One of the ironies about Wonder Woman -- and this is nothing new if you explore the history of the character -- is that she is actually one of the more violent of all superheroes. While Superman and Batman (his first few years on the job notwithstanding) have always adhered to a strict no-kill rule, WW has never followed this, and the recent continuity of the comic book has followed on from this idea.
The new Wonder Woman movie has taken this a step further by bringing her into the Alias generation. No longer is she the wide-eyed innocent of the early comics or the Lynda Carter series. This is a stone killer who is depicted killing her enemies -- mortal and men -- without mercy on several occasions in this film, aided by Steve Trevor who likewise is shown to be someone capable of pulling the trigger when needed. Yet when they're not on the job, Diana is shown as sensual and "all-woman" while Steve is a "good ole boy" which is actually a little disturbing.
This sounds like it's a negative review, but in fact it's not. Once you accept the fact that this version of WW plays by different rules from Spider-Man, Batman and the others, it has an added sense of energy that makes for a very exciting film. Since no one seems willing to do a live-action WW film, once again Bruce Timm and his team have shown themselves capable of producing a superior product for the animated arena.
The voice cast is for the most part excellent. A few of the supporting cast - including some name actors - come off sounding a bit flat. But Keri Russell is the best Wonder Woman we've had yet in the animated arena, while Nathan Fillion basically plays Steve Trevor as ... Nathan Fillion. And this is a good thing. Fans of the DC Animated Universe shows will also be happy to hear regular voice actress Tara Strong playing the ill-fated Alexis.
The artwork is superb. WW herself has been given a "fresh coat of paint" and looks fantastic, while Steve seems to have been based upon Willie Garvin of the old Modesty Blaise comic strip. He even throws a knife at one point in true Willie G. style. And the scene where he and WW take down a group of terrorists -- complete with neck-breakings -- is like something out of a Modesty Blaise storyline.
Besides the violence, the PG-13 rating is also earned by a surprising amount of sexual innuendo. But it wasn't overdone, and some of the lines were really funny. Steve's comment about Diana while under the spell of the lasso is not only hilarious -- it's realistic, too. At one point the Amazons are referred to as "armor-wearing supermodels". If it quacks like a duck you may as well call it a duck!
I hope this film leads to sequels or even a full-out series. Although I think the violence is a little overdone -- and superheroes aren't supposed to kill their enemies, that's No. 1 in the rulebook as everyone knows -- and the wink-wink nudge-nudge innuendo would get stale after awhile, I think Warners has set themselves up with a great basis for a new franchise.
But not for Saturday mornings. Neck-breakings and corn flakes don't go together.
The new Wonder Woman movie has taken this a step further by bringing her into the Alias generation. No longer is she the wide-eyed innocent of the early comics or the Lynda Carter series. This is a stone killer who is depicted killing her enemies -- mortal and men -- without mercy on several occasions in this film, aided by Steve Trevor who likewise is shown to be someone capable of pulling the trigger when needed. Yet when they're not on the job, Diana is shown as sensual and "all-woman" while Steve is a "good ole boy" which is actually a little disturbing.
This sounds like it's a negative review, but in fact it's not. Once you accept the fact that this version of WW plays by different rules from Spider-Man, Batman and the others, it has an added sense of energy that makes for a very exciting film. Since no one seems willing to do a live-action WW film, once again Bruce Timm and his team have shown themselves capable of producing a superior product for the animated arena.
The voice cast is for the most part excellent. A few of the supporting cast - including some name actors - come off sounding a bit flat. But Keri Russell is the best Wonder Woman we've had yet in the animated arena, while Nathan Fillion basically plays Steve Trevor as ... Nathan Fillion. And this is a good thing. Fans of the DC Animated Universe shows will also be happy to hear regular voice actress Tara Strong playing the ill-fated Alexis.
The artwork is superb. WW herself has been given a "fresh coat of paint" and looks fantastic, while Steve seems to have been based upon Willie Garvin of the old Modesty Blaise comic strip. He even throws a knife at one point in true Willie G. style. And the scene where he and WW take down a group of terrorists -- complete with neck-breakings -- is like something out of a Modesty Blaise storyline.
Besides the violence, the PG-13 rating is also earned by a surprising amount of sexual innuendo. But it wasn't overdone, and some of the lines were really funny. Steve's comment about Diana while under the spell of the lasso is not only hilarious -- it's realistic, too. At one point the Amazons are referred to as "armor-wearing supermodels". If it quacks like a duck you may as well call it a duck!
I hope this film leads to sequels or even a full-out series. Although I think the violence is a little overdone -- and superheroes aren't supposed to kill their enemies, that's No. 1 in the rulebook as everyone knows -- and the wink-wink nudge-nudge innuendo would get stale after awhile, I think Warners has set themselves up with a great basis for a new franchise.
But not for Saturday mornings. Neck-breakings and corn flakes don't go together.