Aquaman is DC’s next valiant effort to right the ship that has set so far off course. With quality nestling somewhere in between Justice League and Wonder Woman, Aquaman does a few things right but still lacks certain qualities that would honor the long time great comic book character. They do a good job of taking a major DC character that is often the butt end of comic book store jokes and created a new cultural version that fits in the Justice League ensemble much better and will attract a much larger female audience for more than obvious reasons. Aquaman now seems more of Superman and Batman’s peer rather than their lesser. With that said Aquaman also lacks in delivering a movie that immerses you into an imaginative story set in a grounded reality. Aquaman opens strong then seems to slowly veer into the bad habits of the previous DCEU. By the end it comes off as a soggy Thor sandwich with extra cheese.

The casting of Aquaman was done fairly well. Jason Momoa (Arthur) physically holds his own against any other actor playing a comic book role and mostly while acting too. There are many times where he gets a little cheesy or the lines feel phoned in but that may or may not be all his fault. In key scenes he does give good performances and can not be credited with any of the movies shortcomings. Once they casted him as Aquaman every audience knew what they were going to get and they seem to be ok with it. With the other two male pillars of DC being recast, Momoa will be leaned on to carry a big weight. Amber Heard (Mera) costars in this film and gives an average performance. Many scenes work well but there are a few that just don’t sit right. Again this could also be an editing or directing issue. It’s hard to put full responsibility to the actors. One actor who should get full responsibility is Nicole Kidman (Atlanna). She was fantastic as Arthur’s mother. Her professionalism and poise bring a performance that would rival Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman. Kudos to DCEU for having two very strong female performers among their roster. Patrick Wilson (King Orm) plays the entitled half brother of Arthur and does a good job of not portraying his character as spoiled royalty. He portrays his character with a certain depth that brings understanding to his motivations. A surprising disappointment came from Willem Dafoe (Vulko). He plays an important role in Aquaman’s past and present but considering his range of previous roles doesn’t offer much up for this one. The 80’s babies will be pleased to see a Dolph Lundgren (King Nereus) revival. Overall the casting fits.

Although it would be hard to call Aquaman a good movie, they at least didn’t name his mom Martha too. Any origin movie lacks a certain pace you expect from the superhero genre due to the massive amount of character development they have to do. Aquaman should garner a sequel and I would expect it to be much better given they honestly admit their few shortcomings and improve on them. If they simply stick with the more vibrant colors in place of the typical DCEU darker ominous tones they will start way ahead of the game. Less green screen and more on location sets could also help. Children of all ages can enjoy this movie and you better not leave the wife at home either. DC has not quite hit the mark that Marvel has set yet however there is some hopeful optimism that they are learning their lessons. It’s hard to say you must see this movie, but if you burned a 20 to see Batman vs Superman than you may as well pull your lighter out for this one also.