Wonder Woman 1984 Reveals The Importance Of Honesty

Gal Gadot as a role in the film Wonder Woman 1984 (Photo: Twitter @GalGadot)

JAKARTA - After being postponed several times, Wonder Woman 1984 finally opened in the United States on December 25.

Launching Antara, Sunday, December 27, the film produced by DC Comics and Warner Bros. was predicted to be broadcast in June 2020 but has been postponed several times due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The sequel to the Wonder Woman story in 2017 now takes the steps of the warrior daughter of the Amazon, Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) in eradicating crime in 1984.

Wonder Woman's second film takes place seven decades after the first film.

Why 1984?

Director Patty Jenkins considers it necessary to highlight the 1980s because that era is synonymous with the hero.

"Why 1984? We want to bring Diana Prince to the modern world and the 1980s is an identical period with him," said Patty Jenkins quoted from Cinemablend.

"This is the pinnacle of Western civilization and the success of the world we all lived in afterward. So I'm curious to put this great woman (Wonder Woman) to the top of that modern belief system," he continued, referring that the film takes place during the Cold War. .

It opens with past events on the mystical island of Themyscira, where Diana came from.

There, little Diana (Lilly Aspell) is pictured following a physical strength competition tournament at a stadium.

Diana had fallen off her horse. But he was shrewd and took a shortcut to get back to the arena in time.

Nearing the end of the race, General Antiope (Robin Wright) drags him out of the arena.

Antiope advises Diana about the meaning of honesty because Diana seems dishonest in the game.

"You take a shortcut. You cannot be a winner because you are not ready and this is a shame. No true hero is born out of dishonesty," said Antiope who was Diana's aunt.

This scene is important because it will become the core of the entire film, namely the meaning of honesty in life.

The audience was then invited to Washington DC, United States of America in 1984.

The transition of time is evident with the changing color of cinematography from everything gold and glamor to colorful screens and all the extravagant things that were so characteristic of the 80s from highlighter sports suits, waist bags, shoulder-padded tops to wedding dresses. unusually bloated arms.

This year, Wonder Woman is portrayed as a mysterious figure who is struggling to eradicate crime.

Undoubtedly, Gadot's acting is very capable and it seems that he doesn't have to try hard to show the figure of a tough woman who is good at fighting.

Gadot's emotions are also very obvious when Jenkins wants to convey the life of the Wonder Woman who is heartbroken, lonely, left behind by her pilot lover, Steve Trevor (Chris Pine).

The story then continues with Diana's meeting with her new colleague Barbara Minerva (Kristen Wiig), a clumsy woman who is fascinated by Diana's figure who she thinks is cool, sexy and strong.

Another character who appears is Lord Maxwell (Pedro Pascal), a businessman whose mission is to collect any ancient artifacts he can get, so that it will make him "as strong as a god."

As a result of Lord Maxwell's actions, a number of "miracles" occurred including the reappearance of Steve Trevor (Chris Pine), Diana's lover who was said to have died in the first Wonder Woman film.

The plot is messy

Wonder Woman 1984 currently holds an 87 percent "fresh" rating from Rotten Tomatoes with 100 reviews. The more reviews that come in, this ranking will continue to change.

Unfortunately, this film received less attractive reviews from some of the world's film critics.

Film critic Angelica Jade Bastien of Vulture quoted from CNBC, Sunday, revealed that Diana Prince's appeal is her femininity and maternal instincts. However, Diana's character did not develop due to a messy plot.

Thrillist critic Esther Zuckerman also said the same thing. He mentioned, this film is fun, it's just a messy plot.

"There are a lot of things to like in Wonder Woman 1984, such as the daring looks of the fun cast, the fantastic costumes and the direction of Patty Jenkins. However, the plot is disoriented, it's unclear what makes the character so great," said Zuckerman.

Apart from highlighting the bad storyline, critics also sneered at the CGI effect in the film.

Barbara's metamorphosis to Cheetah was considered very cheap.

Peter Debruge of Variety compared the figure of the Cheetah in the comics, which should have a nearly naked woman with a few freckles on her body which translates to a cat-like figure with fur here and there.

Deburge judged Jenkins' version of the Cheetah to be "neither vicious nor a match for Wonder Woman. Then again, by the time these two enemies face off, the film has long ceased to be fun."

Issues of feminism

Despite being heavily criticized for how messy this film's plot is, there is one thing that stands out from "WW1984" is Jenkins' attempt to raise the issue of feminism through a number of scenes that seem to be based on the experiences of everyday women.

In the film, Diana and Barbara get some of the attention they don't want from men, from pranks to cat calling to sexual assaults.

Even a Diana Prince confessed to Barbara who admired her so much that: "My life may not be what you think it is. We all have a hard time."

Indirectly, it implies the causes for Diana's closed life and Barbara's dark desire for power.

In one scene, Jenkins also raises an idea that actually feels more oppressive to women, namely that women can be smart as well as sexy and beautiful when Barbara complains that she is not good at wearing high heels.

This film also feels fresh because it provides a point of view for viewers, especially women, that there are no boundaries to hang their dreams on.

In this 151-minute film, even Wonder Woman can fly with a strong determination and of course honesty.

After all, it's nice to see how it feels to be a woman celebrated in a superhero film.

If you are watching, don't rush off the benches because there is an additional scene, post-credit, that answers Diana's question in the film.