If something immediately surprises Black Adam, created by Jaume Colte Serra, is incredibly similar to the so-called Snyderverse. Something unexpected, given the insistence of Warner Bros. to abandon what was created by Zack Snyder. However, during the opening sequences of the film, the resemblance to the tone and rhythm that the director brought to his DC version is striking. The story of Theta Adam, the origin of the titular anti-hero, hits theaters on October 21 and is told from the epic’s intent..
With a more than formal nod to the comic book it comes from, the story begins with a flashback in dark tones and low saturation. An obvious attempt to give the story some sense of grandeur. Especially when the story begins with a look at a fictional and wealthy kingdom that a group of slaves carry on their shoulders.
With amazing brutality in detail, the camera and the script show how forced and compulsory labor is a form of violence. Slowly, Black Adam discovers that she is not as harmless – not outwardly – as she could be just because she belongs to the superhero genre.
Black Adam, the villain of which there is not much
In fact, the tension gradually escalates as the cruelty towards the slaves becomes more evident. Finally, out of this hidden, morbid, and well-designed script pressure, the anti-hero is born. Black Adamas a character, much more the consequence of his mistakes than the glorification of his virtues.
Not only because he is an antihero – something that Black Adam emphasizes from time to time – but because of its unpredictable quality. One of the best parts of the film is the exploration of character type, allowing for experimentation with tone and form.
There is a lot of humanity in this child, who was about to be executed and then turned almost into a deity. So much so that anger is the engine of their decisions, and sometimes their way of advancing to the deeper layers. Black Adam He deviates from the concept of a one-dimensional villain as much as possible, and for that you have to be grateful.
Despite the film’s hype, which claimed that “the age of heroes is over”, the character has more empathic depth than one might think. So, his status as an anti-hero is immediately clear. Moreover, it is an important link for understanding his behavior when the narrative moves into the future.
The power of all gods Black Adam
Having established that the protagonist is driven by understandable rage, the action is transferred millennia into the future. The movie doesn’t give clues – not too many – about what happened to Black Adam or what we can expect from him. What he does make clear is that, contrary to Superman’s virtuous goodness or Batman’s tormented conscience, the anti-hero of the day is a fuzzy mix.
Black Adam he plays on the possibility that his character is at least partially incomprehensible, which he cleverly achieves, although not every time. The script suggests that this is not a character that is easily deciphered. A point that allows Dwayne Johnson to have complete freedom to give the role the necessary nuance to make it believable.
But, Despite his immense charisma, the actor lacks the register to bring three-dimensionality to his complex Black Adam.. More than once the translator had to struggle to express anything more than anger, the main emotion that drives the anti-hero.
Thus, the film traverses uneven terrain. Sometimes this unsympathetic figure, gloomy and always weighed down by restless thoughts, is closer. Other times it’s just muscle in the service of a digital visual department that fails again.
Superman among worldly problems
At all, Black Adam make efficient use of limited resources. His script is fluid, fast and fluid, despite the layers of sobriety that show up in atypical situations. The plot attempts to show exceptional maturity and occasionally deviates from its character’s history with strange geopolitical musings. But, however, he never misses and Johnson brings enough vitality to him to keep him entertained most of the time..
The first major appearance of Black Adam is almost a fluke, confirming the idea of his god-like qualities. Resurrected by accident, the character’s first major unwitting mission is to save the life of Adrianna (Sarah Shahi). Gradually, the film structures Black Adam’s relationship with the modern world through small pieces of information. Amon (Bodhi Sabongi), Adrianna’s son, becomes her tutor in current knowledge.
The plot then almost unwittingly mimics the relationship between the very young John Connor of Edward Furlong and Terminator by Arnold Schwarzenegger. And he does this by allowing for the contrast between the vision of the world of Amun and the problem of violence, a hot topic for Black Adam. Little by little this man, who has the power of the gods, asks himself questions, grows, becomes more and more aware of his place and his power.
Black Adamsuperman in the new world
But in the second part, having lost the novelty of the discovery of an atypical character, the effectiveness Black Adam It’s wobbly. Especially when Hawkman (Aldis Hodge) and Doctor Fate (Pierce Brosnan) show up. There is an artificial quality in the intervention of unnecessary characters and details about the world of DC comics that do not contribute anything particularly relevant to the script. Something that will be repeated over and over again. So much so that underlining an argument in some threads seems out of place.
Especially when Black Adam even try to explore geopolitics or add an adult layer to a much simpler scenario. All in all, the film overcomes its worst moments and turns into a captivating adventure. Enough, at least, to present this supposed villain with dubious morals, but well-founded reasons for evolution. Even throw in a surprise appearance that makes the movie one of its best moments.
Like an open door for a new scene for DC Black Adam does its job. There is a new face in today’s crowded world of superheroes. The villain? Anti hero? Something in between? The film leaves an answer to the audience.
