Wonder Woman 1984 4K/Blu Ray Review (Warner Bros)
Wonder Woman 1984 (aKa WW84 and Wonder Woman 2) is a 2020 American superhero film co-written, produced, and directed by Patty Jenkins (Wonder Woman, Monster, Arrested Development, and The Killing). It’s based off the DC Comics character and it’s a direct sequel to 2017’s Wonder Woman. It was co-written by Geoff Johns (The Flash, Stargirl, Titans, Aquaman, and Arrow) and Dave Callaham (Mortal Kombat, The Expendables franchise, Doom, Zombieland: Double Tap, and Godzilla). It was produced by Zack Snyder (Wonder Woman, Suicide Squad, Aquaman, 300: Rise of an Empire, and Sucker Punch). It was released in theaters and HBO Max on the same day. The budget was $200 million and it grossed $165.9 million at the box office. A sequel and a spin off is currently in development for this superhero franchise!!!!
A young Diana Prince participates in an athletic event on Themyscira against older Amazons trying to impress Hippolyta (played by: Connie Nielsen from Wonder Woman, Justice League, Gladiator, and Basic). After falling from her horse, Diana takes a shortcut and remounts but misses a checkpoint. Antiope (played by: Robin Wright from Wonder Woman, Justice League, House of Cards, and Forrest Gump) removes her from the competition, explaining anything worthwhile must be obtained honestly. In 1984, Diana (played by: Gal Gadot from Fast and Furious franchse, Wonder Woman, Justice League, and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice) works at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C. while secretly performing heroic deeds as Wonder Woman. New museum employee Barbara Minerva (played by: Kristen Wiig from Saturday Night Live, Ghostbusters, Bridesmaids, and Paul), a shy geologist and cryptozoologist is barely seen by her co-workers. She comes to envy Diana after seeing how others react to her. Later, the FBI asks the museum to identify stolen antiquities from a robbery that Wonder Woman recently stopped. They notice one item, later identified as the Dreamstone, contains a Latin inscription claiming to grant the holder one wish.
Barbara wishes to become like Diana but acquires the same superpowers while Diana unknowingly wishes for her deceased lover Steve Trevor (played by: Chris Pine from Star Trek franchise, Wonder Woman, Hell or High Water, and Smokin’ Aces) to be alive. It resurrects her former lover in another man’s body. Struggling businessman and TV personality Maxwell “Max Lord” Lorenzano (played by: Pedro Pascal from Game of Thrones, The Mandalorian, Kingsman: The Golden Circle, and Narcos) tricks Barbara into letting hime borrow the Dreamstone. He is desperate and hoping to use its power to save his bankrupt oil company. He wishes to “become” the stone and gains its wish-granting powers. He creates chaos and destruction as his powers trigger worldwide instability on others. Barbara, Diana, and Steve discover that the Dreamstone was created by Dolos/Mendacius (Duke of Deception), the god of mischief. It grants a user’s wish while exacting a toll unless they renounce the wish or destroy the stone. Diana and Barbara both suffer from this but both are unwilling to renounce their wishes. Max uses the the U.S. President and national spotlight to use his powers to help his deteriorating body get back to normal health. Barbara fully transforms into the powerful Cheetah and she teams up with Max Lord to fight Wonder Woman. Diana must sacrifice her love and wish to regain her powers to defeat the deadly duo to save the world. Can she do it before it’s too late????
Wonder Woman 1984 is not as good as the original film but it’s still a good sequel. I think Wonder Woman 1984 is about 30 minutes too long and it could use some editing but besides that I had lots of fun with this follow up. Just a warning, this is more of a Diana Prince feature than Wonder Woman. She doesn’t do much as the superhero until the last half of 1984. Those who are excited about finally seeing a live action version of supervillain Cheetah might be a little disappointed because it’s mainly Barbara Minerva here and Cheetah at the finale. I think people are were too little harsh on this one. I enjoyed the script, concept, and story for the most part. It dragged a little bit but like I said before I think it was a little too long and it kinda felt more like a extended cut than a theatrical version. It had some solid action and fight scenes. It had a nice balance of drama and comedy also. Gal Gadot is great as the lead character here and I think she personally gets better and better each time that she does this iconic role.
