Announced all the way back in 2014, one of DC’s most popular superheroes The Flash (aka Barry Allen) finally has his own film! Up to this point we’ve seen actor Ezra Miller portray the police forensic investigator turned Jusice League hero in only a couple of films where he never quite had the spotlight, so my plus one and I were very excited to see what this film would bring. Let us tell you right up, this is one of the best DCU films yet!
In ‘The Flash’, Worlds collide when Barry uses his superpowers to travel back in time to change the events of the past, and of course with any time travel film, things do not go to plan.
After his attempt to prevent his mother’s death inadvertently alters the future, The Flash becomes trapped in a reality in which General Zod (remember him from Superman?) has returned, threatening annihilation (again). Yes, it’s another DCU film where the stakes are the destruction of the entire planet, but this time it’s grounded in a very personal stake – saving his mum.
With his regular gang of superheroes out of the picture, the Flash looks to coax a very different Batman out of retirement and rescue an imprisoned Kryptonian – albeit not the one he’s looking for. This opens the door to some fantastic scenes with a new Supergirl as well as a really fun and gadget heavy Batman.
One of the most fun parts of this story is Barry enlisting the help of his younger self and some of the quirky one-liners and banter that results. Early on in the film Ben Affleck reprises his role as Bruce Wayne aka older Batman, as well as a blink and you’ll miss it Wonder Woman scene. It’s the new (old) Batman played by Michael Keaton who hasn’t worn the cape for 30 years, and new character and Kryptonian castaway Supergirl, played by Sasha Calle, that bring the most joy to the film.
Despite the uncertainty around the Flash’s DCU future with the recent shakeup by James Gunn, we’d be interested in exploring more of what Ezra Miller can bring to this character because he really does shine in this film.
We were initially worried this film would fall into the usual DCU stereotypes that have plagued the franchise from the beginning including world-ending stakes, over-powered fight scenes, villains with no real motivation and deathly serious dialogue, however ‘The Flash’ was a completely welcome surprise. There is so much comedy, some extremely sad and touching moments and absolutely unexpected twists (Nic Cage as a parallel universe Superman?!). This is easily one of our favourite DC films to date, and would even satisfy newcomers to the franchise with no past experience with the Justice League. We’re glad to see some interesting and fun stories from the DCU make it to the big screen and feel like ‘The Flash’ has breathed some life back into the DCU.
– The Plus Ones
