REVIEW: "The Flash" (2023)

In my 2021 review of Zack Snyder's Justice League, I mentioned how time has a unique effect on cinema. The same can be said for anticipation. 

Lately, Warner Bros and DC have been struggling through a series of starts, misfires, restarts, etc. Recent titles Black Adam and Shazam! Fury of the Gods have fallen short, while other entries like The Suicide Squad, Joker, and The Batman broke the mold on how unconventional comic-book-based movies could be--but with graphic results (for lack of a better word). A feature film about The Flash has been a long time coming. And after several script rewrites, different directors, and a pandemic, the first solo outing for the Scarlett Speedster finally arrives courtesy It director Andy Muschietti. The result is one of the year's most anticipated and polarizing releases. 

Public and legal issues surrounding star Ezra Miller since 2022 (including accusations of burglary, assault, sexual misconduct, and other disturbing behavior) have apparently turned many audience members off since the film's release this month, already resulting in one of 2023's biggest financial disappointments. This, despite Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav stating that the film itself is "the best superhero movie [he's] ever seen." To the actor's credit, Miller (who identifies as nonbinary, and has made only one public appearance during the film's premiere) has reportedly been making steps towards improve and ownership, and I can only hope those steps will progress from there. 

Michael Keaton in The Flash (courtesy WB 2023)

It's otherwise a sad situation, because Miller is awesome as Barry Allen, in a narrative that has the crime lab employee travelling back in time to prevent his late mother's death and personal trauma, but, in turn, altering the entire multiverse. Plus, the action is full-throttle and jaw-dropping. Granted, some of the CGI is uncanny and poor, with various sequences that resemble video games (including one weird and disturbing bit involving hospital babies). A few other moments in this unpredictable storyline will also likely throw some viewers off a la Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness. 

But the real star of The Flash is Michael Keaton, in a long-awaited return as an older Bruce Wayne from Tim Burton's Batman duology (1989's Batman and 1992's Batman Returns). The man still has it ("You wanna get nuts? Let's get nuts!") and is an absolute blast-from-the-past to watch every time he's on screen, including an awesome sequence in Russia when he gets back in the batsuit. And the sight of the Batcave--nostalgic yet slightly modified--and references to Danny Elfman's original score from Burton's films had me grinning with glee. Equally great is Sasha Calle's breakout role as Kara Zor-El a.k.a. Supergirl, who is both a powerful and fearless figure. Like Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman and Halle Bailey as Ariel (The Little Mermaid), you feel like you're watching a star-in-the-making. 

Sasha Calle in The Flash (courtesy WB 2023) 

I won't say which ones, but there are several mind-blowing cameo appearances (and even time-travelling studio/company logos during the opening credits) that connect to the larger DC Universe, including unmade properties that never truly saw the light of day. 

But the film really works in its more grounded and human moments, whether Barry is interacting with his younger teenage self, or with different versions of Bruce Wayne (Ben Affleck appears as well), with Kara, or with reporter and potential love interest Iris West (Kiersey Clemons reprises her brief role from The Snyder Cut). Its themes range from the consequences of one's actions, to accepting tragedies and/or scars that make us, no matter how much we want to change them ("Not every problem has a solution"). So while The Flash isn't a great movie, it does emotionally balance elements of comedy, action, suspense, and drama in a very entertaining way. Overall, it reminds me of what the DC Universe can and should be. 

When it works, that is.