A bloated, tonally conflicted and narratively woeful mess
The Flash was announced 10 years ago and a lot has changed since then. This film has been in production hell for a long time, sporting a revolving door of directors (along with even more that rejected taking the reigns), numerous script re-writes, release dates pushed back and ballooning budgets hitting upwards of over $300 million. And that’s before James Gunn’s announcement that all DC material right now mean nothing as it’s all being rebooted. Phew!
So with all that in mind, is The Flash worth the wait? Does it deliver what some are calling “the greatest superhero movie of all time”? Well… not really. The film isn’t outright terrible like something akin to Catwoman, but when your CW show tackling your titular character’s origin story does so with more panache and emotion, not to mention better CGI on a much tighter budget, then you’re in trouble. Oh, and Grant Gustin is a much better fit for Barry Allen too.
The story very, very loosely adapts the Flashpoint story from The Flash comics, but ultimately it uses nostalgia as bait to hide a lot of the flaws with this film – and there are a lot. Before we reach the atrocious CGI (which is, according to the Director, a “deliberate choice”) it’s worth exploring the story itself.
After an early action sequence, that includes Barry Allen saving a hospital and a whole bunch of CGI babies, he discovers that he can actually turn back time by running at super speed. Still haunted by the death of his mother, which his father was framed for with little evidence to exonerate him, Barry decides to turn back time and save his mum and stop her from being killed, inevitably saving his father in the process from his fate.
As a result of all this, Allen’s attempts end in disaster, as he creates a world without super heroes. The only trouble is, Zod is about to touch down on Earth, ready to cause absolute chaos. With time of the essence, Barry Allen heads back home and runs into his younger, more annoying self, and together they set out to save the future and right the wrongs inflicted by the older Allen.
The first hour or so moves at a snail pace, and if you thought one Ezra Miller was annoying, wait until you see two on screen. The pair are insufferably grating and the attempts at injecting Marvel-esque low-brow humour just does not work. It’s something that feels at odds with the narrative, which is largely serious and tackles yet another multiversal threat.
This ultimately stems back to the script itself, which is a tonal mess. There are moments here that are genuinely sentimental and very serious, but then they’re undercut with numerous crotch jokes or little physical gags to try and lighten the mood. Michael Keaton’s Batman does go some way to salvage the film, but he’s still a side character to Ezra’s two Flashes, who only really hit the right emotional buttons during the end of the movie during a pivotal moment in time.
But even beyond the narrative woes, the CGI in this film is bad. Like, really bad. Some people exaggerate when they say this but honestly, some of the scenes felt like rejected moments from The Scorpion King. The physics for a lot of these sequences are completely off-kilter too, with the rubbery feel of this being completely fake and springy, rather than the grounded, gritty feel of something like Man of Steel. Given the budget this film plays with, it feels absolutely inexcusable.
Those going into this expecting a lot of cameos will probably enjoy what’s here but unlike something akin to No Way Home, where each character compliments the narrative or does something to help our protagonists, The Flash cheapens everything by having different people just staring off into the distance in silence. It’s basically the “flashback store” in Multiverse of Madness all over again.
While this isn’t the worst superhero film ever created (Catwoman has re-entered the chat), it’s not a particularly good one either. In fact, it’s below average at best. It’s a bloated, tonally conflicted and narratively woeful mess that’s as much a disaster on-screen as it is behind the scenes. Skip this one.
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Verdict - 4/10
4/10
I don’t know about you, but I am a Marvel fan and I loved this one! My son definitely enjoyed the quirky moments of Barry Allen. Yes he was a bit too irreverent, but hey, that’s the character. Yes, this review is below the belt in my own opinion. Good points on some aspects of the movie, but definitely boarding on hating on the movie in general. IMO. thanks!
people like Scorp and AJ obviously dont know what a good movie is, and probibly think Catwoman is better than Wonderwoman because they like their movies stupid and with no logic or reason or nuance, which .perhaps explains their useless reviews as triggered Fanboys. This movie IS crap and IS garbage, from the annoying lead actor, the boring story, and atrocious CGI. As the reviewer said, ignore oh and ignore the fanboys as well, they don’t know good cinema even if it hit them on their acne-peppered faces.
There is nothing wrong with this movie at all….your obviously a dc hater lol … I really think the critics need to start getting reviewed .. most of them are just sarcastic fools trying to out do each other … it’s just a bunch of rambled sarcasm nonsense with no intellectual input … just like your review Garbage …
Your review sucks but that’s YOUR opinion. It’s certainly better than the latest Marvel films and I’ve always looked down on DC. The Flash is actually better than Zach Snyder’s Justice League.