Review: Black Adam (2022)

Black Adam

Rating

Director

Jaume Collet-Serra

Screenplay

Adam Sztykiel, Rory Haines, Sohrab Noshirvani

Length

2h 05m

Starring

Dwayne Johnson, Aldis Hodge, Pierce Brosnan, Noah Centineo, Sarah Shahi, Quintessa Swindell, Marwan Kenzari, Bodhi Sabongui, Mohammed Amer, James Cusati-Moyer, Jalon Christian

MPAA Rating

PG-13

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Review

It’s probably for the best that Warner Bros. is partially rebooting its DC Extended Universe and taking it in a more broadly appealing direction. Black Adam is the perfect example of how all their prior efforts have been for naught.

The plain simple truth of the DCEU is that its dark and gritty styles aren’t broadly appealing. Such designs might make the efforts feel realistic, but they are gloomy and that will sell to a certain demographic, but not to others. Warner Bros. has been trying to back off the darkness and grime that Zack Snyder has infused into the franchise for a few years now, but their inability to find a formula that works is more obvious in a film like Black Adam than it ever has been before. Played by Dwayne Johnson, Black Adam is an anti-hero locked away for centuries. In an effort to thwart the theft of a demonic crown, he is awakened and his thirst for vengeance isn’t easily slaked.

Meanwhile, a group known as the Justice Society is hired by Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) to bring this dangerous threat in and lock him away in her supervillain prison. While the theme of the film is to question what the definition of superhero should be if they aren’t going to thwart all villainy in the world, the producers have shoved the film so full of visual effects and one-liners that its noble intentions are largely crushed beneath the weight of pomp and circumstance.

One of the most notable issues with Johnson as an actor is his constant mugging for the camera. When he’s not sufficiently counterbalanced by better actors (such as in the Jumanji films), his performances tend to topple over the edge of tastefulness. That’s largely true of his performance here, which is notably lacking in charm and gravitas. Part of this is the writing, but much of it is his looming presence. He’s a “movie star” and the director isn’t able to rein that in sufficiently. Even with strong actors like Aldis Hodge and Pierce Brosnan in place, there’s little that they are able to do, yet they still come off as more conscionable and appealing heroes even if their concept of heroism is tempered by a need for propriety and societal balance.

What the exact fate of each DC character will be is not fully known. Though based on the mediocrity of this film, one might hazard a guess that Black Adam will be the end of Johnson’s DCEU line.