Leading off the theatrical and streaming release trend over at HBO Max, Wonder Woman 1984 was a gift we all received on Christmas Day. Good thing we kept the receipt because it was a festive disappointment.
Let’s talk about some of the film’s issues regarding Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) and Cheetah (Kristen Wiig).
Cheetah deserved better.
As a character, Cheetah got very little screen time. We weren’t able to get enough of her to see the actual growth from Barbara to Cheetah. It all happens off-screen.
Cheetah as a DC character has god-like powers herself and that paired with her intellect make her a great foil for Diana. They even have similar origin stories! (Of course this is the most recent change to Cheetah’s backstory.)
In Barbara’s backstory it’s revealed that she grew up in a cult called Amazonia, where she learned that life was a hunt and every person was a rival or prey. Just that brief look into Barbara’s past gives us the perfect set up as Diana’s arch nemesis.
Two strong women with opposing values from Matriarchal societies. I’m so surprised Patty Jenkins did not explore this. Instead she gave us a pretty shallow film where Barbara is reduced to an unattractive (??) expert in antiquities who, get this … can walk in heels *gasp!*
You can’t be attractive unless you walk in heels, ladies!
That’s how you know you’re a bona fide hottie. This leads Barbara to wish she was pretty and confident like Diana, who walks in heels by-the-way. How is that empowering?
This is made worse by the fact that they go overboard with showing how much more attractive Diana is compared to her and literally every other woman. All in all, Cheetah deserved better for her debut on the big screen, she’s a staple member of the Hall of Doom! She sits at the same table as Vandal Savage, Lex Luthor, Giganta, and Killer Frost. Put some respect on her name!
Now, Diana as a character in this film is unrecognizable at times. A WWI veteran and actual goddess and she chooses to only take on small crimes? Mini mall robberies and people falling off of park bridges?? DAFUQ!!??
A lot has happened in the world from WWI… like fucking WWII!! Did Diana seriously not want to fight Nazis in Germany and save lives? That’s an extreme isolationist approach to being a superhero. Which kind of paints her as a shitty superhero. Is she too busy to care about the lives of people outside of her bubble? This is even taken to the next level when she first meets Barbara. They of course have the ‘nerdy-girl-meets-hot-girl’ awkward dialogue. The worst part is that Diana actually plays into it. She has zero interests in talking with Barbara. Which is fine, you don’t have to give people your time if you don’t want to. It’s just hella disrespectful that Diana blows off Barbara only to then engage with her once she sees that Barbara gets to look at an artifact she wants to check out. Then, once Diana has what she needs from Barbara she has very little interaction with her, except when she wants something or is lecturing her. Aside from her inability to relate to people, the film throws in two powers that don’t appear in the Justice League movie. A film that chronologically takes place in the past. We get flight, which is activated when Steve dies (he’s two for two) and she can apparently turn shit invisible…. Where was this for the Mother Boxes Diana!? Would have been mighty helpful against CGI Nightmare man.
This movie was disappointing to watch, especially after the first film kicked ass. The villains felt flat, Diana had very few Wonder Woman moments, and the use of the dreamstone was absolutely confusing. If they plan on doing Cheetah again my hope is they give her more agency and more time to shine. There is so much material to pull from and Patty can absolutely direct her ass off. Hopefully this was just a trip up and she’ll stick the landing for Wonder Woman 3.
Marlin’s Rating Break Down for Wonder Woman 1984: 3/10
1 for Kristen Wiig’s performance
.5 for the Lynda Carter cameo
1 for the humanizing Goodbye scene with Diana and Steve
.5 for the badass truck flip scene
You’re not missing much, watch the first film and forget this one exists.
