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Excess Water Weight

We were introduced to Aquaman (Jason Momoa, Game of Thrones) in 2016's "Batman v Superman," which, as you remember, didn't go over well with a lot of people. He then appeared in last year's "Justice League," which was another misbegotten outing. Now it's time for Aquaman to have his own movie. So what could go wrong?

Quite a bit actually, but thankfully not as much as the first few times we ran into the king of the sea. Though we've met him a few times, director James Wan brings us back to Arthur Curry's younger days and his transition to Aquaman.  His father is a lighthouse keeper, who helps a woman washed up onto his property. It just so happens, she's Atlanna (Nicole Kidman, "The Killing of a Sacred Deer"), Queen of Atlantis. Together they conceive a "half-breed" child, who would grow up to be Aquaman.

As a grown, heavily tattooed man, Aquaman makes appearances on shore to have a few beers with his dad but remains estranged from his mother. But deep beneath the sea, a plot of some sort is trying to happen, so Aquaman has to dive back in and face his power hungry half-brother King Orm (Patrick Wilson, "Insidious"), who is ready for battle, and Aquaman must stop him and claim the throne of Atlantis. Along the way he partners up with Mera (Amber Heard, "Drive Angry") for some adventures and is advised by Willem Dafoe's Vulko.

You know how these things go: the character discovers himself as a kid, grows up to be a titular superhero, teams up with some people, fights a small battle, fights another small battle, then fights a big battle. Director James Wan doesn't stray too far from the mold, keeping things aligned with what we expect from a movie like "Aquaman." Storytelling has never been the strong suit of superhero movies, so people come with some investment in the characters and for the action. Most of the effects in "Aquaman" shift between dark and murky and bright and colorful. There are some impressive battle sequences but a few too many moments of poor CGI, making it feel like you are watching a cartoon or someone playing a video game at times. Coupled with some painfully wooden dialogue and jokes that fall flat, "Aquaman" screeches to a halt on numerous occasions.

Comic books and their movie adaptations are not my strength, so I dare not take an authoritative stance. Having seen all of the movies from the DC machine, I think they struggle to find the fun in the absurdity of the characters. Two of the most iconic characters battled onscreen in "Batman v Superman" and it just turned out to be two morose guys whining a bit. DC's frequently derided self-serious tone plagued "Justice League" but they did some major course correction with "Wonder Woman." What works for "Aquaman" is it leans into its stupidity; it might be damning with faint praise but at least it knows what it has to do.

The movie clocks in at the requisite 140 minutes, lagging in the middle and carrying on a bit too long at the end. "Aquaman" doesn't give any impression of lasting influence in the comic book genre but, as previously stated, I'm not the one to make that assessment.