Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom is the sequel to the highest-grossing DC movie ever, so all things being equal, expectations for the new film would be high. Things are not equal, however, as we know the current iteration of the DC universe on film is ending with this movie, and based on the critic's response to the new film, it sounds like everybody knew there was no future here.
While Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom isn’t without its charms, the general consensus appears that the movie is largely aimless. While the movie finds its footing, to some degree, later on, the movie struggles in its initial setup IGN’s Amelia Emberwing says…
The thing that does help the movie pick up steam is when Patrick Wilson’s Orm joins the Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom cast, and the pair become an unlikely team. James Wan has said he saw the Aquaman sequel as a buddy comedy, and it sounds like, as one, it works pretty well. Writing for Inverse Hoi-Tran Bui says…
The strong chemistry between Momoa and Wilson is remarked on by several critics, but in pretty much all cases, the view is that it isn’t enough to save the movie because everything else is a mess. Tessa Smith at Mama’s Geeky writes...
While the movie may be good for a few laughs thanks to Momoa and Wilson, one of the issues, according to Valerie Complex at Deadline is that the movie is full of too many laughs. Ultimately the movie gets so silly that you can’t take it seriously, even when you should. She explained…
And while Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom, may struggle in the first act, before having some fun in the second act, it all falls apart again for the third act, as the movie’s finale just doesn’t have the weight that it should, due to badly handled stakes. According to THR …
So it looks like the DCEU is going out with a whimper, not a bang. That’s maybe not surprising but it is disappointing. If you want to find out for yourself Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom’s release date is this Friday.