AQUAMAN AND THE LOST KINGDOM (2023) review

written by: David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick (screenplay) and James Wan, David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, Jason Momoa & Thomas Pa’a Sibbett (story)
produced by: Peter Safran, James Wan and Rob Cowan
directed by: James Wan
rated: PG-13 (for sci-fi violence and some language)
runtime: 124 min.
U.S. release date: December 22, 2023

Considering the dismal year that live-action superhero movies had in 2023, especially for Warner Bros/DC Extended Universe, it’s no surprise that the sequel to their huge moneymaker from 2018, “Aquaman”, is dead in the water. Pun intended. That first movie was a delirious ride that took a fun kitchen sink approach which included exhilarating action and visual effects with actors seriously committed to cartoon pulp material. So, it’s a real head scratcher why “Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom” doesn’t work on the same level. James Wan returns as director, as do many others involved in the last movie, but the result is something bigger yet definitely not better. Perhaps too many people were involved in the story here (or we’re all just wiped out from a year of subpar superheroes), as there’s too much going on, but not in any kind of meaningful or original way.

As the sequel opens, we hear half-Atlantean/half-human king of Atlantis Arthur Curry/Aquaman (Jason Mamoa) narrate how he’s now an Aquadad to an Aqualad, aka Arthur Jr. He barely mentions his wife, but we see him fawning over his son and hanging out with his human dad, Thomas Curry (Temuera Morrison), in a montage that aims for comedy (the boy urinates on his dad’s face). It winds up being funny just for trying to be funny, which means it’s not funny.

His wife, Mera (Amber Heard), queen of Atlantis & daughter of Nereus (Dolph Lundgren) the King of Xebel (one of seven kingdoms mentioned in the last movie), a character who figured predominately in the last movie, is barely present which makes it seem like Arthur is the sole caregiver for the infant. With so much focus on his newfound family status, it’s kind of odd not to address the family dynamic (or lack thereof) on display.

It may be a curious thing, but to those aware of what’s been reported regarding Amber Heard since the last movie, maybe it’s not too surprising. There was the highly publicized alleged domestic abuse trial involving her and Johnny Depp, which led to a huge online backlash against her that resulted in over 4 million people signing a petition requesting she be removed from the sequel. Not sure what her private life has to do with her career, but that’s how the world is now. Over at Warner Bros, they reported that the plan all along was to switch gears and focus more on the “bro buddy” relationship between Arthur and his half-brother Orm Marius (the antagonist Patrick Wilson played in the last movie) and insisted that the online fervor had no bearing on their decision. Whatever the truth is, the result is that Heard’s Mera is relegated to a barely supporting role, despite being the wife of the protagonist and the mother of Aqualad. Even if you didn’t know any of that true life heresay, it still winds up feeling like there was much left on the cutting room floor on this sequel.

As king of Atlantis, Aquaman has to contend with the limitations of government life as The Council continuous shoot down his grandiose ideas for the kingdom. Basically, he believes it would be beneficial to the world and the future of the underwater kingdoms if they reveal themselves to the surface dwellers, but then again he is half-human. I’m sure dozing off during meetings with other kingdoms doesn’t bode well for how he handles diplomacy. Mamoa’s bro-man portrayal would rather be changing diapers or riding his seahorse Storm, than handling the obligations of royalty.

Meanwhile, ruthless sea pirate and mercenary David Kane/Blank Manta (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II), is still focusing on revenge against Aquaman for killing his father during the first half of the last movie. Despite being defeated by Aquaman, he has since powered-up and teamed-up with marine biologist, Dr. Shin (Randall Park), which has led them both to the discovery of a Black Trident (not licorice gum, mind you) that’s connecting to the spirit of the evil king, Kordax (Pilou Asbaek), who once ruled over Necrus, a hidden lost kingdom. Five months later, Atlantis is attacked by Manta and his steampunk machinations created by Shin. Somehow he has an entire underwater crew like a Bond villain or Captain Nemo. He manages to steal Altantean reserves of a toxic substance called orichalcum to increase his power and it turns out Manta could care less about how usage of such precious metal impacts the world: increasing greenhouse gases, raising temperatures, and ocean acidification.

Realizing he’ll need some assistance going up against Manta, Aquaman breaks Orm out of traitor jail and fashions a reluctant partnership, which makes their mom, Atlanna (Nicole Kidman) happy. Despite their issues, the two (accompanied by resourceful octopus, Topo) set out to defeat the Manta, who’s now possessed by the undead Kordax. It should be noted that most of the visual effects involving Kidman look…off, like rushed or unfinished.

In the second half of “Lost Kingdom” it becomes clear that Wilson’s Orm is better off as the King of Atlantis. He’s ready for it and he wanted the role all along (not to mention Wilson has the more traditional DC Aquaman look down and a swimmer’s physique) and Mamoa’s jokey portrayal has become tiresome. Not only are we robbed of seeing any added layers to the titular character, but there’s also no real opportunity for Mamoa to offer anything different other than pushing the funny, which has already been done ad nauseum. Let’s just say comedy isn’t Mamoa’s strength. I missed how serious Wan and company took the material in the last movie, which resulted in some truly silly and fun stuff. Here, when the material aims for laughs, it falls flat.

The tension between Arthur and Orm is more intriguing then the threat of the villains in this sequel and that’s not a good thing. While Abdul-Mateen II has a great on-screen presence, his dialogue and motivations are woefully conventional, making his whole plotline less interesting as the story unfolds. With a story that lacks depth, one would think the visuals of the fantasy aspect of it all would once again be the draw, but everything underwater feels murkier than the last movie and a challenge to follow. Missing is the way Wan deftly balanced the epic scope and sheer absurdity of it all in “Aquaman”, and maybe that’s just not something you can capture twice. The movie isn’t just underwater, it’s underwhelming.

RATING: *1/2