Whether you are a DC fan or not, you will love Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, for its stunning visual effects, a dose of action and the carefree attitude of the titular character. No superhero film has entertained on land and under the sea, the way Aquaman movies do. In the first instalment released in 2018, Aquaman, a.k.a Arthur Curry, stopped his half-brother, King Orm, from uniting the underwater kingdoms to destroy the surface world. In this version, old foe Black Manta returns to avenge his father’s death and to stop him, Arthur joins hands with his half-brother who go on to save the world.

The movie begins with Arthur being unable to manage both looking after his four-year-old son and taking care of his kingdom at the same time. However, when Black Manta steals the ancient metal Orichalcum, which raises planetary temperatures and causes extreme weather, he decides to get more serious. Things go from bad to worse after Black Manta kidnaps Aquaman’s son, which takes Arthur to his half-brother Orm, who is the only person he could trust at the moment.

The exciting climax is the highlight of the movie, where Aquaman manages to save his son and the world. The audience was glued to their seats because the final few minutes reminded them of the DC Animated Universe rather than the DC Extended Universe, which came to an end with this flick. Like most DC animated films, larger-than-life stuff happened on screen, including the appearance of a huge talking fish, large butterflies, big insects, clumsy octopus, whales and gigantic sea dragons, but in live action.

Nearly all of the under-sea species were visible, which speaks about the dedication of director James Wan. The second outing of Aquaman has retained most of the characters from the previous instalment. Jason Momoa is back as Arthur Curry / Aquaman, alongside Patrick Wilson, who plays his half-brother Orm. Amber Heard is there too as Mera, the Queen of Atlantis, while Dolph Lundgren plays her father King of Xebel. Then there is Temuera Morrison and Nicole Kidman, who played Aquaman’s parents, whereas Yahya Abdul-Mateen II does a decent job as Black Manta.

The 124-minute movie may have marked the end of the first phase of DCEU, but it does a fabulous job in ending the phase on a high note. It gives DCEU the chance to raise the bar high and excite the audience with more superhero flicks in the coming days.

Published in Dawn, Young World, March 2nd, 2024