By Seth Lukas Hynes
Black Adam
Starring Dwayne Johnson, Pierce Brosnan and Aldis Hodge
Rated M
3.5/5
Black Adam is an exciting superhero film burdened with muddled themes.
In the city of Khandaq, the vengeful, godlike being Teth-Adam (Dwayne Johnson) awakens after five thousand years.
The plot is driven by yet another frustrating Macguffin – a crown imbued with demonic power – but the narrative is more concerned with Adam’s personal growth, as he comes to temper his brutality and place selflessness over vengeance. Johnson is an engaging, intimidating lead as a stolid antihero who gradually comes out of his shell.
Several of the action scenes utilise stunning slow-motion and particle effects, with the highlight being a sequence of Adam casually obliterating a mercenary troop, shrugging off bullets and redirecting mortars. The fight scenes are well-composed and graphic without being bloody, but less interesting when they default to the DC Comics template of mid-air punch-ups.
Black Adam strangely conflates the killing of active aggressors with the murder of innocents, and despite bringing this issue up, the film has little to say about the Justice Society of America – a team of superpowered peacekeepers – being foreign interlopers in Khandaq. The pacing is erratic, frequently returning to the same location for dour dialogue, but features a couple of effective twists and character threads. The climax also pulls a new monster antagonist out of nowhere.
The Justice Society is an uneven bunch of supporting characters. Doctor Fate (Pierce Brosnan) is a noble, wry man hiding the torment from his prophetic powers, and the haughty Hawkman (Aldis Hodge) is a fun counterpoint to Adam’s own ego. Cyclone (Quintessa Swindell) and Atom Smasher (Noah Centineo) have endearing personalities but very little to do in the plot.
Black Adam is a thrilling, affecting superhero adventure that fumbles its own themes, and is playing in most Victorian cinemas.
