The Flash has had an interesting lead up to its release. There’s the Ezra Miller controversy, shakeup within the DC leadership, and massive praise from early screenings. There were multiple claims of it being one of the best superhero movies of all time, if not the best. There wasn’t much to back up those claims, however. DC has a spotty track record, with a few hits, more misses, and some complete whiffs. The trailers didn’t do a lot to raise excitement. It looked fine, but nothing groundbreaking. The end result isn’t a full on mess, but there’s more that doesn’t work than does.
Ezra Miller as Barry Allen/The Flash in THE FLASH (2023)/Warner Brothers Pictures
When Barry Allen discovers he can travel back in time, he decides to go back to the day his mom was murdered – and dad falsely imprisoned for the crime – in hopes of saving them both. As you can probably guess, things predictably don’t go as planned. Barry is able to spend some time with his parents before things really start to go downhill. He meets Alternate Barry, who does not yet have his powers. When recreating the circumstances for Alternate Barry to get his speed, Barry loses his powers.
He also discovers General Zod has arrived in this universe, with threats to invade and conquer Earth, like he tried to do in Man of Steel. To combat this, Barry tries to form the Justice League. Except that this particular universe has no metahumans. There is, however, still a Batman, though it’s an alternate version (Michael Keaton reprises his role as the Caped Crusader. Together, the three of them try to locate Superman, who they believe Zod is looking for. But rather than him, they find Supergirl, who they attempt to recruit to their fight.
Except, that’s not really the plot. It pushes the Zod side of things almost completely to the background, to barely more than an afterthought. Instead, the story focuses on Barry and Alternate Barry coming to terms with who they are, both as Barry and the Flash, and with Barry fighting to save his parents, which feels increasingly unlikely the way things go.
Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne/Batman in THE FLASH (2023)/Warner Brothers Pictures
The Flash wants to have both parts of the story mean something. But that comes at the sacrifice of each other. The big battle with Zod feels pointless, as there was next to no lead up to this final confrontation. With the way the previous 90-120 minutes or so of the movie went, this didn’t feel like a natural concluding point.
But on the flip side, so much of Barry’s personal journey gets set aside as the group prepares to fight Zod and defend Earth. However this part plays out, it at least gets the full circle moment, but the movie takes such a roundabout way of getting there. Zod’s inclusion felt unnecessary to the larger themes of the story. There were other ways to tell the story with the same lessons that would have made for a more coherent movie.
The best thing about the Zod plotline was it allowed for a logical way to introduce Sasha Calle’s Supergirl. She’s not in the movie enough, but she’s awesome. Maybe the best part of the movie. Who knows what will happen with the DC movie’s going forward, but I would be fully on board with Calle returning to the role.
Sasha Calle as Kara Zor-El/Supergirl in THE FLASH (2023)/Warner Brothers Pictures
And as great as Calle is, Miller is, at times, equally as bad. Their performance as main Barry is okay, with some flashes of genuinely good acting. But Miller as Alternate Barry is terrible. Yes, this character is supposed to be annoying and obnoxious. But Miller plays the character as someone trying to be annoying and obnoxious, rather than someone who just is. The two Barry’s had very little chemistry, which is a tough draw when the two spend so much of the movie on screen together.
Then there’s the CGI and action. The CGI isn’t always bad, but it mostly is. There are simply some baffling choices made in this regard, that feel more like studio or director choices rather than artists who weren’t up to the task. The action is okay, with Calle again as a highlight. The moments in the speed force are both aspects at some of their worst.
The hook of The Flash is supposed to be the emotionality, Barry’s struggles to save his parents, and whether or not he can make the ultimate sacrifice if it becomes impossible to do so. But with the tonal shifts, and the distractingly bad acting from Miller in the dual lead roles, it becomes very hard to be invested in that part. Had The Flash found a way to focus on Barry’s emotional journey, and with even a passable performance from its lead, it still wouldn’t be one of the best superhero movies ever, but would have been a significant improve over what we got here.
