenge against the
Emperor for killing his father. However, the biggest standout of the entire
film (even more so than Yifei Liu) is Gong Li as Xianniang, Bori Khan’s mysterious
shape-shifting sorceress. For starters, the addition of a new female lead in this
story helps give it a unique new narrative layer since Xianniang is very much
Mulan’s foil. Like Mulan, she too has been undervalued for being a woman in a
male-dominated society, which is primarily highlighted in the numerous
instances where Bori Khan insists that he’s the one in charge and that she
simply answers to him. But whereas Mulan is wholly loyal to her country,
Xianniang remains adamant in her claim that life will never give them the
respect that they deserve. Nevertheless, this ultimately results in a rather
poignant climax to Xianniang’s character arc as she ends up sacrificing herself
to save Mulan from one of Bori Khan’s attacks, having come to genuinely admire
her bravery despite all the incredible odds that she had to overcome.
In short, the live-action remake of Mulan was very
much one of those films that I wanted to show my support to in any way that I
could. Obviously, much of that process was by way of me being one of those who
willingly paid the $30 ‘Premier Access’ price tag that was placed on it when it
was announced that it would be making its debut on Disney+. While I do
understand why some folks felt that it was too high a price for just a single
film (especially given everything with COVID-19), I had no issue in paying for
it since it was one of my most anticipated films of the year (and yes, I will
be doing the same thing for Raya and the Last Dragon when it comes out
next month as Disney+’s second ‘Premier Access’ release). But then, if that
wasn’t enough, I also ‘double-dipped’ and bought the film on Blu-Ray when it
was released several months later; not only that, but it was also the special
Steelbook release from Best Buy… don’t worry, I also bought the Steelbook for
the original film, which came out at the same time. In other words, as much as
I know that I’m in the minority when it comes to liking this film, I think that
it’s one of the best live-action Disney remakes to date. And with that in mind,
while I do understand why some may have been disappointed by the lack of
several of the animated film’s most notable elements… I also find some of this
to be rather ironic given how remakes of films like Beauty and the Beast and
The Lion King were derided for how similar they were to their animated
counterparts. In other words, I’d argue that the live-action Mulan deserves
credit for, at the very least, being willing to try something a little
different instead of being a straightforward remake.
And at long last, we
come to my favorite film of 2020. Now, for those who have been following this
site for the past few years, you may recall that many of my recent #1 picks
have been… predictable. In other words, my last three #1 picks were all MCU
films (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 in 2017, Avengers: Infinity War
in 2018, and Avengers: Endgame in 2019). Thus, with no new MCU film
for the first time since 2009, that meant that a different film was going to
take the top spot on this list. In fact, given the timetable of their releases,
almost all the other films in this half of the list (apart from The Prom since
it was released in December) were in the #1 spot at some point in time. Fittingly
enough, this means that my favorite film of 2020 ended up being the last major
release that I saw before the end of the year, and if you ask me, it’s a film
that isn’t even remotely close to being the ‘total disaster’ that the internet
claims it to be.
Now, before I get into why I loved this film, I just want to
note that the following entry isn’t meant to be a dig against anyone who wasn’t
as big on it as I am. As always, I recognize that film is a subjective medium,
and if you ask me, this is something that consistently needs to be stressed
when it comes to the films of the DC Extended Universe. Case in point, as I’ve
made it clear over the past few years, I’m also not one of those moronic DCEU
diehards who gets so enraged whenever someone doesn’t like one of these films that
they’d try to shut down Rotten Tomatoes or accuse critics of being ‘paid by
Disney’ to badmouth the competition. But when it comes to Wonder Woman 1984’s
overall reception, I must admit that I’m a bit baffled as to how one of the
most anticipated films of 2020 ended up being one of the year’s most polarizing
releases. To put this all into perspective, about a week before the film was
set to make its simultaneous debut in theaters and on HBO Max, it was sporting
a genuinely excellent rating on Rotten Tomatoes that was hovering around the
high 80’s and low 90’s. In other words, by that point, it was shaping up to be
one of the best-received entries of the DCEU alongside the first Wonder
Woman and Shazam. But then, as the week went on, that high rating
started to drop at a rapid pace, almost as if every new review for the film was
on the ‘Rotten’ side of the RT review spectrum. Thus, at the time that I’m
writing this, Wonder Woman 1984’s RT score now hovers around a different
point; the threshold that could result in it dropping below 60%, thus giving it
a ‘Rotten’ rating… and trust me, it’s been in that range a few times over the
past few weeks.
