I wonder what went wrong: a review ("This is not the 1984 you are looking for") Part 6

They all performed admirably with the nonsensical dialogue and sequences of events handed to them in what can loosely be described as a "script". Gadot, Wiig, Pine and Pascal all are to be commended. All the principals played their parts and played them well. Gadot particularly is a breath of fresh air in this Egyptian sandstorm of haziness. Her emotions are vivid, nuanced and true. She is not a caricature but embodies WW fully. I am willing to see her again and again in this role. She embodies the character perfectly as one can only be compared with Mr. Robert Downey Jr.'s Iron Man character. I can think of no higher compliment than someone who played a superhero character with 100% intensity, veracity and expressivity (should I add another "ity"?), alright one more...capability. Gadot IS Wonder Woman. Mr. Downey Jr. IS Iron Man. We as fans can thank the studios for that. We cannot however thank WB and in particular the 3 screenwriters for this disappointing offering. A great (or good) actor cannot save a bad movie. Seriously, have you been paying attention to what DeNiro has been churning out on the big screen lately to pay for his wife's divorce? And thus, this movie could not be saved by all the capable actors appearing in it. The actors should "renounce" their participation in this movie and distance themselves from it. The whole tactic of "renouncing" as a plot device to solve all the ills of society is akin to Dorothy clicking her heels and magically changing her predicament in 1939. Wait, did I just compare the most treasured film in cinema history to this movie? Darn right I did. Its "magical thinking" which only works on children and idiots (perhaps the intended audience here)? This plot device makes no sense if you start analyzing it, but that's for a different post. A thought crossed my mind as I watched the credits roll: "If I worked on this movie, I would keep the salary from it because I did my job, but I would request that my name not appear anywhere in the film". I would be the opposite of this generation's Dalton Trumbo (look it up & learn from it). I never had that thought about any movie I ever watched, not even bad ones. But this was a highly-anticipated sequel and a major Hollywood blockbuster, and it was more disappointing than the Cyberpunk 2077 release (look it up if you are confused by the analogy). I guess with unlimited money and unlimited power from the studios comes a total lack of responsibility. Perhaps I am mixing my two most favorite origin superhero stories' metaphors. I thought about walking out on this movie twice, not because I was hoping to salvage a refund, or to avoid wasting another twenty minutes of my life, but because I was disappointed how little the filmmakers cared for their audience and the importance of this franchise, but I didn't. Kind of like when your parents are not angry, but disappointed at something you did, but they are helpless to do anything, because no punishment or lecture will change what happened. Full disclosure, I walked out on only two movies in my lifetime of seeing literally thousands of movies in theaters over the years. Those two movies were: Mortal Kombat 2 and The Island of Dr. Moreau, where I had to explain to the teenager behind the ticket booth that I wanted the refund because the movie was simply "too bad" to watch. I would be ashamed to be associated with it. Sort of like how Tom Hanks must look at his early 80's comedies. I can only express my vitriol and disgust with the hope that as fans of cinema we will see higher quality movies in the future.
There are glimmers of beauty and inspiring images that did appear. The opening sequence of the movie is FANTASTIC! How "young Diana" learns a lesson from Antiope (a terribly under-used Robin Wright in this movie) about life, competition, truth and fairness...I would watch again and again, and should be mandatory viewing for all children. Its never too early to teach children life lessons, and when film affords us a visual medium and an opportunity to do so, we must take it. But...that sequence lasts only a few opening minutes of the movie. Robin Wright should have appeared in more scenes if only as a memory, or in "flashback" sequences, but unfortunately we dont see her for the remainder of the movie. She is a powerful character whose role should have been expanded, but instead she ended up vastly under-used. Should young girls look up to Robin Wright's "Antiope" noble warrior archetype, or a vengeful, bitter, mad-at-the-world, "apex predator" as Kirsten Wiig's character "Cheetah" describes herself? I think you know the answer, but in between the meandering dialogue about "losing yourself" and the cost of wish-fulfillment during the WH fight-scene, that mesage gets diluted and lost. Should I be gentle, funny, kind, warm-hearted, quirky, unique, intelligent, but socially awkward (Barbara), or powerful, feared, and angry (Cheetah)?