Let me reiterate that my policy has always been to judge a film based on what is thrown on the screen and not the personal lives of those on or behind the camera. Yes, you can find instances where I violate this policy, but go with me on this one. There must be a line between art and politics. So how do director Andy Moschitti and star Ezra Miller get along the flash As tier B heroes in the world who want A stories?
The story is almost all in the trailer. Barry Allen (Miller) is a forensics expert for the district attorney. He uses these resources to find evidence to exonerate his father, who was falsely convicted in his mother’s death. Enraged, Barry runs and runs to discover that he can move fast enough to travel through time. He returns to prevent his mother’s murder, and when he returns to his present, a mysterious figure knocks Barry into another timeline, where he meets his now living mother and his younger self.
“…must find a way Save the world against Zod. This includes finding and recruiting other metahumans.”
This is where the butterfly effect takes hold. Barry’s intervention meant that the only member of the Justice League that exists is the Michael Keaton version of Batman. General Zod (Michael Shannon) soon arrives, but there is no Superman to save the day. With Batman as a twig between two Barrys, our trio must find a way to save the world against Zod. This includes finding and recruiting other metahumans.
Let’s get my trust out of the way. I’m not a DC fan, having grown up with Marvel all my life. I’m also not a fan of Zack Snyder’s movies, none of them. However, boy did I like it the flash. This is the first time in a long time that I felt like I was watching a comic book movie from start to finish. It opens with Flash doing Flash stuff by saving Metropolis. This simple sequence establishes Barry’s persona and gives us the full spectrum of his abilities. Now throw in a big Batfleck appearance and enough Wonder Woman to remind us why we love Gal Gadot. Viola, you have a fun movie.
The next section grounds us in the human story. Barry works feverishly to get his father out of prison while discovering he can travel through time and make sure his mother never dies. From here, the wheels fall off the car, and Barry makes a mess that he has to fix. It helps that regardless of how you feel about the person, Ezra Miller is great as Barry Allens. The special effects for doing the double roles are smooth, and immediately you stop trying to figure out how this trick was done. While some may find Barry annoying, I love that they are two different people with separate motivations.
