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The Flash - Film Review
Sep. 3rd, 2023 09:15 amFinally got around to seeing The Flash via Streamings "MAX" channel.
It was eventually coming to MAX anyhow, since it was produced and distributed by HBO and Warner Brothers. Surprisingly enough, I enjoyed it far more than I thought I would. From reviews, I expected it to be gadawful, but it's not a bad film.
In case you are living under a cultural rock - this was the film that bombed this year at the box office, and has been touted as the worst superhero film ever. (It's not - that's an exaggeration. Apparently a lot of folks have not seen most of the superhero flicks released in the 1980s-roughly the early part of the 21st century? There's a lot of bad superhero flicks to choose from. Many of which are unwatchable. Far worse than this, actually this was surprisingly enough not all that bad. The millennials are spoiled in regards to superhero action flicks. You want to see a truly bad superhero action flick? Check out Superman: the Quest for Peace. I saw that at an outdoor theater in Wales in the 1980s, and we spent the entire film making fun of it. It is the worst superhero film I've seen. Granted - I've not seen the latest Fantastic Four - which I'm told was pretty bad, but I still think Quest for Peace reigns as the worst superhero film.)
I went into this with really low expectations. But it was surprisingly good in places, and not quite as bad as I was lead to believe. The CGI was actually better than Guardians of the Galaxy, which gave me a headache. And I found the movie to be less busy, and less head-ache inducing than say, Suicide Squad, and the CGI battle held together slightly better than Whedon's Justice League or again Guardians - which had too much going on, and got choppy.
The problem with CGI in any movie - is less is more. If you use too much of it, it starts looking a bit fake and like a video game. Also, you need a really good film editor, who can cut well between the action sequences. And it's best not to use it for actors - or too much with them.
That was the biggest problem with the film - it needed a better film editor and should have been a bit more sparing with CGI, although I admittedly felt the same way about Guardians of the Galaxy, Black Adam, and Suicide Squad. What distinguished the Flash from those - was it was a bit choppier in places, and they used CGI too much with actors and supporting players.
( spoilers )
Overall? A solid C film, or two and half to three stars. Enjoyable but nothing to rave about (I wouldn't necessarily want to pay for it), and certainly not nearly as bad as everyone is claiming. But it should be noted, I'm not a huge Flash fan, and this iteration of the Flash, I like better than the Television Series versions (which I've given up on at various points). Ezra Miller may be an asshole with serious issues, but he can act and manages to carry off the role effectively. Same is true with Keaton and Sarah Callis, who both pull off their roles fairly well.
No, the main problem was the clumsy use of CGI. And the clumsy plot points - both trying to reboot the universe so that DC can recast the big roles and go in a different direction.
It was eventually coming to MAX anyhow, since it was produced and distributed by HBO and Warner Brothers. Surprisingly enough, I enjoyed it far more than I thought I would. From reviews, I expected it to be gadawful, but it's not a bad film.
In case you are living under a cultural rock - this was the film that bombed this year at the box office, and has been touted as the worst superhero film ever. (It's not - that's an exaggeration. Apparently a lot of folks have not seen most of the superhero flicks released in the 1980s-roughly the early part of the 21st century? There's a lot of bad superhero flicks to choose from. Many of which are unwatchable. Far worse than this, actually this was surprisingly enough not all that bad. The millennials are spoiled in regards to superhero action flicks. You want to see a truly bad superhero action flick? Check out Superman: the Quest for Peace. I saw that at an outdoor theater in Wales in the 1980s, and we spent the entire film making fun of it. It is the worst superhero film I've seen. Granted - I've not seen the latest Fantastic Four - which I'm told was pretty bad, but I still think Quest for Peace reigns as the worst superhero film.)
I went into this with really low expectations. But it was surprisingly good in places, and not quite as bad as I was lead to believe. The CGI was actually better than Guardians of the Galaxy, which gave me a headache. And I found the movie to be less busy, and less head-ache inducing than say, Suicide Squad, and the CGI battle held together slightly better than Whedon's Justice League or again Guardians - which had too much going on, and got choppy.
The problem with CGI in any movie - is less is more. If you use too much of it, it starts looking a bit fake and like a video game. Also, you need a really good film editor, who can cut well between the action sequences. And it's best not to use it for actors - or too much with them.
That was the biggest problem with the film - it needed a better film editor and should have been a bit more sparing with CGI, although I admittedly felt the same way about Guardians of the Galaxy, Black Adam, and Suicide Squad. What distinguished the Flash from those - was it was a bit choppier in places, and they used CGI too much with actors and supporting players.
( spoilers )
Overall? A solid C film, or two and half to three stars. Enjoyable but nothing to rave about (I wouldn't necessarily want to pay for it), and certainly not nearly as bad as everyone is claiming. But it should be noted, I'm not a huge Flash fan, and this iteration of the Flash, I like better than the Television Series versions (which I've given up on at various points). Ezra Miller may be an asshole with serious issues, but he can act and manages to carry off the role effectively. Same is true with Keaton and Sarah Callis, who both pull off their roles fairly well.
No, the main problem was the clumsy use of CGI. And the clumsy plot points - both trying to reboot the universe so that DC can recast the big roles and go in a different direction.