Now, obviously, a film’s Rotten Tomatoes rating is in no way
meant to be the definitive indicator of its quality, and if you ask me, Wonder
Woman 1984 is a prime example of that. But what was it about this film that
garnered all its mixed-to-negative reactions? Well, there seems to be a few
varying reasons for this, but the one that we’re mainly going to be focusing on
is the argument that it was ‘too light-hearted’. Basically, there were some who
felt that, tonally, the film was way too light-hearted and that it should’ve
followed the traditional narrative path that most sequels go through where they
take on a darker and more serious tone. This line of criticism also applied to
the film’s plot as well, which was criticized for being overly cliché since it
largely relied on the classic trope of the hunt for a magical MacGuffin. However,
I believe that these narrative and tonal routes were wholly intentional when it
comes to what the film was trying to achieve. In other words, while the 1984
part of this film’s title may seem like an odd choice to the uninitiated
when it comes to naming sequels, it’s a wholly accurate descriptor of what kind
of film this is from an aesthetic perspective. Simply put, director Patty
Jenkins did a fantastic job in recreating the look and feel of an 80’s film,
from the extravagant costume designs to its grand, pulse-pounding score. And
yes, in this instance, I’d argue that this also applies to the idea of doing a story
that’s not overly complicated, has clear-cut heroes and villains, and, at the
end of the day, still manages to deliver some exceptionally strong emotional
beats. In fact, I’d even say that this back-to-basics approach is quite
refreshing compared to some of the other DCEU films.
Wonder Woman 1984’s plot revolves around the
discovery of an ancient artifact referred to as the ‘Dreamstone’ that can grant
the most desired wish of its users. Initially unaware of what it can do, Diana
and her new friend Barbara Ann Minerva end up utilizing the stone’s abilities,
which results in the resurrection of Diana’s lover Steve Trevor, albeit in the
body of another man, and Barbara gaining the same kind of strength and charisma
that Diana possesses. It eventually gets taken by smooth-talking albeit
struggling businessman Max Lord, who wishes to become the physical embodiment
of the Dreamstone, thus giving him the power to grant anyone’s wish in exchange
for whatever he wants from them in return. And as it turns out, that fittingly
sums up the Dreamstone’s powers in general as Diana, Steve, and Barbara soon
discover that it was created by Dolos, the god of lies, which means that for
every wish that it grants, it also takes away the user’s greatest virtue. In
Diana’s case, it is her godlike strength. In Barbara’s case, her newfound
abilities come at the cost of her good-natured personality. And as for Max, his
physical state keeps deteriorating every time that he grants someone’s wish.
Yes, Wonder Woman 1984 utilizes the classic ‘Monkey’s Paw’ scenario where
folks learn the hard way that their greatest wish will always come at a cost. As
such, the final message that the film conveys is particularly powerful as it
reminds us all that we shouldn’t let our deepest desires cloud our judgment…
it’s unfortunate, then, that many of these themes were apparently viewed as ‘sappy’
by the film’s critics (I’ll get into why I’m rather concerned about that point later…).
Case in point, I’m aware that some apparently thought that the film’s messages were the opposite of wholesome because they championed the idea that the rich and powerful deserve everything that they want… which, to be perfectly frank, isn’t even remotely close to being an accurate description of this film’s premise. I’m guessing that this mostly has to do with the fact that the film’s main antagonist, Maxwell Lord, isn’t really ‘brought to justice’. After he finally renounces his wish to be the physical embodiment of the Dreamstone, he ends up reuniting with his son Alistair, who he had been neglecting over the course of the film, and willingly admits that he’s a flawed man, to which Alistair responds by stating that none of that matters and that he loves his dad regardless. But the thing is… this is very much the point of Max Lord’s character arc since he isn’t even close to being a traditional ‘villainous’ character. Instead, he’s just a misguided man who desperately seeks the kind of power that he’s never once had in his life. In a lot of ways, this also applies to Barbara, who starts out as a wholly good-natured friend of Diana’s but gradually evolves into a more cold-hearted person, culminating in her transformation into the ‘apex predator’ that is Cheetah. And sure, Cheetah’s final visual transformation may be a bit underwhelming (and no, internet, I’m not making any comparisons to Cats), but overall, WW84 boasts far superior villains compared to the first film, especially thanks to Pedro Pascal and Kristen Wiig’s excellent performances in their respective roles.
