The Flash (2023) Review
By Sioph LealWorlds literally collide when Barry Allen, The Flash (Ezra Miller), uses his superpowers in an attempt to alter his own history. While Barry’s father, Henry Allen (Ron Livingston), waits to appeal his wrongful murder conviction, desperation overcomes Barry as he decides to travel back in time and save his mother, Nora Allen (Maribel Verdu). Things don’t go according to plan as Barry finds a duplicate of himself in this altered universe. As if things weren’t bad enough, The Flash must now battle General Zod (Michael Shannon) for the second time, only this time without Superman.
The Flash was cited as being the greatest superhero movie with DC and would restart the DC cinematic universe. The high expectations fall short for the most part, but there are moments in the film that save it from being downright awful to passable with moments of fun. One of the main problems, aside from Ezra Miller's off-screen behavior, is that the movie never decides what it wants to be. There are times when it takes itself too seriously, particularly the plot surrounding the Allen family unit, while other times it leans too much into juvenile comedy and can never find a balance to create the desired impact.
There are moments that truly save The Flash, and that is not from the lead star but from the supporting cast and cameos that bring this movie slightly over the line. Michael Keaton as the illusive Bruce Wayne/Batman brings more charm and layered nuance to his brief role than Miller brings to the entire movie, despite playing a multitude of characters. Keaton’s inclusion is more than a fan service or attempt to distract from the Ezra Miller of it all; it brings together the messy plot in ways that make sense, to the point where the movie should have been about his iteration of Batman and Kara / Supergirl (Sasha Calle).
While many would have hoped for a Henry Cavill cameo, Sasha Calle excels as Kara and brings a freshness to the role. While she does not have much to do and her screen time is limited, like Keaton, Calle creates an impact that affects the story, saves it, and brings a good performance to match. Sasha Callie not only holds her own against the other cast members but makes it clear she is perfect for the role and brings a strength to it that saves the movie. Calle manages to convey an impressive, complex character who has to go through losing her home, her cousin, and then, upon her arrival, being imprisoned for years in a kryptonite cell.
Multiverse plots have fast become the new trend for all superhero movies, and The Flash, DC's version, is no exception. What it does well is make the plot easy to understand and attach interesting and compelling visuals to show all the timelines. It doesn’t try to overcomplicate things and manages to save itself from a repetitive performance by Miller, mostly due to a clever spaghetti analogy from Keaton. Following the spaghetti apology, it all comes crashing together in a visually beautiful way at the end.
The visual aspect of The Flash has its good moments, but those are few and far between. Batman and Supergirl have the majority of the visually stunning scenes, including the bat plane flying over the view of the moon. It’s a great nod to Keaton’s original Batman and still feels relevant to the movie. Unfortunately, The Flash’s CGI leaves a lot to be desired. From another infamous terrible CGI baby to certain cameos looking almost cartoon-like, bordering on clunky, it’s obvious that the majority of the budget was spent on having two versions of The Flash instead of making others more realistic.
Having multiple versions of the same leading character is a popular new concept in the world of superheroes. It’s not always a bad thing, as it can bring different versions to life, or bring back beloved actors to reprise their roles. Regrettably, Miller cannot pull off two leading roles in one movie, and he isn’t helped by other aspects of the production. An example of things working against him is the sound mixing. When having a conversation with himself, Barry’s speech is delayed by a second or two, as if the editor needed to find the right moment to cut. Sometimes, it isn’t as noticeable, but there are moments in the movie where it can be quite jarring.
There are some moments that, with slight improvements, would have cultivated more rounded and dimensional characters. For instance, Iris West (Kiersey Clemons) does an okay job in the movie, but her role is one of the most limited and ineffectual, reduced to someone Barry has a crush on and is a reporter, but there is no impact of her job role other than providing an opening to Barry. Had Iris been in the movie more and played more of a role in the plot, there would have been a more rounded character and dynamic between Iris and Barry.
Overall, for a movie that has a lot of issues with plot and performances, it runs more smoothly than one would expect. The sentimental aspects of Keaton’s Batman and other surprises that wait for you at the end do save the movie, but not enough for it to be rewatchable. Hopefully, The Flash serves as a starting point for Calle’s Supergirl while paving the way for a new era of DC movies.