From the moment it’s trailer was released in the San Diego Comic-Con (Thursday, July 19-Sunday July 22nd, 2018), “Aquaman” faced an uncertain path. Its success certainly wasn’t guaranteed and this James Wan directed movie faced questions and mixed responses from die-hard fans of DC Comics. After “Batman v. Superman” received harsh critic reviews and hate from the public, people began to question what direction DC was going in.

With “Wonder Woman” as a rebound from “Batman v. Superman”,  DC Comics seemed to gain momentum once again, grossing 821.8 million dollars for the movie . However, many concerns were still raised about the state of the DC Extended Universe. Would the DCEU focus on developing their core characters before diving back into their Extended Universe?

“Aquaman,” the company’s most recent release, decides to take a different route. It focuses on the origin story of Aquaman (played by Jason Momoa), not on the DC Extended Universe itself. Following the previous motion picture, “Justice League”, “Aquaman” is centered on Arthur Curry, our drunk, wild hero. He is the son of Queen Atlanta and Tom Curry, a simple man, who lives his days out as the keeper of an old lighthouse. When Arthur’s half brother, Orm, is on the verge of declaring war on the surface world, Arthur must become the hero that the world needs. If he doesn’t rise to the occasion, everything he loves will be taken away from him.

From the outstanding, over the top, cinematography to the hilarious, swashbuckling performance from Jason Momoa, “Aquaman” is one hell of a ride. The cinematography was designed by Don Burgess who did a fantastic job of creating the underwater kingdom of Atlantis. Filled with heavy exposition and over ambitiousness, it simply can’t fail and will reel in the viewer from the moment that they sit down in the theater.

Adding to “Aquaman’s” rise to the cinematic world is its unbelievable haul from the box office. “Aquaman” pulled in 232 million yuan, when it was first released, surpassing its entire production budget from its audience in China alone. It just became DC’s first billion-dollar baby with 300 million domestically and 700 million overseas, and it has set the stage for a DC comeback. DC’s next movie is “Shazam!”, dropping April 5 of 2019.

All in all, “Aquaman” is simply a must see and I would give this cheerful adventure a 9/10!