MOVIE REVIEW: BLACK ADAM

 

In ancient Kahndaq, Teth Adam was bestowed the almighty powers of the gods. After using these powers for vengeance, he was imprisoned, becoming Black Adam. Nearly 5,000 years have passed, and Black Adam has gone from man to myth to legend. Now free, his unique form of justice, born out of rage, is challenged by modern-day heroes who form the Justice Society: Hawkman, Dr. Fate, Atom Smasher and Cyclone.

Director: Jaume Collet-Serra

Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Aldis Hodge, Noah Centineo, Sarah Shahi, Marwan Kenzari, Quintessa Swindell, Bodhi Sabongui, Pierce Brosnan

Release Date: October 21, 2022

Genre: Action, Fantasy, Sci-Fi

Rated PG-13 for sequences of strong violence, intense action and some language.

Runtime: 2h 4m

Review:

Black Adam joins the cinematic superhero genre with a highly caffeinated overly produced adventure that moves at a dizzying pace at times to its own detriments.  Jaume Collet-Serra delivers a kinetic, action heavy film that pulls a large bit of visual inspiration from Zach Synder's films.  There are hero shots a plenty and an overreliance on slow motion that feels passé at this point which ultimately distracts more than enhance the experience.  Collet-Serra may be in the director's seat, but this project has been Dwayne Johnson passion project which took years to finally come to fruition, needless to say his finger prints are all over the final product.  This is Johnson's film for better or worse and the bizarre thing is that the character the polar opposite of what he typically does best onscreen.  Gone is his usual charisma, replaced by a stern faced scowl and wooden line delivery that rarely feels authentic.  The character's scripting doesn't help much by giving him a kid to play off of which feels like a cheap imitation of the Terminator 2 relationship.  It’s a shame since you get distinct feeling that there's more depth to the character's story than what ends up on screen.  The same holds true for the supporting characters but the actors are able to make them far more interesting than the script does.  Pierce Brosnan and Aldis Hodge in particular deliver interesting turns as a superhero nearing the end of his journey and an alpha male who sees morality in black or white.  Noah Centineo is fun as the film's comic relief but Quintessa Swindell given woefully little to do.  The script drops a few bits and pieces about these character's background and story, but it never explores them. The film is always in a hurry to move to the next action set piece and while those are fun it would have benefited from slowing down for a moment and letting the characters shine.  Black Adam ends up being glossy mindless fun especially if you are a fan of DC properties with the biggest moment coming in the post credit scene.  

C+