Finally, someone other than those pesky executives at Warner Bros. have seen Wonder Woman. And the response appears to be positive. Though, admittedly, these responses are clearly coming from some sort of Mommy blogger group and a handful of DC fan sites. And they’re not filled with the kind of enthusiasm that will have any doubters running out to theaters on opening day. Overall, they smell like ‘pat on the back’ reactions. It’s hard to tell how good the movie actually is, which seems to be par for the course with Wonder Woman.
Let’s get something clear right now. Early Twitter responses, for whatever superhero or big genre movie is coming out soon, are lofty at best. As witnessed at Marvel’s open house, some in attendance are afraid to give their true feelings for fear of being uninvited from future screenings. One negative response from the early Guardians of the Galaxy 2 unveiling resulted in said Tweeter having to later issue an apology under the guise that they simply ‘said to much’. When it comes to checking out early advanced reactions on Twitter, it’s best to read between the lines. And here, it appears that director Patty Jenkins has created a movie that looks good on the surface. But what’s hiding beneath that surface is the mystery that hasn’t really been uncovered yet.
Suicide Squad early reactions were equally as positive, as were those for Batman V Superman. But once the real reviews arrived, the claws came out, and there was no turning back. Looking at the early tweets here, it looks like DC Films and Warner Bros. ditched showing the movie off to any well-known critics or bloggers. So its a little rough to hoe this road. New York Times best selling writer Marc Andreyko, who has written books about Hawkman and Wonder Woman, isn’t necessarily a trusted critic. But he has nothing but praise for Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins and her leading lady Gal Gadot.
“I can’t get into specifics but @GalGadot gives a beautiful, nuanced, powerful performance. @PattyJenks is SO GOOD with actors.”
As you can see in the Tweet below, he’s hanging out with the director, and both have pretty big smiles on their faces. Of course he’s not going to say if the movie is bad. And look at his response. Read between the lines. He finds something good to say without really saying that the movie itself, or its story, is any good. Entertainment Editor at Bustle, Anna Klassen, says this.
“I just saw Wonder Woman. Not allowed to talk about it yet… but will say Patty Jenkins is a wonderful human who is too good for this world.”
Now, what the hell does that mean? Anything could be taken from that bit of praise for the director. Again, notice the writer doesn’t say out loud whether or not she likes Wonder Woman. She just thinks the director is too good for this world. Why? You got me. Now, this next reaction comes from Batman News, and it’s a pretty blanket statement, comparing Wonder Woman to previous DC outings.
“#WonderWoman has more action than #BatmanvSuperman”
Mind you, they don’t say the movie is better than Batman V Superman. Nor do they even say the movie is any good. Do you know how many movies have more action than Batman V Superman that are horrendous garbage? Tons! Millions! Billions! Again, this is coming from the ‘if you can’t say anything nice don’t say anything at all’ camp of current early twitter reactions. Smith Lord of Geeking Out AMC gives an equally innocuous response to having just seen the movie.
“Saw something tonight been dreaming about since I was little. “Wonder” what it was?”
Before we go on further, understand how these work. You’re not allowed to review the movie. But in 140 characters or less, you can give your reaction. You can say, ‘blown away’, ‘mind-bending’, ‘filmmaking on a whole other level’. No one is saying that. These people aren’t saying much of anything at all. The proof comes with the next early reaction, where its author actually calls the movie ‘good’. Though understand it is coming from a dubious source that often gets slammed in our own comment sections. Andy Lea of the UK tabloid Daily Star offers this quaint bit of praise.
“It really is good. Dark but funny too. Gadot is great and the Amazons are brilliant”
We’re not sure where this advanced screening took place, but we can confirm Patty Jenkins was in attendance. And we can confirm that when Marvel did this for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 a couple weeks ago, there was plenty of alcohol available for all critics to enjoy and consume for free. We’re not lying, there was a cocktail buffet and buckets of free beer flowing like the river Nile. Why do you think we didn’t let that Brian Gallagher go? So, right now it’s hard to tell just how good or bad Wonder Woman is. Perhaps we’ll know more in the coming weeks as DC Films gets up the courage to show the movie to real film critics. For now, we have to take this handful of hot takes. Admittedly, they don’t inspire me to rush out and purchase one of those coveted Wonder Woman ultimate tickets. By B. Alan Orange – Wonder Woman/Release date June 2, 2017
“Hanging w the genius @PattyJenks. Wait till you see it! #wonderwomanpic.twitter.com/kdvqxUXt1D
— Marc Andreyko (@marcandreyko) May 13, 2017”
“@AndrewKruzel@PattyJenks I can’t get into specifics but @GalGadot gives a beautiful, nuanced, powerful performance, @PattyJenks is SO GOOD with actors. #WonderWoman
— Marc Andreyko (@marcandreyko) May 13, 2017”