Movie Review - Wonder Woman (1975)

Wonder Woman

The New Original Wonder Woman [Pilot]

1975

Production Companies:  Douglas S Cramer & Warner Bros. Television

Back in the days of my youth the comic books and their relevant television shows were lighter in emotion and humour and were aimed at the youth market.  These programs usually aired between six and eight in the evening.  And I will hasten to say was better for it.  Though there were adult matters expressed in the story there were watered down so we had good family entertainment.  Something I think the DC Universe is missing at the moment.

And at the top of the pile of superhero shows on offer was Wonder Woman.  I was happy to watch the pilot movie once again and it brought a smile to my face once more.  There are some cringe-worthy moments in the show.  For example the Amazon's view of men, which today doesn't ring so true as it's not just men who commit evil and atrocious deeds.  Then there's the invisible plane.  I loved the concept of the plane, though you can see Wonder Woman in the pilot seat; it's more like a plane of glass than invisible.  As a kid I saw nothing wrong with it now with adult eyes I see it for what it is and though it makes me laugh it still fills me with nostalgia.

However, the story pretty much sticks to the Origin Story that was in the comic books at that time, before the Greek Gods became involved in the Wonder Woman Mythos.  Steve Trevor (ace pilot) crashes in the Bermuda Triangle while engaged in a dog battle with a German pilot.  He is found by Diana on Paradise Island (no Thymiscira at this point in history) and his wounds are tended to until he is well enough to travel.  Queen Hippolyta decides he needs to leave the island as soon as possible, to keep the island and its inhabitants secret from man and the outside world.  She then holds a "games" where the winner will be charged with returning Steve Trevor back to his life and to make sure he is well.  Diana, in disguise, takes part in the games and wins.  When she drops off Trevor at the hospital she finds herself pitted against the Germans and their scheme to bomb a secret base in the heart of Washington DC.  

The way that Leonard Horn directs this story is to keep it light, full of humour, and to make it resemble a live-action-comic along with dialogue boxes.  This makes it a rip-roaringly-enjoyably movie to watch.  Horn is also great at using differing camera angles to help with the fight scene's and to create more believable Wonder Woman effects as well as give interest to the viewer.  This is one well-crafted movie. 

As for the cast; I totally forgot how good an actress Lynda Carter is.  There's a reason why she made this role hers and why she will be remembered fondly for it and it's not because she fit the costume so beautifully, it's that she actually brought the character to life and made her appear realistic and believable, even in the face of some absurd lines and, at times, goofy story telling.  Lynda Carter will always be Wonder Woman for me.  Lyle Waggoner is perfect as Steve Trevor, who has just the right amount of ego and charm for the character.  This is a guy you can believe has a girl in EVERY port.  The other surprise in this pilot movie is Red Buttons as Ashley Norman.  He pulls the character off perfectly.  However, it's John Randolf as General Blankenship that start to let the film down a little as his character is more like a jovial uncle rather than a General.  Then there's Stella Steven, who fluctuates between being really good and really wooden.  It really is a strange thing to witness and does hinder the film as it breaks the link between movie and viewer.  Though, besides Lynda Carter, my favourite actor and his character in the movie is Nikolas who is portrayed brilliantly by Henry Gibson.  His portrayal of a faithful German Soldier come Butler come American Spy is well crafted and so funny to boot.

There are some faults in this version, though for me, they are all forgivable as the movie is such good fun to watch.  I would recommend this to everyone as it may just put a smile on your face as it did mine.  Well worth a watch.

An extended Network Promo for the full series.

Movie Review - Wonder Woman (1974)

Wonder Woman

1974

Production Companies:  Warner Bros. Television

So this was a different take on the Wonder Woman mythos, opting to go with a blonde version of the Amazonian Goddess.  This may have been because Cathy Lee Cosby might not have wanted to die her hair for the part or don a wig.  Whatever the case may be she does an amiable job as Diana Prince and I would've watched a series with her as Wonder Woman, it's a shame the script wasn't too brilliant, it was your average fair for '74.  Also, gone is the iconic and eye-popping costume to be replaced with a modified track suit. 

I like Warner's and McEveety's decision to use Crosby since she was a major athlete at the time she could easily cope with the action scenes... which reduced the need to bring in a stuntman in a wig.  She's also a pretty decent actor and fit this version of the character well.  It would have been nice to have the fight scenes choreographed a little better and speeded up a tad, a few special effects wouldn't have gone amiss to show her strength, as was the case with the later series.

