Well, one of the most awaited superhero films since a few years is finally here and this article is all about if all that hype was worth it or not. While making a film about a classic DC villain and turning him into an anti-hero always seemed like a flawed concept, the film did manage to entertain and captivate the audience to some extent. Black Adam starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is surely not the best DCEU film yet but at the same time it is not at all bad. So, if you want a one-two word review of the film, well then, it is strictly average and formulaic SUPE film. But if you want to know about the good and bad aspects of the film in a slightly more detailed manner, then move forward with our review. Also, such details come with spoilers, both minor and major, so read at your own risk.
Black Adam Review – Yet Another DC Film Trying to Capture the Marvel Formula?
Rating – ★★★
So, first things first, Black Adam nails the visual department and I’d like to give a huge shoutout to the costume design team. Nearly every costume featured in this movie looked absolutely incredible, be it Black Adam, Dr Fate, Hawkman, Atom Smasher or Cyclone. While Shazam looked pretty unconvincing costume wise, in Black Adam everyone looks the part and every costume seems highly detailed and realistic. The VFX and CGI work was a bit inconsistent, however, it was pretty great overall. The production design was also well executed especially, everything involving Kahndaq, be it city views, the temple, or the streets. Therefore, there is no doubt that the film was a visual delight and hence, must be experienced on the big screen.
Moving on to the plot, it was pretty generic and formulaic with barely anything fresh or unique about it. In fact, after that explosive opening involving the awakening of Black Adam, the film fell pretty flat, and it remained that way till the final act. There were surely a few cool moments here and there but absolutely nothing about the film felt fresh. Even the jokes and the whole catchphrase thing were borrowed from other productions, and the film didn’t take any risks whatsoever. Say what you will about Thor: Love and Thunder but Waititi did take a huge risk making it. So, Black Adam tried to replicate the Marvel formula which itself is handsomely failing right now in Phase 4. The audiences want to experience something fresh now and unfortunately, none of the recent superhero films have offered that, except The Batman (2022) maybe.
If I have to point out one obvious flaw about Black Adam, it would be that the stakes of the film were very low and were only raised, like, 15-20 minutes before the credits rolled. That is also the reason why the film suffered from the lack of a good antagonist, as the real threat aka Sabbac emerged only towards the end of the film. Although, I have to say, the design of this underworld demon was bonkers, although its CGI could have been better. We would all have loved to explore the range of his powers and the actual level of catastrophe Sabbac could have caused. So, yeah it was another villain with great potential wasted.
It seems like villains these days need their own movie to actually explore their potential, but wait?! Isn’t that what Black Adam about? An on-screen adaptation of an iconic DC villain? It was but in the end Black Adam became the most flat, boring, and one-dimensional character in his own movie. Not that he was bad or unlikeable but he was nothing more than cliche antihero saying things like “I am no hero” but choosing to do the right thing in the end. That is pretty much all Black Adam did and without any doubt, the show stealer and the MVP of the film was – Dr Fate.
Yes, I absolutely adored anything and everything Doctor Fate did in this movie. The only thing that I didn’t like about him was that he died and hence, it was ultimately, a character with great future potential wasted. Just when the audiences thought, “woah, we love this new superhero”, he was taken from us. Pierce Brosnan did a tremendous job with this character and delivered a passionate as well as a standout performance. Not that rest of the cast was bad, but Brosnan’s portrayal of Dr Fate surely stood out. From his costume, and action to his attitude, choices, and monologues, everything about this character worked. The rest of the Justice Society of America was also very likeable with Hawkman being a total badass, Atom Smasher being the comic relief, and Cyclone being a visual delight. There were multiple moments in the film where I was totally mesmerized by the visuals Cyclone was provided in her action sequences.
Also, Iron Man 3 started a trend of including kid sidekicks in movies and there was nothing particularly intriguing or exciting about Amon or his mother or his uncle. Apart from awakening Black Adam and providing him a catchphrase, they all serve no actual purpose. In fact, I cared so less about these characters, that many a times I forgot they even exist, especially during the very final battle. They served the exact same purpose as humans do in Monsterverse (Godzilla and Kong) movies XD. Therefore, the moment Sabbac was about to kill Amon, didn’t actually turn out to be as intense as WB may have wanted it to be. But anyways, due to all these reasons Black Adam becomes the latest addition in the long list of fun but forgettable SUPE movies.
Final Verdict – The thing is that once you leave the theatre, Black Adam leaves absolutely no impact on you whatsoever. So, yes, it is pretty forgettable but once again, it is not bad. That is exactly what it is – NOT BAD and frankly, that is all most of us expected from it. I mean seriously, was there anyone out there who hoped it would be a groundbreaking film? I doubt it. Like most of all just wanted Superman to show up in it and THAT HE DID! So, stick around for that mid-credit scene please or just watch it here if you missed it.
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