| The Flash (2023) | |
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Rating: 6.7/10 (209,996 votes) Director: Andy Muschietti Writer: Christina Hodson, John Francis Daley, Jonathan Goldstein Stars: Ezra Miller, Michael Keaton, Sasha Calle Runtime: 144 min Rated: PG-13 Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy Released: 16 Jun 2023 |
| Plot: Barry Allen uses his super speed to change the past, but his attempt to save his family creates a world without super heroes, forcing him to race for his life in order to save the future. | |
Andy Muschetti’s entry into the collapsing DCEU is finally here after a lot of delays and reports of tweaks and editing to bring it more in line with the upcoming future of DC on film. How much of that is true remains to be seen, as James Gunn has said this was already finished long before he took control of the DC slate. What it certainly is, however, is a film that closes the Snyder chapter of the films via a multiverse event movie, allowing anything next to be whatever it wants to be.
The film throws itself right into the action with an opening scene that sees Barry assist Bruce when a gang of criminals cause damage in Gotham during a heist for a deadly toxin. Allowing us to see a now quite confident Flash – at least in abilities – to showcase his control of the speed-force energies in a spectacular saving of lives as a medical facility collapses. Meanwhile, in his personal life, Barry is preparing for his father’s upcoming court appeal, hoping to get the conviction that he had killed his mother quashed, but in frustration at some news, Barry races faster than he ever has before, and realizes that he can actually reverse time. Bruce warns him of the consequences, but Barry chooses to go back and prevent his mother from being killed. But a small change has a startling result, and Barry now faces the possibility that all of reality may have been destroyed through his actions.
Let’s get the bad out the way first – the CGI at times throughout is disturbingly bad. The opening excitement of Barry’s saving of lives is let down by some freakishly disturbing CGI models of babies that would strike terror into even the most hardened of Silent Hill gamers! Some moments throughout seem stunning in concept, but are given similar oddly rendered CGI treatment. His ‘time-bubble-stadium’ (a substitute for the silliness of the treadmill in the comics) is a marvelously designed element, but at times looks freakishly cartoony as a result.
Still, that aside, I had tons of fun throughout. The humor mostly lands, and the story – despite being quite convoluted at moments – flows well enough to keep audiences on board. Throw in a solid emotional core, with Barry’s trauma at losing his mother being a major factor, it just about compensates for the CGI failings.
But what then lifts this film up more is the performances. Miller shines in the dual role as two versions of Barry, both still with that twitchy, awkward humor, but one more grounded in sorrow, using the humor to cover up his broken heart, whilst the other is free from the anxieties that losing his mother would have given him and is more excitable. Yes, at times the mannerisms get annoying, but the film knows this, and even acknowledges it directly, allowing Barry to see how he comes across to others, and even growing past that aspect as the film progresses. Ezra delivers perfectly on all aspects of the character, and certainly scores on the emotional depth of the character – I defy anyone to not feel something during the moments between he and his mother.
But, with the marketing being focused on Michael Keaton and Sasha Calle as a returning Batman, do they live up to the parts, or are they mere sidelined cameos? Well, you will be pleased to know that both are given enough to do, and form a huge chunk of the film, with Keaton stepping back into the role with ease, and proving that he is still the best on screen Batman. With his range of gadgets, and fighting skills, his involvement feels perfect. Calle as Supergirl plays a tortured and traumatized approach, herself a victim of loss, and absolutely sticks the landing. If this is to be the only time we see these characters in the new DC it will be a shame, but it will also be enough to know that we had them all together this once. Let’s not forget the Ben Affleck moments that open the film, showcasing Batman in a way that makes us wonder what we could have got had the ball not been so spectacularly fumbled in recent history. In fact, the only real let-down of the support is Michael Shannon’s Zod who lacks the menace he displayed in Man of Steel, and is clearly just phoning in his part.
There are plenty of surprises, particularly in the final act, and whilst the closing scene plays jokey with a tease of the possible future of DC (although I read it as a final closing joke for the old regime before we switch to a new reality), a post credits scene which seems frivolous on the surface actually may be more important thanks to a throwaway line.
The Flash isn’t perfect by any means, but it is comic-book fun that leans heavily into the comic stylings and delivers a crowd pleasing summer blockbuster.
