Review: Black Adam

Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson’s first foray into the DCEU isn’t just about making a fun and profitable ‘Black Adam’ movie for the studio, it might very well be about saving the entire DC Extended Universe.

This may not be Dwayne Johnson’s first time playing an antihero from Ancient Egypt given superpowers and returning from the dead (The Scorpion King).  But, you can feel the effort he puts into playing ‘Teth-Adam’ and the financial realities if Black Adam fails at the box office.

The Plot – Black Adam

Thousands of years ago, a hero rose in the Middle Eastern country of Kahndaq.

His powers came from The Counsel Of Wizards, just like Shazam!, but in much different times.

Teth-Adam comes from a time of brutal working conditions as Kahndaq’s king forces his people into slavery to mine for a rare element.  One boy decides to stand up to his oppressors and inspire his people to rebel.

The Counsel sees the boy’s bravery and gives him the magical powers to fight and defeat his overlord.  But, as the people gain freedom and the overlord loses, Teth-Adam disappears, along with a powerful crown made out of the rare element.

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Centuries later, an oppression of another kind settles over Kahndaq, this time in the form of Intergang.  Checkpoints dot the country as citizens are forced to show ID just to go to and from work.

The name of the oppressor has changed, but the fight remains the same.  Now, Adrianna Tomaz, played by Sarah Shahi leads the fight for freedom, which ultimately leads to Black Adam.

Once Black Adam is free, Amanda Waller and the Justice Society become aware of his awakening.

Waller sends Justice Society members Doctor Fate, played by Pierce Brosnan; Hawk Man, played by Aldis Hodge; Atom Smasher, played by Noah Centineo, and Cyclone, played by Quintessa Swindell to confront and apprehend the ancient being.

Once in Kahndaq, the Justice Society’s goals confuse, once they meet Black Adam, and learn why he awoke.

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The Good – Black Adam

Story And Storytelling

Without giving anything away, the story told in Black Adam is unlike anything told in the DCEU, or even the DCEU before.

Director Jaume Collet-Serra previously worked with Dwayne Johnson on Disney’s ‘Jungle Cruise’.  This may be a far cry from ‘Black Adam’, but you can feel Collet-Serra’s experience working with him come out on the big screen.

The resulting fast moving film, barely two hours in length, feels like two and a half to three hours worth of story.

Collet-Serra keeps the audience guessing, and manages to keep the story from feeling derivative or predictable.  There’s also a simple emotional truth behind Black Adam’s motivations, that doesn’t immediately come to the fore, but can be felt from the get go.

The Story and the Storytelling go hand in hand in this case, revealing nicely as the film goes along.  The reveals are natural, but not telegraphed; with a fresh energy from Dwayne Johnson in the lead role.

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Justice Society Of America

While it feels like we should have had a Justice Society movie BEFORE Black Adam to introduce all the new characters and the backstory of the organization; the JSA story element juxtaposes nicely with Black Adam’s go-it-alone nature.

Having never heard of three of the four J.S.A. characters before, this was a fresh take on superhero groups and the inner dynamics of them as they fight for a common cause.

Aldis Hodge’s ‘Hawkman’ acts as defacto leader of the small team, which includes elder statesman Doctor Fate, and two younger members in Atom Smasher and Cyclone going on at least one of their first missions.

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The Bad

The CGI

This is a recurring complaint of mine with the DCEU.  And, while there’s not much that can be done about the existence of CGI until the ‘uncanny valley’ can be easily crossed with technology at some point in the far distant future (sorry, I’ve harped on this many times before), I will say that MOST of the CGI at least matches the Production Design standards for this movie.

By this, I mean the CGI in Black Adam doesn’t look anywhere near realistic or ‘good’, but it does have a relatively coherent look with the live action elements of the film.

That being said, many of the animations for Hawkman’s wings and doors opening, etc. do suffer the look and feel of the film as the movement and timing don’t feel natural with the rest of the movie.

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The Villain

Most of the conflict in Black Adam doesn’t involve a ‘Big Bad’, per se.  Rather, most of the conflict is between hero and anti-hero, leaving the true bad guys on the sidelines for most of the film.

So, when we finally get to a proper villain, the conflict feels a bit anticlimactic. The rest of the film peaked much earlier.  I choose to see this as mostly a victory for the rest of the film, rather than a particular weakness.  But, I believe Black Adam would have been even stronger with a well defined villain. And, Black Adam and the Justice Society could have united against him.

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The Review – Black Adam

While still keeping up the darker film aesthetic of the already established DCEU, Black Adam keeps it mostly lighter in tone and a FUN.  And, it keeps an optimistic view on the world, even with a gruff exterior to the characters and story.

The characters within the movie take the story and action seriously. But, the audience can sit back and enjoy a rather fun movie that doesn’t revolve around characters constantly lamenting themselves and each other, like many DCEU films.

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The CGI is a bit ‘Cringe’ as the kids say, but fits in with the rest of the production design. So, it doesn’t stick out like a sore thumb.

Dwayne Johnson’s SECOND time playing a cursed warrior with magical powers from the Middle East brought back from the dead goes well, and somehow doesn’t feel derivative of The Scorpion King.

Aldis Hodge brings a hard edge exterior to Hawkman. Also, Pierce Brosnan brings his James Bond gravitas to Doctor Fate. His Doctor Fate still manages an inner logical consistency without much of a character introduction.

Bodhi Sabongui does a great job as the quintessential optimistic boy at the center of the story, who keeps the adults from giving up and provides the audience with a partial P.O.V. character from which to take in the rather fantastical elements of the Black Adam story.

Strong Casting overcomes a lack of character development for supporting characters. And, glaringly obvious DC to Marvel Comics comparisons that are impossible to ignore.  Some pretty obvious Iron Man, Black Panther, X-Men, and Deadpool comparisons from the trailers alone come to mind. But, they can be overlooked by the quality of storytelling and energy brought by The Rock.

Solid flick, and fun from beginning to the end.  Never once do you roll your eyes at yet another Zach Snyder character wallowing in his own self loathing.

Not a perfect film by any stretch, but worth watching in theaters. Consider a matinee or Tuesday night discount night out.

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