In which we say goodbye forever to the fun version of the DC Universe…
First, a warning to the uninitiated: I’m going to make a lot of comic book type references that will be all but impenetrable to the layman.
As a movie, the Flashpoint Paradox works better than its source material, the miniseries that heralded the end of the old school DC Comics Universe. But, much like that same source material, it is a poor sendoff for the storied comics giant.
While I suppose an alternate world tale is the easiest (some might say laziest) way of leading into a massive reboot, it always seemed like an odd note to go out on. If you’re committed to the idea of starting things fresh, which is not a terrible idea after accumulating nearly seventy years of backstory, wouldn’t it be more rewarding to (to the extent you can) tell one final, epic story and pay tribute to that history? Why would you end it all by creating something new and strange that has nothing to do with anything, and have that be how it all ends?
It’s basically if you were writing Moby Dick, and then the last chapter was the first draft of Orca The Killer Whale…
Which, like all my metaphors, really doesn’t work at all. But I’m proud of it anyway.
Anyway, Flashpoint: The Comic was what it was: somewhat interesting, but without being all that entertaining. It ended old DC history on a dark, violent note that was occasionally clever, but mostly just mean spirited and not particularly fun to read.
The Flashpoint Paradox streamlines the story, mostly adapting the mini-series itself and avoiding the myriad of crossover tie-ins. This leads to some slight leaps in logic, but that doesn’t hurt the movie too badly because it’s already fundamentally stupid. While it claims to be a Justice League movie, it’s really a Flash movie. This re-branding makes sense, seeing as how no one cares about the Flash.
(SIDE NOTE: When I say no one cares about the Flash, I mean the Barry Allen Flash, which is the one we’re dealing with here. Everybody loves Wally West, except Geoff Johns)
In brief, Barry Allen, whose mom was murdered when he was a boy, goes back in time to prevent her death. As a result the entire planet goes to shit, and so much death and suffering ensues…
Also, we get to meet Batman’s dad, also named Batman.
What’s interesting here is the ever so slight shift in focus. Instead of strictly being the Flash’s story of trying to change the past (though obviously, he is the focus), it becomes a story of how horrible the world would be if the Justice League were a bunch of belligerent jerks.
While it’s an interesting take, that’s pretty much the problem with the movie in a nutshell. Unless you’re one of those comic book fans that thinks violence for violences sake is the most awesome, grown up thing ever, there’s not a lot of fun to be had here. Almost all the characters are unpleasant, and because it’s all an alternative universe that we know will be set right at the end, there’s no sense of stakes involved. And I can’t stress this enough, but the violence is needlessly gruesome.
Way to kill, Wonder Woman!
It’s not totally devoid of pleasures, though. Even though many of them are brought in just to get killed, we still get to see a lot of faces that don’t usually make it onscreen, like Shade The FMan, Grifter, and Machiste.
The voice cast is actually pretty impressive, with names like Cary Elwes, Danny Huston, Nathan Fillion, and Michael B. Jordan, who between this and Fruitvale Station, is having a very… interesting year.
In terms of plot, I’ll give them credit for at least trying to explain the third act revelation. I mean, the explanation they come up with is stupid and vague, but I can at least appreciate that they put in the bare minimum of effort.
Even if they can’t get into the whole story, the Batman stuff really played pretty well here. His miniseries was by far the best part of the entire crossover, and though for obvious reason they couldn’t go too far with it, I’m glad they were at least able to imply the story of this world’s Joker.
Come to that, I will say that the final scene between the Flash and Batman (my favorite part of the original miniseries) actually plays really well here. I’m not going to lie, I almost found myself getting a little choked up. So credit where credit is due on that score…
And as a pleasant surprise for me personally, they actually included the Canterbury Cricket, which I never in a million years imagined they’d actually do.
In the end, I have to say, I just don’t know. There’s stuff to appreciate here, if you can look past all the violence and pessimism onscreen. It’s not the ending I would have wanted for the DC Universe, either in print or onscreen, but maybe it’s a necessary evil, to clear the decks of all that darkness and bring the DC Universe into a brighter tomorrow…
Join us next time, for Justice League: War, an adaptation of the New 52’s first storyline, where (if it’s as faithful to its story as this movie was to its source) a bunch of belligerent jerks team up to become the Justice League, making the world a more horrible place!
Sigh…