Underplayed Gems

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023)

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom poster
Directed by
James Wan
Genre
fantasy film, action film, adventure film, science fiction film, superhero film, speculative fiction film
Country
United States
Runtime
2h 04m
Rated
PG-13
Rating
6.5 of 10 from 3,545 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
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How it feels

Aquaman teams up with his imprisoned half-brother Orm to stop Black Manta from using an ancient cursed trident to overheat the planet. Arthur must protect his family and search for a lost underwater kingdom while dealing with reluctant sibling teamwork.

bombasticfast-pacedsillyaction-packeddarkly comicvisually busyblockbusterfamily-centric

What happens

Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is a 2023 American superhero film based on the DC Comics character Aquaman. Directed by James Wan from a screenplay by David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick, it is the sequel to Aquaman (2018) and the 15th and final film in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). Jason Momoa stars as Arthur Curry / Aquaman, who must work with his half-brother Orm (Patrick Wilson) to prevent Black Manta (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) from killing his family and using the cursed Black Trident to overheat the world while searching for the lost seventh kingdom of the seas. Amber Heard, Randall Park, Dolph Lundgren, Temuera Morrison, Martin Short, and Nicole Kidman also star in supporting roles. Wan also produced the film with Peter Safran and Rob Cowan for Warner Bros. Pictures. Momoa pitched a story for an Aquaman sequel during the first film's production. Wan did not want to rush a sequel after the first film's commercial success but agreed in January 2019 to oversee development. Johnson-McGoldrick signed on to return as screenwriter a month later, and Wan was confirmed to be returning as director in August 2020. He said the film would expand on Aquaman's worldbuilding, have a more serious tone, and feature themes such as climate change. Contrarily, the final product is presented as a buddy comedy between Aquaman and Orm, and was inspired by the Silver Age of Comic Books with a retro science fiction vibe similar to the works of animator Ray Harryhausen and horror films of the 1960s, specifically Planet of the Vampires (1965). Wan announced the sequel's title in June 2021, and principal photography began later that month and concluded in January 2022. Filming took place in the United Kingdom, Hawaii, Los Angeles, and New Jersey, with additional filming in New Zealand. Several reshoots took place between July 2022 and June 2023 to alter the storyline while some actors' roles were reduced, including Heard's, whose involvement was the subject of controversy during production. Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom premiered at a fan event at the Grove, Los Angeles on December 19, 2023, and was released in the United States on December 22. The film received negative reviews from critics and grossed $440 million worldwide against a production budget of $205–215 million. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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