In The Flash, we are reintroduced to Barry Allen (Ezra Miller). His father is incarcerated, wrongly convicted of his wife’s murder. A crucial video that could prove his father’s innocence is corrupted, extinguishing any hope for his release. Driven by desperation, The Flash utilizes his abilities to travel back in time, attempting to alter the past. He successfully prevents the murder and returns to what he believes is his original timeline, only to find himself in an alternate reality where his mother is alive, but the world is fundamentally different. As he grapples with this new reality, Zod (Michael Shannon) launches an attack. With the Justice League and Superman absent, The Flash must assemble a team to defend the world. Fortunately, he knows Batman’s identity, providing a starting point, or so he believes…
The Flash represents one of the final installments in the previous DC cinematic universe, a film anticipated by many fans for years. The screenplay draws inspiration from the Flashpoint comic book released in 2011. While the film shares some thematic elements with the comic, significant deviations exist. A key difference is that in Flashpoint, The Flash encounters Thomas Wayne, a malevolent version of Batman, as Bruce Wayne is the one who dies in this timeline. Consequently, the father becomes Batman, and his mother Martha descends into madness, becoming the Joker. While it is debatable whether this adaptation would have surpassed the challenges faced by The Flash film, it would have undoubtedly offered a more compelling narrative.
Before delving into the film’s shortcomings, I want to highlight its strengths. The opening action sequence is genuinely engaging. However, the CGI effects are notably poor, a point I will address later. This scene offers a glimpse of Batman in proper action, marking Ben Affleck’s most compelling Batman scene across all his appearances as the Caped Crusader. While his suit’s aesthetic is slightly questionable, the scene is still a standout.
A significant highlight, and arguably the film’s central appeal, is the return of Michael Keaton as Batman. The alternate world allows us to witness the continuation of his character’s journey following Batman Returns (1992). Keaton delivers a captivating performance, making his scenes consistently excellent.
Another positive aspect is Sasha Calle’s portrayal of Supergirl. This unique interpretation of the heroine is compelling, and I appreciate her depiction of Kara Zor-El.
Unfortunately, the praise ends here, as the film suffers from excessive length, a simplistic plot, and ultimately feels unnecessary. I will elaborate on these points.
The lead role is portrayed by Ezra Miller, whose off-screen behavior has been problematic. Miller has allegedly engaged in assaults, violent conduct, and other public relations missteps that Warner Bros. has attempted to mitigate. This contributed to the extended delay in The Flash’s release, as the film underwent re-editing and adjustments, accompanied by hopes that audiences would overlook these incidents. However, the film’s box office performance suggests this was not the case.
I speculate that the cancellation of the Batgirl film (a $90 million production) was strategic, ensuring that The Flash would be the sole film featuring Keaton’s Batman. This is purely my conjecture, as I have not encountered this theory elsewhere. However, promotional materials heavily emphasized Keaton’s presence.
While Ezra Miller displayed some initial charm in earlier, brief appearances within ensemble casts, he is now tasked with carrying the entire film, and in a dual role. This proves to be excessive, and the decision to portray his doppelganger as a caricature reminiscent of Pauly Shore detracts from the film. Attempts at humor fall flat, resulting in annoyance with the character.
Beyond Miller’s performance, the script is riddled with logical inconsistencies and plot holes, making it difficult to connect with the characters. The endeavor to salvage a timeline or alternate universe that cannot lead him home lacks a clear rationale. The filmmakers initially address his power loss in a tolerable manner, but the trailers have already revealed that he regains his abilities. Subsequently, the third act devolves into a series of poorly rendered CGI battles, culminating in one of the most unconvincing green-screen environments I have witnessed. The filmmakers attempt to surpass previous films featuring interactions between older and newer versions of heroes, but these efforts are unsuccessful and feel inconsequential. What could have been a memorable cinematic moment transforms into a disastrously executed sequence that drags on excessively.
As previously mentioned, the initial scene suffers from abysmal CGI quality. The sequence itself is relatively entertaining, although the Flash’s constant need for sustenance to maintain his energy results in some distasteful scenes. However, the primary issue lies in the collapse of a hospital, where an entire floor of infant incubators plummets from the building. The infants are entirely computer-generated and appear worse than the baby in the Pixar film Tin Toy from 1988. The poor quality is jarring and detracts significantly from the film.
The UHD edition of The Flash offers a significant improvement. The image quality is flawless due to the 2160p resolution. HDR/Dolby Vision enhances the visual experience. The Flash’s red suit stands out vividly against the backgrounds, creating a visually striking effect. The blacks are deep, and the contrast between light and dark is rendered without any noticeable color bleeding.
The case indicates that the audio is in Dolby Atmos; however, there appears to be an encoding issue, as my amplifier decodes the sound as Dolby Master 7.1. While the two are similar, some channels seemed slightly misaligned. Furthermore, the audio levels were unusually low and somewhat flat, requiring a significant increase in amplifier volume to achieve the desired soundscape.
Another positive aspect is the inclusion of substantial and engaging bonus content in the UHD edition, featuring insightful documentaries, deleted scenes, and other supplementary material.
In conclusion, The Flash is a significant disappointment. The return of Keaton as Batman is the film’s sole redeeming quality, and the excellent UHD edition prevents the overall rating from falling to the lowest possible score, allowing it to achieve a marginal pass.
SF Studios provided review copies for this assessment. The providers of review materials do not exert editorial influence on our evaluations. Our reviews are conducted independently, with a focus on providing valuable information to our readers and consumers.
