Review of WW84
midlandsmovies • December 29, 2020
WW84 (2020) Dir. Patty Jenkins
A sequel to the 2017 critical and fan favourite Wonder Woman (easily the best of the DCEU films), WW84 comes at the end of a strange time for cinemas but can it bring a bit of positivity to the end of a tough year?
First off, it doesn’t really fit into the continuity of the DCEU (who cares at this point, I guess) so it feels more of a pure sequel than part of a larger universe (to its credit) and star Gal Gadot again eturns as Diana Prince/Wonder Woman.
We open with a flashback of a young Diana taking part in a triathlon of sorts in Themyscira but after taking a shortcut is told "no true hero is born from lies" which is thematically referenced through the rest of the film. Jumping to 1984, Diana now works at the Smithsonian alongside the reserved Barbara Ann Minerva (Kristin Wiig) and foils a robbery of ancient artifacts in a mall before we discover that one antiquity is the mysterious "Dreamstone".
Using this, Diana wills Steve Trevor back into existence before Barbara uses it to become more like Wonder Woman. I have to admit I kind of admire its guts to use this ridiculous plot device to get the likeable Chris Pine back in the role after *spoiler* you know, dying.
Failing businessman Maxwell "Max Lord" Lorenzano (a Trump cypher played VERY broadly by current Mandalorian Pedro Pascal) also gets involved and literally inherits the stone’s power to get whatever he wants.
If all that sounds fantastical and kind of haphazard, well you have the movie in a nutshell. I’ve seen DC cartoons with more realistic plots and it’s such a shame that none of it really coalesces into anything vaguely consistent.
Later on, Barbara becomes cheetah-like in her hopes to become an apex predator and her fight with Wonder Woman is pure underlit CGI dross and looks as real as you’d think a computer-generated cat versus an armoured ‘eagle lady’ would.
The nonsense is all topped with a fair bit of social commentary (war, capitalism, indulgence) – but done in a very ham-fisted way that is hugely at odds with the fantasy elements – and as admirable as they are, are lost against a barrage of day-glow babble.
The acting is mostly fine and the action (which has come in for much online criticism) was actually one of my favourite parts. Yet just as it gets interesting, it disappoints again. Especially Wiig’s Barbara, who turns from the bespectacled and over-looked scientist to becomes a supervillain. This is the laziest trope and has often failed to work before. I don’t want to be reminded of the awful memories that are Edward Nigma in Batman Forever, Electro in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and even Guy’s Pearce in Iron Man 3 which was that film’s biggest flaw.
As we hit the end, the repetitious teal and orange colour scheme is back from the first film (our review here) and at 151 minutes, 84 feels like the number of years watching from start to finish. (Insert “It’s been 84 years…” Titanic meme here).
The opening mall scene hinted upon the kitsch and almost comedic direction I hoped the film would lean into but at its conclusion, I came away feeling that Wonder Woman 1984 takes you less to the 80s and more to the bad superhero flicks of the late 90s. Better luck next time.
★★
Michael Sales
On Sunday 26th April Midlands Movies Editor Michael Sales & awards ceremony co-host Ed Stagg (BBC Radio) announced the nominations for the 2026 Midlands Movies Awards live from the Queen of Bradgate Vintage Cinema in Leicester. A big thanks was given to the entire Jury Panel of industry experts who gave up their precious time to watch a huge selection of creative projects and as always, had a difficult time choosing from the excellent number of films from the region. You can read the full list of nominations across all 16 categories below and watch our announcement videos here: Part 1 & Part 2 And please also check out our great awards partner Chrome Video Best Actress in a Leading Role Karendip Phull for Family Kate Bracken for The Lace Rachel Baker for Throwing Fruit Chloe Wade for How Long Sophie Bullock for Ma Prison Best Animated Film Of All the Things by Steff Lee Big Red by James Pyle Statue in the Garden by Qianhui Yu Butterfly by Jacob Christie Best Director Luke Worrall for The Waterline Lily Portman for Quiet Jack Richardson for Daniel’s Room Jonathan Hawes for Sorry We’re Closed Sophia Dall'Aglio for Man from Mars Best Documentary Nothing's Impossible by Jacob Thomas McClean A Birmingham Symphony by Jemma Saunders We Bring Light: Leicester's Diwali Legacy by Kieran Vyas The Sunshine Café by Jill Lampert Through the Viewfinder by William North Best Sound (Editing or Mixing) Neil Evans & his team for Artificial Insanity Alasdair Gretton for Dead on Distribution Deepanjali Patel for Earworm David Hamilton-Smith for The Pause Heidi Wilson for Of All The Things Best Actor in a Supporting Role Devon Junior for Lazar Tim Sparrow for Safety Net Shaiek Ahmed Rana for Family Luke Rollason for Quiet Peter Willoughby for A Story of Spring Best Visual & Special Effects Jake Wesley-Worrall for Soul Trader Steve Askey & team for The Correction Unit Nick Willett, Matt Burkey & Jayne Hyman for Black Goat JaqD SFX MUA, Mind Magic Studios and Ben Harker for Beyond the Witching Hour Pete Key, Jai Blanks and Jacob Christie for Countenance Best Cinematography Gary Rogers for The Pause Laurence Mason-Guetta for Sorry We’re Closed Ian Snape for Soul Trader Ash Connaughton for Daniel’s Room Duane Adamoli for Surfing (nominations continue below...)
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