But let’s go back for a moment and address the process of
how Wonder Woman’s lover Steve Trevor was brought back after his heroic
sacrifice during the events of the first film. As noted earlier, the Dreamstone
transforms a random stranger into Steve and it’s implied that Diana is the only
one who sees him as Steve whereas everyone else sees the other guy. Overall, I
think that this was a solid way of bringing Steve back to life without having to
rely on some of the more traditional methods from the comics in which deceased
characters are resurrected. In other words, I feel that bringing him back
permanently would’ve cheapened the impact of his death in the first film and wouldn’t
have allowed Diana the opportunity to finally move on with her life. And, of
course, this all ties in nicely to the consequences of using the Dreamstone
since Diana’s wish to have Steve back results in her losing her powers. This
then results in what is easily the most emotional moment in the film as Steve
convinces Diana to finally let him go so that she can properly save the world. Simply
put, this is another great showcase of why Steve Trevor has been one of the
best ‘love interests’ to appear in a superhero film since, in both Wonder Woman
films, he’s shown to be completely willing to make the necessary sacrifices
while doing so in a way that doesn’t result in him overshadowing Diana, the
true main character of the film.
(Also, on a quick side
note, there’s one point of discussion that’s been repeatedly brought up when it
comes to how the return of Steve was handled in terms of how it affects the guy
whose body he inhabits, and to be perfectly blunt, I won’t be addressing it
today because… well, it goes into a subject that I really don’t
want to get into on this site…)
All in all, Wonder Woman 1984 is a delightfully
entertaining film full of great action sequences and the same kind of strong
character beats that were a major part of its predecessor, the latter of which
being something that, as I’ve said plenty of times before, the early DCEU films
weren’t quite able to accomplish. Not only that, but I also love some of the
ways in which this film pays tribute to Wonder Woman’s extensive lore; for
starters, they manage to pull off one of her most famous gadgets from the
comics, her invisible jet, in a brilliantly executed manner. This occurs during
a sequence where Diana and Steve head to Cairo to track down Max Lord by
commandeering a plane from the Smithsonian’s collection. To avoid being
detected by radar (which, of course, wasn’t a thing for pilots like Steve back in
World War I, resulting in one of the best comedic bits in the film (“Well s***,
Diana!”)), Diana successfully manages to cloak their plane in the same way that
her father, Zeus, hid Themyscira from the rest of the world. There’s also the
matter of the character Asteria, the most famous warrior in the history of the
Amazon race. Throughout the film, we learn more about Asteria, who nobly
sacrificed herself to save her people, and it is her golden armor that Diana
uses in her final battle against Barbara and Max. However, in a mid-credit
scene, we learn that Asteria is still alive and well… and is played by none
other than Lynda Carter, the definitive Wonder Woman for many a generation
thanks to her iconic turn as the character in the 1975 Wonder Woman TV
series. Simply put, I just love it when films manage to do something like this,
especially in this film’s case since it’s been established that Carter had to decline
a cameo in the first film due to scheduling conflicts.
And so, with all that I’ve said about how much I love this
film, I can’t stress enough how disappointing it is that, in many cases, it was
derided (in a surprisingly hostile manner, I might add…) for many of the things
that made it so great, such as its light-hearted tone and its powerful themes. I
mean, if you even needed another reason as to why 2020 was such a terrible
year, then just consider the fact that, apparently, being a ‘light-hearted’
superhero film is a ‘bad’ thing. And with that said, this brings me back to the
point that I’ve mentioned time and time again… the continuously atrocious
behavior of the DCEU’s diehard fans. Back in Part 1, I stated that I personally
believe that the DCEU diehards couldn’t care less about either of the franchise’s
2020 releases (also, on a side note, did I forget to mention that they were
both female-led, female-directed films?). In the case of Birds of Prey,
it was largely due to them being inexplicably mad about its existence in a time
before the official confirmation of the ‘Snyder Cut’. But in the case of Wonder
Woman 1984, I’d say that it was because of… that’s right, its lighthearted
tone. It is blatantly clear at this point that DCEU diehards despise
the use of humor in superhero films with a burning passion. Don’t believe me? A
few months back, some moron on Twitter announced that he was ‘re-editing’ Shazam
to, you guessed it, remove its humor even though that was a key part of that
film’s charm. But to be perfectly frank, that’s about as far as I’ll go for now
when it comes to all the headaches that have been caused by the DCEU’s diehard
fans. Instead, I’ll save my thoughts on the matter… for when I review Zack
Snyder’s Justice League in March. And I’m just going to warn you now, DCEU
diehards, when I do… I won’t be holding anything back…
And so, that
concludes Rhode Island Movie Corner’s Top 10 Favorite Films of 2020. As always,
I want to thank you all for joining me on this extensive journey through the cinematic
highlights of a year that… didn’t really give us many opportunities for said
highlights. But since I’ve already gone over how much 2020 sucked numerous
times over the course of these last two posts, all we can do now is hope that
2021 will turn out a hell of a lot better in terms of both hopefully returning
to the process of seeing films in theaters… and dealing with the ever-increasingly
hostile parts of the film fan community. As always, to quote the legendary
Roger Ebert, “I’ll see you at the movies!”.
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