As for the other actors, there wasn't anything too spectacular about them.  Even though I do like Montalban a lot, he is very underused here.  In fact, I think that can be said of most, though, Andrew Prime does have a bit more power behind his performance.  This could all be down to McEveety's direction, who doesn't give us anything particularly new here,

Though Black sticks to the origin pretty well, things start to get messy once we're off Paradise Island.  We see Diana Prince working as a Secretary for Steve Trevor, though secretly she's the one they send in to get the job done.  So she's undercover in her own business.  What I found really great and funny was the fact that EVERBODY else appeared to know Diana Prince was Wonder Woman; this says a lot for her company - the only spies who didn't know her secret.  Even with this unintentional humour, Black does add some intentional humour to the story by incorporating a burro to bring the top secret plans to Abner Smith.  This is one well-trained Ass...  The other thing wrong with the script is the villains' names.  I, for one, do not find either Abner Smith or George Calvin particularly frightening or awe inspiring.  Calvin is a psychotic and cold blooded killer so it would have been nice for him to be given a more fearsome name or nick-name.  This is based on a comic after all and in the 70's they were filled with evil doers with weird pseudonyms.  The Joker wouldn't have been the same if he was called Melvin Phillips...

I think that if this had a better writer and director then the end product could have been so much better than this.  It might even have made a decent television series; though I'm glad it didn't as it probably would have meant we would have missed Lynda Carter in the role that is so iconic to her.  Though, as it stands it's not too bad and is okay for kids though with what's available today it looks and feels really dated, so they might baulk at watching it.  This is worth a watch if you're looking at Wonder Woman throughout the ages, which I'm doing.  Or, if you were a kid in the 70's and you want a little nostalgia.  Apart from that, I wouldn't really recommend it to anyone.

Movie Review - All Star Superman

All-Star Superman

2011

DC Entertainment / Warner Bros. Animation / Warner Premiere : Warner Home Video

8 / 10

This is probably the best adaptation of a comic book to date.  Director Sam Liu and writer Dwayne McDuffie take the best elements of Grant Morrison and Frank Quietly's graphic novel from the story, feel, and pace and bring them to the screen expertly with the help of the animators and the vocal talents of the actors.

The animation is up to the high standard of the Warner Bros. Animation but I cannot help but wish that the studio would catch up to the way that the comics are now being rendered in high intensive colours and shading.  This would just add that extra oomph to the movie.  They've done a good job of bringing Quietly's artwork to life.  Their Superman is of the same mountainous physique as Quietly's but it's the subtleties of his artwork that add a depth of warm feeling adding to the reader's enjoyment.

That's about all I could find wrong with it.  James Denton does a wonderful job of adding warmth and feeling to the man of steel in his final days.  While Anthony LaPaglia adds a cool and calculating air to Lex Luthor.  Edward Asner is perfect as Perry White.

The only reason this didn't make a full 10/10 is because it isn't the best Superman story, it's good, though I did have issues with it, such as the Sampson character and his sidekick which turns up.  I found this to be an annoying and pretty irrelevant section and I still feel the same way after seeing it in the movie.  I've never been able to understand why Morrison chose this character when there were so many others to choose from.

If you've read the graphic novel you don't need to see the movie, though you should enjoy it.  If you haven't read the novel then check out the film if you like superheroes or animations, then read the novel, it's better.

Movie Review - Batman: Return Of The Caped Crusaders

Batman

Return Of The Caped Crusaders

2016

Warner Bros. Animation / DC Entertainment : Warner Bros. / Warner Home Video

4.5 / 10

I am a big fan of the Batman '66 comic so when I saw this naturally I thought all my birthdays had come at once...  Damn, birthdays have gotten worse!!!

This is nothing but a poor imitation of the '66 series.  Granted the vocal talents of Adam West, Burt Ward, and Julie Newmar was a wise choice though only Ward still had the youthful sound.  I am sorry to say that West and Newmar both sounded as though they were having trouble getting a sentence out while breathing...  Then we get to the vocal talent of the other villains.  Jeff Bergman was responsible for killing the Joker; he tried so hard to carry off Ceasar Romero's voice, though by halfway through his first scene it was evident he didn't have the talent to carry it off.  Both William Salyers as Penguin and Wally Wingert as the Riddler just used their villains most recognisable vocal - so for the Penguin, it was "Wark!  Wark!  WARK!" and for the Ridler, it was his laugh.  One of the better vocals was Lynne Marie Stewart as Aunt Harriet and the worst voice was Thomas Lennon as Cheif O'Hara - If you thought Stafford Repp's "Begorrah" was bad just wait till you hear this one... I nearly hit stop at this point.

