BECKLEY, WV (LOOTPRESS) – Black Adam, the latest vehicle for DC Comics as well as world’s-most-likable-movie-star Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson premiered on Friday to varying critical and commercial reception.
Despite what feels like genuine effort on the part of many of the parties involved, Black Adam ends up more-or-less falling in line with the bombardment of like-minded superhero films moviegoers have been subjected to in recent years, and lends credence to the unfortunately appropriate adage that: If you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all. More than anything, this latest entry feels like a missed opportunity.
The film benefits from a committed performance from Johnson, who brings a knowing stoicism to the anti-hero’s ‘doesn’t play well with others’ demeanor – A far cry from both the amiable “world’s most lovable meathead” shtick that has made Johnson the most bankable movie star in the world, as well as the charismatic, impetuous trash-talk of The People’s Champ of the Attitude Era days during Johnson’s run as a top WWE superstar.
While much of the unassailable charisma that colors all that to which ‘The Rock’ devotes his attention is understandably withheld throughout Black Adam for the sake of the character’s development, a certain denomination of moviegoer will undoubtedly leave the theater feeling slighted at having been denied the familiar shtick associated with each of Johnson’s roles – the same shtick that has evoked many a complaint from other sectors of moviegoer who are quick to accuse big-personality stars of “playing the same character” in each film.
Johnson’s resolute commitment to the source material and to Black Adam as a blockbuster entry into the broader comic book film vernacular functions simultaneously as one of the film’s greatest strengths and biggest hindrances.
Johnson’s devotion to bringing to the big screen the figure that meant so much to himself as a child of color so as to further establish mainstream pop culture representation for others who may feel similarly alienated today is beyond admirable.
The actor has been notoriously adamant about the seeing through of the production, even going as far as to step into a producer role himself, purportedly putting a significant amount of his own money into the production and standing firm against studio executives who did not see the project as a probable financial success.
By that token, the project is given space to be all that it can be within the scope of the DC Cinematic Universe, indirectly tying it to a much bigger problem: the DC Cinematic Universe.
Marvel established the format years ago and has since been faithfully churning out new entities into the superhero film genre, each fitting just as snuggly into the lore established by preceding films like a meticulously anticipated Tetris block.
DC, in an effort to replicate the immense commercial success of the format, attempted the forging of a similar path, but the excursion felt disjointed from the very beginning.
With the seemingly perpetual disarray of drama surrounding the involvement of director Zack Snyder, along with the revolving door of leading men stepping into the Batsuit over the past decade, and the wildly fluctuating appeal of the films set in the DC Cinematic Universe themselves, DC has built a suitably successful assemblage or films which somewhat work in conjunction with one another.
Still, one can’t help but feel that each entry would benefit greatly from liberation from the shackles of the single cinematic universe format, and Black Adam is no exception.
All the potential set forth by top-notch performances from Johnson and company – Pierce Brosnan is exceptional – is greatly inhibited by the confines of what studios and audiences alike have come to expect from superhero films.
Rather than being endowed with the freedom to tell its own story, Black Adam gets crammed into the same box as sister films like Suicide Squad and Aquaman.
The inclusion of Viola Davis’ Amanda Waller and a certain extraterrestrial being who will remain unnamed serve to underscore the association, which admittedly makes for great surface-level fan service. But it’s also indicative of what fans can expect from the latest big-name comic book film entry: more of the same.
Black Adam thankfully doesn’t dilly dally too long with the inevitable origin story, though it does occupy a good chunk of the film’s first leg. But there’s an origin story nonetheless, because of course there is.
Origin story? Check. Silly side character responsible for the comedic relief? Check. ‘The end of the world is nigh’ angle? Check. Almost laughably forgettable generic supervillain briefly gains the upper hand before the big comeback at which point he’s crushed by the hero? Check, check, and check.
The format has become just that: a format. Storytelling and filmmaking have been tossed to the wayside, as these days you can insert a few established characters and some half-baked dialogue into the comic book cookie cutter machine and there you have it: another bright, loud, soulless spectacle with nothing to say and nowhere to go.
If anything, Matt Reeves’ The Batman, also released this year, acts as a greater indication of what DC, and the superhero film genre as a whole, should be aspiring to. The standalone project moves more organically, unencumbered by the commercial and decidedly unartistic expectations set in place all those years ago when Marvel changed the game, so to speak.
Black Adam, like most of its contemporaries in the genre, is serviceable, and even engaging at times. But ultimately, it’s just the latest in what feels like an endless series of superhero films that play more like reheated leftovers than anything resembling a new and/or interesting dish.
Upcoming showtimes for Black Adam can be found here.