CinemaNerdz

The Preview Reel: Justice League, Wonder, and The Star

Scott Davis
The Preview Reel

Welcome to this week’s “Preview Reel” column, where we look at the week’s upcoming wide-release movies. Thor: Ragnarok defended its box-office crown last week, with both Daddy’s Home 2 and Murder on the Orient Express slightly over-performing. This week sees one of the most anticipated movies of the fall movie season as the next film in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) debuts in the form of Justice League. Two other movies – Wonder and The Star – are both aimed at family audiences before the Thanksgiving holiday.

 

Justice League

What we are excited about: Wonder Woman put the DCEU back on course this past summer as it was not only by far the best-reviewed movie of the lot, but also the highest grossing. Warner Bros. is looking to keep that momentum with its team-up blockbuster, Justice League. The fact that we’ll see Batman, Wonder Woman, the Flash, Aquaman, and Cyborg (and c’mon, we’ll see Superman too) on the same screen is awesome. If each character is given their chance to shine, this could be something special. With all of the great comic book movies 2017 has given us (Logan, Wonder Woman, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, and Thor: Ragnarok), we’re hoping Justice League is the cherry on top.

What we are worried about: There are many things Justice League should have learned from Wonder Woman (2016), but the most important thing is probably that it is a “superhero” movie. Man of Steel (2013) and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) were downers because their respective heroes seemed incredibly burdened by the fact that they were heroes, while Wonder Woman had an inspiring heroine. We understand that not every hero is the same, but still, there should be some joy in watching our favorite characters on the screen. The problem that seems to plague Justice League is that Warner Bros. looks like they listened to those critiques too late in the making of the movie and have merged it with what they had already planned for the movie. It looks like they were making a serious movie like Batman v Superman, then switched gears to make it more fun, and now it’s an awkward mix. The trailers give off that vibe, we just hope the final product is better than that.

The Buzz: Even though it’s always dangerous to compare DC to Marvel, Justice League is essentially DC’s equivalent of The Avengers (2012). While Marvel introduced most of its characters through solo movies before it’s major team-up, DC has only shown us Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and some assorted villains, which means we’re getting Flash, Aquaman, and Cyborg on screen for the first time. Comic book fans have a long-lasting relationship with those characters, but the movie-going audience doesn’t have any recent connection with them (we’re not counting the YouTube clips in Batman v. Superman). It’ll be interesting to see how big this movie opens and if it has strong legs before Star Wars: The Last Jedi opens in December. Look for an opening weekend around $125 million, which is a good start ahead of Thanksgiving week.

Final Thoughts: This is one of the most anticipated movies of the year just out of sheer intrigue. No one really knows what to expect with a Zack Snyder and Joss Whedon directed movie, but we’ll find out soon.

 

Wonder

What we are excited about: While we have not read the book, we have heard nothing but good things about it. The film adaptation is being directed by the man who helmed The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012), a much-beloved coming-of-age movie. That movie was adapted from a popular novel as well, so if he can do what he did with that property, this could be a special movie.

What we are worried about: Again, we are not familiar with the source material, but the trailers are a little too sappy for our taste. It could be just the trailer and the movie itself is a better product, but the trailer does have us worried.

The Buzz: Most, if not all, of the movie industry is focused on how well Justice League performs, but Wonder should be a nice change of pace movie for the holiday season. The movie currently sits at a nice 77% on RottenTomatoes and 63 on MetaCritic. The book has a lot of fans so it does have the potential of boasting strong legs, but look for a quiet start around $7 million.

Final Thoughts: Most of the movie-going audience will be focused on Justice League this weekend, but Wonder might be a nice option for those looking for something that isn’t a blockbuster.

 

The Star

What we are excited about: To be honest, we weren’t aware of this movie until about a week ago when it appeared on the wide-release schedule. As is with the case most animated movies these days, the movie boasts an impressive cast. Sadly, that’s the only positive thing we can say after watching the trailer.

What we are worried about: An animated movie about the first Christmas from the animals’ point of view sounds intriguing, sort of, but not exactly appealing. The jokes look rote and incredibly childish, which we’re not sure is the best approach given the source material. It’ll be interesting to see how audiences respond to this one.

The Buzz: Given the fact that we just discovered this movie existed, there is understandably next to no buzz surrounding it. There are no reviews yet, which is never a good sign and we expect this will not make a dent at the box office with a poor start under $5 million.

Final Thoughts: The Star won’t shine bright at the box office or probably in people’s memories beyond this weekend.

Scott Davis

Scott Davis is a recent graduate of Oakland University where he earned a degree in journalism. He worked for the student newspaper on campus, The Oakland Post, where he became the paper's managing editor. He also earned a minor in Cinema Studies at OU. Scott enjoys all things film and TV related, especially the blockbuster kind. He might be the biggest Christopher Nolan fan you know.
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