I know lots of people were disappointed with the main villain here Max Lord. I actually loved the fact that he reminded me of a supervillain version of the Wishmaster. Pedro Pascal steals the show here as the desperate businessman that will do anything to get back on top and prove to his son that he is not a loser. This was my favorite performance in Wonder Woman 1984. Max Lord is barely used in any DC Comics material and rather unknown compared to all the other baddies in the popular universe. Kristen Wiig was better than expected in this. She would have been my personal top choice for the awesome Cheetah character but honestly she was mainly Barbara Minerva in this which fit her perfect. This had a good supporting cast that includes Chris Pine, Connie Nielsen, Robin Wright, and a great surprise cameo after the end credits. I am shocked that they didn’t capitalize on the 80’s here when it came to music. The soundtrack was solid but it should have been amazing considering when this takes place. This could have been better but I think it’s still a good entry in the DC Comics extended universe. This one that you should watch for yourself and give it a shot because it’s no where near as bad as the public is saying. RECOMMENDED!!!!
Let’s talk about the high definition presentation from Warner Bros! This 2160p (2.39:1) with IMAX scenes (1.90:1) transfer with HDR: Dolby Vision and HDR10+ is one of the best looking home video releases of the year so far. It’s great to see the DC universe in the 80’s for this one. It has a large variety of audio options which includes English: Dolby Atmos, English: Dolby TrueHD 7.1, Italian: Dolby Atmos, Italian: Dolby TrueHD 7.1, German: Dolby Atmos, German: Dolby TrueHD 7.1, Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1, French (Canada): Dolby Digital 5.1, German: Dolby Digital 5.1, and Italian: Dolby Digital 5.1 on this UHD. WW84 sounds amazing here, it’s definitely one to show off your sound system or use as reference quality. All of the dialogue is crystal clear, the action is elevated, and the music has a killer boost to it. It also has English SDH, French, German, Italian SDH, and Spanish subtitles.
Let’s discuss the special features from Warner Bros! All of the extras are located on the blu ray. “The Making of Wonder Woman 1984: Expanding the Wonder” is a little over 36 minutes. It has interviews with director Patty Jenkins, actors Gal Gadot, Kristin Wiig, Chris Pine, and various others from the production. This covers all kinds of subjects from the film. It has behind the scenes footage. They chat about locations, stunts, action, production design, and their experience working on it. They talk about the cast, the characters, and the surprise cameo during the bonus scene at the end. It’s a great inside look into this big budget superhero sequel. “Gal & Kristen: Friends Forever” is a little over 5 minutes. It has interviews with actors Gal Gadot and Kristin Wiig. They chat about their roles in this. They talk about their friendship and working together. “Small But Mighty” is almost 11 minutes. It focuses on the actress that plays the younger version of Diana Prince. It shows Lilly Aspell’s original audition tape from 2015 for the first film here. “Scene Studies” featuring The Open Road and The Mail is a little over 11 minutes. It has some interviews with the cast and crew breaking down two of the biggest scenes from Wonder Woman 1984. “Gal & Krissy Having Fun” is a little over a minute. It has actors Gal Gadot and Kristin Wiig goofing around on the set. “Meet the Amazons” is a little over 21 minutes. It’s a roundtable interview recorded at last year’s DC FanDome moderated by actor Tiffany Smith. It features director Patty Jenkins, costume designer Lindy Hemming, production designer Aline Bonetto, actors Lilly Aspell, Brontë Lavine, Briony Scarlett, Jade Johnson, Miranda Chambers, Moe Sasegbon, Gwendolyn Smith, Doutzen Kroes, Jessie Graff, and Jenny Pacey. If you were ever curious about the Themyscira Amazons and the performers from the film, this one is for you. It’s a fun chat with some of the smaller characters from the Wonder Woman universe. “Black Gold Infomercial” is almost 2 minutes. It’s popular commercial seen in the movie from the main villain Max Lord. This is a really cool bonus to the release. It has a little over 6 minute “Gag Reel” featuring hilarious moments and goofs from the set. “Wonder Woman 1984 Retro Remix” is almost 2 minutes. It mixes the original theme with some clips from this for a fun remix. It also comes with a slipcover, a digital code, and a blu ray copy of the release. It’s available everywhere starting today, CHECK IT OUT!!!!
