After almost so long, we have finally gotten The Flash movie in theaters. After nine seasons of television, a direct to disc Animated film, and even a Lego movie. The film starring Ezra Miller as Barry Allen has finally been given to the world. A movie that we’ve been told from the studio is such a good movie. A great film, one that can hold together their whole summer for Warner’s century-long anniversary and make them THE BAG. A movie that, even with all the Reverse Flash-like behavior of its star so that they can’t even do promotion. A movie that wasn’t scrapped or hidden away for a tax write-off. I have seen it, and I’m more than disappointed. I’m pissed. Underneath all the forced buddy movie humor with an actor playing against himself along with flashy CG created set piece after set piece and relying on nostalgia for an almost 35-year-old Batman movie, I don’t know what I just watched, but I do know this ain’t IT and I feel like my time was wasted.
The Flash begins with Barry Allen (Ezra Miller), now with a new suit and an established younger member of the Justice League, and isn’t completely happy with his place in the team as basically being Batman (Ben Affleck version) and Alfred’s (Jeremy Irons) little homie, his need to be taken more seriously is shelved when his dad’s appeal court date nears. After talking to his crush Iris West (Kiersey Clemons), he has the idea to go back in time and subtly change things so that his mother, Nora (Maribel Verdú), doesn’t die. Now I’m sorry that this spoils you a bit; I wanted to be a bit clear here so that people know it isn’t exactly like the plot of season three of the CW series or the comic story that inspired both. After he changes things, he ends up at the same time as when he was in college, but this time his mother is alive. After seeing that this world is in danger from the bad guys from Man of Steel but with no Superman, Barry decides that he must save this world from the Zod (Michael Shannon) and his Kryptonian invaders with a new Justice League.
This movie shows a lot more, with some of the surprises revealed by the filmmakers themselves. While the movie works hard to communicate its emotional core, the path, and the journey don’t make much sense. I sat there just wondering why I’m watching Barry do what he does as he screws up everything and does things that don’t make much sense other than they didn’t want to repeat anything in the TV show. I’ll be honest I was never a fan of Flashpoint by Geoff Johns and Andy Kubert, even though I think it worked as a DC comics event that led to a pretty big mistake of execution of a hard reboot. Yet while I didn’t care for it, I understood everything going on in it from beat to beat, and here there’s a pivotal moment where Barry’s journey is hampered that didn’t pay off one bit, and it was handled flatly in the climax that left me wondering what was everything for. It felt like a really bad message or even a version of the selfishness of our hero at such a high cost. I felt like, is this a superhero movie? There’s a waste of talent, like Michael Shannon, that I can’t say was not working, but he didn’t have much to do. Sasha Calle, as Supergirl, looks great, and I feel she puts some good emotion and performance in what feels like, in the end, was a waste of the Maid of Might that doesn’t actually make sense when you think about the event of Man of Steel. There’s no real antagonist in this film other than Barry himself, and I don’t mean one of the physical Barry’s but his own choices but not in some deeper way exploring heroism or even the idea of speed powers; it just didn’t worry or want to put that work in. The film just feels like it wants to show The Flash running looking cool and Supergirl and Batman looking cool as they fight. Hey, we have Michael Keaton as a CG character doing a mash-up of Arkham City fighting with his movie-style fighting, and I guess I’m supposed to be impressed. I’m not; I was bored as hell.
Now quickly, let me say Michael Keaton is great; he’s been great and is on a current run of performances that he is killing right now. Ain’t nothing on him or Sasha. I feel that a Flash movie should’ve been smaller in scale and something dealing with the Rogues as a group. It’s something the show or animated series never dealt with that is a core part of the comics. With a movie so focused on treading the ground of time travel and then trying to merge into the Multiverse climax, it just ends up falling flat and falling flat hard. This might work for some, and the CG and slow-mo looks ok, and seeing Michael Keaton is cool, but that doesn’t make a great story or a strong film. That also becomes apparent with other superhero movies out there in this same season, really knocking it out of the park. I think the Flash deserves better than this, and I think the audience deserves better from the studio than to be out here fronting like this is a new classic when it’s barely a good TNT replay movie to watch after a mid-season NBA game in January.
Score: C-
Writer’s note: No one read this like I’m some DCEU hater. I’ve defended a ton of these movies. I’ve enjoyed some of the Snyder stuff and many of the Hamada-era projects. I’ve given many passes and said that many of the MCU really isn’t that better than the DC movies. An opinion that many do not share at all. I’m biased toward DC more than anything, but fanservice does not a good movie make. DC has some of the best overall and most copied Superhero stories of all time, yet with all the talk and hype, this is what we’ve gotten. I know the worlds and versions, and I’m pretty accepting, but this felt like a slap in the face.
