Movie Review: "Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox"

- by Steve Garcia, 2 August 2013

If the Flash is getting his own movie in 2016, it’s only right that DC/WB start reintroducing him to the public through other forms of media, right? Based on the 2011 DC storyline “Flashpoint,” the animated film Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox follows the Flash through this bizarre alternate world where Aquaman and Wonder Woman are in the midst of World War III. How does this movie stack up against previous works such as Superman Unbound, Batman: Under the Red Hood, and Wonder Woman? Let’s take a look!

If there was anything to prove that these DC animated films aren’t exactly for the kids, this is the one to do it. This film is brutal, and certainly doesn’t hold back in terms of death and bloodshed. While the story certainly called for a bit of that (it was war after all), I couldn’t help but be bothered by a few of them; one in particular. Things got pretty harsh. 

Being labeled a “Justice League” film, there were many characters to keep track of. The main players: Flash, Batman, Aquaman, Wonder Woman, and Cyborg were all great to watch, but the minor characters such as Green Lantern, for example, felt entirely unnecessary in terms of the overall plot. This movie was jam-packed with cameos (as was the comic), and I couldn’t help but feel all giddy inside when characters like Grifter, Tempest, Ocean Master, and Clayface showed up. 

After judging on how well the storyline translated to the screen, it’s remarkable that it took this long for DC/WB to give the Flash his time in the spotlight. It’s a bummer that it had to be shared with the likes of bigger characters like Batman and Wonder Woman, but every time it called for a Flash fight scene, it felt so free and unique because we’ve never really gotten it like this before. This film even managed to prove that even more so than Flash, that Aquaman can certainly hold his own feature film. Between the high-speed Flash fights and the trident wielding Aquaman scenes, this movie certainly delivered in the “badassery” category. Also, Cyborg, Batman, and Wonder Woman got some great punches in, too, Cyborg especially. 

Unfortunately, the thing that really drove me up the wall about this movie was the art style. In some previous DC animated films (All-Star Superman, Superman/Batman: Public Enemies, and The Dark Knight Returns, to name a few), the art style was based on the artist who drew the source material. The Flashpoint storyline was drawn by Andy Kubert, whose pencil work is incredible every time. Instead of Kubert’s style, however, this movie was essentially anime.

A bulky Aquaman

While I personally don’t mind nor care for that particular style (my apologies, it’s just not for me), it wouldn’t have bothered me if it weren’t the poorly-rendered CGI that overtook the screen with it when Flash was really doing his thing. Not to mention that some of the characters where presented disgustingly bulky-- King of the Seven Seas or not, Aquaman’s shoulders aren’t six feet wide and four feet tall, nor should they ever be. 

Bulky League.

Overall, I think this movie was just sort of “ok.” It followed the comic (and even the tie-ins) very well, but some of whatever Batman: Under the Red Hood, Superman vs. The Elite, and Wonder Woman had just seemed to make it more enjoyable. That’s not the Flash’s fault at all, however, as I think a movie featuring him and him alone would be much more enjoyable than this particular piece of work. Given how the film ends, I’ll be very interested to see just how it will impact future DC animated films. While Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox was certainly far from DC animation’s best work, I’d absolutely recommend renting it or waiting until it’s available on Netflix. Otherwise, I think it’d do you better to wait for the next one.


Have you seen "The Flashpoint Paradox"? Planning to? Sound off in the comments!

Tagged: movies & TV, Reviews.

blog comments powered by Disqus

---

Follow @TrashMutant