[NOTE: Review contains SPOILERS]

Aquaman has always been something of a punchline among the comic book community, but Geoff Johns’ reinterpretation of the King of the Sea as part of DC’s New 52 is a refreshing, smart, and eye opening experience. Johns’ Throne of Atlantis arc put Arthur Curry a.k.a. Aquaman in the center of a large story that is Shakespearean in nature and would change people’s opinion of the character if the issues leading up to it hadn’t done so already. So when the end credit sequence of Justice League: War promoted Throne of Atlantis, I couldn’t wait for the world to see the real Aquaman. Unfortunately, it is with a heavy heart that I say that the movie is neither true to the character – nor is it actually very good.

A submarine is attacked by unknown forces in the Mariana Trench and the weapons of mass destruction on board go missing, prompting The Justice League to get involved. Their investigation takes them to the lost city of Atlantis where the WMD’s have been used against the Atlantean people. Orm sees this as act of war and plans to respond accordingly, but the Queen of Atlantis believes her other son Arthur (a.k.a. Aquaman) will be able to mend the relationship between the people of the land and sea before a war breaks out.

It’s hard to talk about Justice League: Throne of Atlantis without discussing the comics because this movie is effectively a crude summary of Geoff Johns’ epic crossover event, and is loosely based on the source material. If Jay Oliva was still around, I have no doubt that he would have been able to do this story justice (no pun intended), but as it stands, this is a disappointing, cut-down version of the event.

In the comics, Arthur Curry is already the King of Atlantis, so it was interesting to see a quasi-origin story, but director Ethan Spaudling’s improper balance of The Justice League and the Atlanteans’ storyline causes Aquaman to get lost in the shuffle. Likewise, characters essential to Aquaman’s lore like The Trench, Dr. Shin, and Black Manta are all haphazardly thrown into the mix without a proper introduction.  In fact, one of the only things the writers did a good job with was the introduction of Atlantis through Wonder Woman’s knowledge of Greek mythology.

Both the scale and stakes of the story are minuscule compared to the comics – and even the previous Justice League films. In the comics, tidal waves wreak havoc on Metropolis and Gotham and the league is unable to save everyone. Once the war for the surface begins, the League calls for reinforcements and it’s a who’s who of heroes including Element Woman, Green Arrow, Black Lighting, Shazam!, Hawkman, Vixen, Zatanna, Goldrush, Black Canary, and Firestorm. The film on the other hand has an anticlimactic conclusion that fails to showcase any of Aquaman’s strengths.

The movie is rated PG-13 and, much like its predecessor Justice League: War, can’t seem to find the right balance between campy and gratuitous violence. Green Lantern at one point is riding around in a vacuum mech suit that looks like something out of the Lego Movie (awesome, right? well, not really…) and in the same breath you have Mera, a supporting character, whose murderous methods put her in the spotlight more than her future king and husband, but I digress. Language is also another factor before letting the kids watch this one.

Newcomer Matt Lanter voices Aquaman/Arthur Curry and joins most of the cast from Justice League: War with Sean Astin as Shazam, Christopher Gorham as The Flash, Shemar Moore as Cyborg, and Jason O’Mara as Batman. Heavy hitters include Nathan Fillion as Green Lantern, Rosario Dawson as Wonder Woman, and Jerry O’Connell as Superman. It was surprising to see Michael Rosenbaum’s name in the credits as “Drift Leader” instead of something of more importance like, say, reprising his role as The Flash. Harry Lennix is a wonderful addition as Black Manta. It’s a shame Lennix has a role in DC cinematic universe as General Swanwick because he’d be a fantastic Black Manta.

Note: Be sure to stay through the credits for the button scene, which I suspect has something to do with Forever Evil. If that’s the case, then I’m worried since it’s a much larger story than Throne of Atlantis, and given the struggles here, things definitely doesn’t bode well for its prospects. They should consider adapting the story for a mini-series, rather than trying to cram it into a single movie.

The next film on Warner Bros schedule is Batman vs Robin film. I hope Jay Oliva directs; The Court of Owls is another modern story that redefines a familiar character. But it’s interesting to see how DC’s animated films seem to be putting their flash ship characters (Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman) on the sidelines and how it relates to future projects. For example Flashpoint Paradox put Barry Allen a.k.a. The Flash in the spotlight and a year later he has his own TV series on The CW (which I highly recommend). Last year Batman: Assault on Arkham gave us a look at what a Suicide Squad movie could look like and David Ayer’s live adaptation is slated for 2016. Expect some sort of update on the Aquaman movie (2018) to coincide with the home release of Justice League: Throne of Atlantis.

Rating: 2/5.

Justice League: Throne of Atlantis goes on sale January 27th.

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The writer of this piece is: Laurence Almalvez
Laurence has previously written over at Whatculture.com.
Laurence tweets from @IL1511

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