Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
- -Black Manta, still driven by the need to avenge his father's death and wielding the power of the mythic Black Trident, will stop at nothing to take Aquaman down once and for all. To defeat him, Aquaman must turn to his imprisoned brother Orm, the former King of Atlantis, to forge an unlikely alliance in order to save the world from irreversible destruction.
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Synopsis:
In what should have been the best DCEU movie after its wacky and inventive first installment, Jason Momoa reprises his role as the King of Atlanta. “You chose the wrong day to grow a spine,” Black Manta (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) tells Dr. Stephen Shin (Randall Park) in one of the sequences. The line, which foretells the fate of one of the most formidable superheroes in the DCEU, really got to me. They most likely picked the worst time ever to develop the Aquaman franchise and start production on the sequel at the most inconvenient moment.
In the follow-up, Momoa makes a reappearance as the King of the Sea, attempting to reconcile his life as an ordinary man, Arthur Curry, with that of his father, Tom Curry (Temuera Morrison), and his infant son. Arthur is changing diapers and trying to ignore his son’s goals, not realizing that a storm is developing beneath the surface of his kingdom.
Finally, the war for restoring the glory of the sea and saving the kingdoms begins as Arthur reunites with his brother Orm (Patrick Wilson) in a world that is a delight to watch on the screen. Does it, however, provide a compelling enough argument to be considered a contender? Continue reading to find out.
Detailed Story:
A few years after becoming to the throne of Atlantis, Arthur Curry separated his life between the sea and the land. He married Mera and had a son named Arthur Jr. As all of this is going on, David Kane is searching for Atlantean relics with the help of marine biologist Stephen Shin in an effort to get revenge on Arthur for the death of his father. He discovers a black trident that has taken possession of him, and its maker has promised to grant him the ability to destroy Arthur.
Five months later, in order to power Shin’s Atlantean machinery, Kane strikes Atlantis and breaches its orichalcum reserves. Arthur discovers that the ancient Atlantean kingdom’s use of orichalcum, which releases large amounts of greenhouse gases, almost brought about the extinction of the world. It has also increased global temperatures, brought on harsh weather, and acidified oceans. Arthur frees his half-brother Orm from jail in order to find out where Kane is hiding. The two meet with Kingfish, the crime leader, who gives them directions to a South Pacific volcanic island.
Orm discovers that Kordax, the brother of King Atlan and the ruler of the vanished nation of Necrus, constructed the black trident while Arthur and Orm are on the island. Kordax was imprisoned using blood magic after trying in vain to steal the throne. The two travel to Amnesty Bay after realizing that any blood relative of Atlan may set Kordax free. There, they discover that Kane has taken Arthur Jr. hostage. The Atlanteans discover that Necrus’ prison is in Antarctica, with the reluctant assistance of Shin.
Arthur battles Kane in Necrus to prevent him from hurting Arthur Jr., but Mera arrives and saves her husband after Arthur nearly dies. As Mera was escorting her son to safety, Kane threw the black trident at her, but Orm managed to intercept it before it could harm her. After Kordax’s spirit departs from Kane, Orm battles Arthur and uses his blood to undo Atlan’s enchantment, releasing Kordax. After Arthur persuades Orm to stop harboring animosity toward him, the king is able to destroy Kordax and the black trident. Kordax’s magic disappears, and Necrus begins to crumble. Kane lets himself slip into a crack by turning down Arthur’s offer of assistance.
Shin and the Atlanteans manage to flee to safety, and Arthur and Mera make the decision to release Orm and inform the rest of Atlantis that he passed away under the condition that he stay hidden. Arthur announces the existence of Atlantis to the UN and states his goal to make the kingdom a member state since he thinks that the merger of the undersea kingdoms and the surface world is essential.
Screenplay Analysis:
The primary issue with Aquaman 2 arises from the film’s lackluster opening scene. Nevertheless, you’ll want to give it a shot and maintain your composure to watch a movie that is deteriorating with each frame because of the shoddy writing by Will Beall and David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick. A fantastic adaptation of this tale is what’s missing from the Geoff Johns, James Wan, and Will Beall plot, which has everything a superhero, a secret realm under attack, brothers coming together, and a king have to offer. The precise moment at which the film breaks down or collapses like a deck of cards is impossible to pinpoint.
The opening scene itself is a mood killer, with Momoa making an excessive effort to seem like a naturally humorous superhero and vague quips that never quite hit. Despite DC’s best efforts to imitate Thor from the MCU, and some success in doing so in the first installment, the humor and the movie fall flat in this follow-up.
You are unable to concentrate because of a lost concept in the movie, but it is not your fault. Even though the team uses a lot of scientific words in a world that is rapidly deteriorating, they were presumably just as uninterested in building any of the plots as you are after ten minutes of the movie. There are themes of good versus evil and sea versus human, but they all get muddled in the process of finding the brother who was lost, slipping in a few scientific and technical terms without really focusing on them, and paying too much attention to avoid revealing Amber Heard’s Mera (yes, we just mentioned her name because the movie surprised us by introducing her in a scene after a protracted build-up).
Star-studded Performance:
It’s evident on film that Jason Momoa is a celebrity who is fighting to keep his superhero alive. Though he gives the role of Aquaman a lot of effort, which shows in several excellent scenes, it was not enough to turn around this failing franchise. Still, if you had me pick between Aquaman and Khal Drogo, I would just go with the latter since he has this oddball charm surrounding his superhero, who is believable and always wants you to migrate into his underwater kingdom.
Throughout the entire movie, Amber Heard’s character Mera had only one task: to emote during a pivotal part that might have been the high point of the climax scene. Her acting skills are really bad, though.
Although Nicole Kidman had very little to contribute, she kindly used the backstage area to advance the movie. You’re left wanting more by Patrick Wilson’s portrayal of King Orm. He is most likely the only character in the movie who merits a more fulfilling storyline and more dignity.
Stephen Shin, the marine biologist at Randall Park, receives a poorly written section and makes a concerted effort to improve it.