Then there was the story, though the plot and premise were solid it was the incidentals which spoilt it.  The constant in-jokes which parodied the original series got a little tiring.  The worse part was that most of the jokes just weren't funny.   Though, I did like the idea of this Batman going Dark Knight, though it could have been done much better.  One of the best parts of the story was when Batman see's three catwomen - Julie Newmar, Lee Merriwether and Eartha Kitt (her voice is spot on).

There are two heinous crimes that the writers and director Rick Morales cannot be forgiven for...

There is no Narrator's voice, "Meanwhile, back at stately Wayne Manor..."  He is there, but in such a limited manner they may as well not have used him at all.

Worse still Robin NEVER say's, "Atomic Batteries To Power; Turbines To Speed!"

On the whole, the animation is okay, though the CGI cars stand out, which isn't a good thing.  This is not one of Morales' best-directed films as the pace is all over the place and gives the movie a rambling and disorganised feeling.

I would stay away from this one if you're a Batman fan, especially of the cheesy '66 series.  Buy the original movie or rewatch the series as both are a hundred times better than this film.

Movie Review - Justice League: Doom

Justice League

Doom

2012

DC Entertainment / Warner Bros. Animation / Warner Premiere : Warner Home Video

9.25 / 10

This has to one of the best DC Stories of all time as it shows the Justice League has faults.

Here we have the ultimate bad guy Vandal Savage recruiting his crime syndicate to help him with his plan to defeat the Justice League so he can reign over the human race.  So who will help him to defeat the superhero team?

None other than Batman.

The story helps to give depth to The Batman as he's devised strategies to render the other members of the Justice League powerless, should they end up on the dark side, this is how far ahead the Dark Knight thinks.

The story is strong as DeWayne McDuffie has done a great adaptation of the comic book and Lauren Montgomery directs it just as strongly, keeping the pace fast and entertaining while allowing the characters to shine.

To be honest, there's not much wrong with this film.  I love the fact they decided to go with the known voices of Kevin Conroy as Batman, Tim Daly as Superman, Nathan Fillion as Green Lantern, who are the voices of the main characters who had their own series, then the rest of the voices are the actors from the original Justice League series; Susan Eisenberg as Wonder Woman, Carl Lumbly as The Martian Manhunter, and Michael Rosenbaum as The Flash, so right from the get-go you're in familiar territory.  This is one of the reasons the movie is so good.

If you like the DC Superhero's then this is one film you need to watch.

  

Movie Review - Justice League: War

Justice League

War

2014

DC Entertainment / Warner Bros. Animation / DC Comics : Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group / Warner Home Video

7.5 / 10

This is a strange little film in the fact that it has so much wrong with it... but it also has so much right.

So what's wrong?

Batman's voice.  There's just no conviction, power, or menace in it.  This is one of The Bat's main features, other than his lack of super powers.  It's one of the main talking points when a new Batman a character is cast.  Everybody loves Kevin Conroy from The Animated Series, I really liked Anthony Ruivivar in Beware The Batman (it has the best vocal talents of the Batman series), now Will Arnet has done a brilliant job in The Lego Batman Movie.  Unfortunately, Jason O'Mara doesn't do the character justice.

Cyborg's origin.  Though it follows the lines it's blue goo which I didn't like as it took the blame off his father, Silas Stone creating The Cyborg out of his dying son.  This made Victor Stone more a casualty of Darkseid's attack rather than the love of an estranged father.

The appearance of Shazam, who wasn't in the original story.  The choice to use Shazam instead of Aquaman, in my eyes, was not a good one.  Aquaman was instrumental in the defeat of Darkseid and his Parademons. There's also the brilliant scene when he has the whales and sharks erupt out of the ocean to devour the Parademons.

The Parademons.  I really do like the original design, the ones in the movie are too bulky and appear to be more machine than living entity.

What's right with the film?

The Green Lantern, voiced brilliantly by Justin Kirk, has the right amount of bravado and ego and his relationship with The Batman and The Flash helps to give the movie more power and a sense of humour.

Christopher Gorham does a great job of voicing The Flash and adds the joy and wonder that the character exudes in the comic.

Wonder Woman, though you don't know her origin story for the New 52 in the movie this could make her strong character feel a little strange, to begin with as she's like a child in a toy shop... if you knew that she's new to the real world after leaving Themiscyra would've helped there - however it's this scene which gives the character heart but as soon as the Parademons attack, her sword starts swinging and the no-nonsense female warrior we know and love come to the fore, and Michelle Monaghan who does a great job at voicing all aspects of the character.

Though the thing that really makes this film work is the story and the action, for which Director Jay Oliva does a great job.

These elements nullify the bad ones make the film enjoyable and watchable, though it isn't the best of the Justice League films.  Still worth a watch though.