This is the way the DCEU ends
This is the way the DCEU ends
This is the way the DCEU ends
Not with a bang but a whimper.

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is a tiresome exercise in listless sound and fury, signifying a last gasp across the finish line. I liked the first Aquaman’s go-for-broke action adventure and Jason Momoa was having fun with it. This sequel feels like contractual obligation.

The flick returns to Atlantis with Aquaman as a bored king running a kingdom by committee. But his bubble-headed arch nemesis Black Manta is out there reviving ancient enemies so what’s a King of Atlantis to do except join forces with his sourpuss brother who tried to kill him last movie?

This film’s action scenes feel lifeless and poorly edited… in fact a lot of the film feels poorly edited. Like either they didn’t care and were just chucking CGI at the screen or there’s a longer cut where some of these sequences flow better (or make sense or have characters and interactions and comedy worth caring about).

The film slides quickly from decently enjoyable to a tired bunch of tropes. Much of the first half is tedious busywork to actually get the plot engaged… it’s unnecessary gear grinding full of hammy exposition and action scenes for the sake of action scenes.

The team-up of Momoa and Wilson is poorly justified. It’s like they wanted the Momoa/Amber Heard comedy duo but didn’t want to commit to her return (getting conspiratorial here). Wilson ex-King Orm is such a personality-free zone that all the capering and joking from Momoa never takes off. Momoa, for his part, occasionally elicits a smirk with his wisecracks, but he makes me wonder if it’s just Momoa playing himself at this point.

The only thing that saves the movie from a lower score is, surprisingly, the ending. Somehow the human side of these characters finally clicks and the final battle with The Lich King from World of Warcraft (* this statement is untrue) was a cool moment… and I do mean moment since abracadabra its over before you can even yawn.

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is a tired movie and a sad end to this version of the DCEU. At least James Wan, Momoa, Wilson, and the rest of the waterlogged gang are free to do something else now. Best part of the movie.

Score: 66