Into the DC Murderverse: "Wonder Woman"

 "Wonder Woman" (2017)

Since I began this re-watch project of the DC Murderverse aka the DCEU, I've been pretty harsh on the movies that DC put out since revamping everything with "Man of Steel." Have I talked shit? Absolutely. And it was deserved. Those movies were real bad and it was almost disrespectful. The MCU definitely has a lot on the DC Murderverse. But DC beat Marvel when it comes to giving us a solo female superhero film. What it took Marvel almost a decade to do, it only took DC four years. That is something and you have to give them some respect. It was also the first legitimately good DC Murderverse film.

Principal photography on "Wonder Woman" began in November 2015 and concluded May 6, 2016, which was coincidentally Wonder Woman creator, William Moulton Marston's birthday. Some additional filming took place in November 2016. The film stars Gal Gadot as Diana Prince/Wonder Woman, Chris Pine as Steve Trevor, Robin Wright as Antiope, Danny Huston as Erich Ludendorff, David Thewlis as Sir Patrick, Connie Nielsen as Hippolyta, Elena Anaya as Dr. Isabel Maru, Lucy Davis as Etta Candy, Said Taghmoui as Sameer, Ewen Bremner as Charlie and Eugene Brave Rock as Chief. The film was written by Allan Heinberg. It was directed by Patty Jenkins. "Wonder Woman" was released on June 2, 2017.

She's a wonder.

I love Wonder Woman. She's in my top 5 favorite super heroes. I fell in love with the character watching the old "Super Friends" cartoon and that love only deepened watching the "Wonder Woman" television show starring Lynda Carter. It makes sense that when establishing their own shared universe, DC would make a Wonder Woman movie before Marvel got around to making their first solo female superhero film. Wonder Woman is the third member of the DC Trinity so, it would be weird to make all these other superhero films before hers. I still think it's a little odd that they made "Suicide Squad" before this movie. 

This movie makes a great decision by setting the film in the past. I am going to say that right off the bat. It doesn't have to worry about tying into any other DC movies, it can tell it's own story, which is Diana's. A lot of people are familiar with the origins of Batman and Superman, but aside from wearing a star spangled outfit, Diana of Themyscira may be more of a mystery to some fans. So, having this movie really just be a showcase for Wonder Woman without having to serve any other masters is great. I love that the photo Lex had that Bruce got his hands on in "BvS" is used as a framing device and to launch the look at Diana's origin.

I talked a little about Gal Gadot in my post about "Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice" but this film really gives her a chance to spread her wings. This was really the role she was born to play. She realistically portrays every facet of Diana. In some ways, Diana is kind of a wide eyed seemingly naive woman but she is strong in her convictions and refuses to back down, especially to men who are trying to keep her out of things and push her around. This is sort of a fine line to walk and Gadot does it. She brings a feminine physicality to the role and has a knowing sparkle in her eye. She's really fantastic and I can't stress that enough.

Chris Pine gets the Pepper Potts/Jane Foster role and it's a great role reversal to see. Pine is just the right actor for this. He is hella charming and his chemistry with Gadot is off the charts. He tries really hard to be that typical male in movies like this, when Diana is walking into places that women are forbidden or wearing clothes that women don't wear. He tries to stop her, but she's having none of it. It's what we need to see. When Diana tells Steve "What I do is not up to you" it is a fist pump moment and kind of the mission statement of the whole movie.

Cute

Director Patty Jenkins immediately shows the difference a woman behind the camera makes when a woman's story is being told. I'm not saying that certain males can't do this, too, but there are things they will never get that other women just intrinsically know. I talked a little about the male gaze when I posted about "Suicide Squad," specifically the male gaze as it referred to Harley Quinn. If you're not familiar with the term, "male gaze" refers to sexual politics and how women are filmed or framed in ways that objectify them while empowering usually cis heterosexual men. There is none of that in "Wonder Woman" and that is apparent from the very start. 

Take a look at the beginning of the film where you see the Amazons on the training. These are strong, powerful women. They are wearing armor. They are filmed in a way that accentuates their strengths. They are women built like warriors. There are no close ups of cleavage. No lingering ass shots. It's refreshing and it re-contextualizes similar scenes you've seen in other movies like this with male directors. This continues throughout the movie. Wonder Woman is never objectified. She is a sexual being but the camera never makes that lurid. The male gaze is turned on Pine when he is naked in front of Diana and it is really funny and liberating.

The film never paints Diana as this backwards bumpkin uneducated with the ways of the world. Steve tries to give her a sex talk but WW shuts that shit down immediately. Not only is she more than familiar about sex both for pleasure and procreation, she knows that men are only really needed for the latter, despite Steve's protests. One of the great pleasures of this movie is watching Diana ignore everything that Steve tells her. Wear these women's clothes of the time. Nah. Let me handle this bad guy? She's got it. Don't walk into this meeting of government officials and let me do the talking? She thinks not. Don't go to this gala and murder the Nazi general that you think is Ares? She's sharpening her sword on her way inside. And for the most part, the film shows Diana being right and Steve being wrong.

Chills

This is a superhero movie so I would be remiss if I didn't talk about the action, which allows me to talk about the single greatest scene in "Wonder Woman" and perhaps one of the top ten if not top 5 scenes in any superhero movie, ever. I'm talking about when Diana walks across No Man's Land to overtake the enemy's trench. It gives me chills. Every. Single. Time. And I hope it always does. If anyone is ever curious about the character of Wonder Woman and what her deal is, this illustrates it better than any words you could say. It's magnificent. It's emotional. It's empowering. It's difficult not to want to just pump your fist in the air and shout "Fuck yeah!" This leads to the battle at the occupied village where Wonder Woman is really able to show off and it is amazing. Again, probably top 5 best action scenes in any superhero movie. No arguments. I said what I said. The Amazons against the Nazis on the beach is phenomenal, too. 

Some people have an issue with the development of Steve and Diana's relationship, but it feels natural to me. The moment where they consummate their relationship is a good one and feels earned. It's Diana making the decision and it's not lascivious. I sometimes think there is this idea that if a woman does anything out of love or "for a man" than that automatically makes her less than or not a "strong female character," but I think that is bullshit. There is a way to do it correctly and "Wonder Woman" does that.

Lets give some praise to Hans Zimmer. He is one of the biggest things the DCEU has going for it and he really stretches his wings with this one. The "Wonder Woman" theme is one of the best superhero films there is and the rest of the score meets the measure.

"Wonder Woman" is a great film, but it isn't perfect. It really falls apart in its third act when Ares joins the fray. It is sort of a muddled mess that becomes ordinary when it had been extraordinary. In general, "Wonder Woman" suffers from the villain problem that a lot of MCU films have. "Wonder Woman" has some great villains and having Ares be the main one makes sense, especially for this time in her life, but there's not enough build up. I would much rather have seen Diana really face off with Doctor Poison, since she is far more compelling. 

All that being said, "Wonder Woman" isn't just the best DCEU film, which would be faint praise, it is a great film, in general. It shows with the right creative teams *cough, not Zack Snyder, cough* DC can put out movies that are up there with the best of the MCU.

Next up, the heroes of the DC Murderverse come together in the non-Snyder cut of "Justice League" which had a lot of input from... sigh... Joss Whedon.

Do you all love "Wonder Woman?" Do you not? Let me know in the comments and if you're a hater be prepared to be told why you're wrong.