‘The Flash’ review round-up: Ezra Miller is ‘charismatic lead’ in ‘one of the best DC movies in recent years’
On June 16, 2023, Warner Bros. Pictures released the latest film in the DC Universe, ‘The Flash’. In the film, Barry Allen (Ezra Miller) alters time in order to save a loved one from dying. As a result, the future is vastly different and General Zod (Michael Shannon) is running amok with no superheroes to save the day. Can Barry get Batman (Michael Keaton) and an imprisoned Supergirl (Sasha Calle) to help save the world?
The film directed by Andy Muschietti currently holds a score of 68% on Rotten Tomatoes with a Critics Consensus that reads, “’The Flash’ is funny, fittingly fast-paced, and overall ranks as one of the best DC movies in recent years.” The ensemble cast includes Ben Affleck, Ron Livingston, Jeremy Irons, Kiersey Clemons and Antje Traue. Read our full review round-up below.
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Alan Ng of Film Threat praises the film, noting, “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen the Michael Keaton Batman. I’m not sure just how much of that Batman appears in ‘The Flash,’ but it was great to see Keaton back, along with the guy who did all his stunts. Though Sasha Calle doesn’t exactly look like Helen Slater or Melissa Benoist, she does justice to Supergirl and accomplishes what that character needs to do for this specific story.” Ng adds, “’The Flash’ is the good DC movie (sans ‘The Suicide Squad’) I’ve been waiting for since the first ‘Wonder Woman.’ At this point in time, DC is about to overtake Marvel in the who-can-make-a-better-film race.”
Roger Moore of Movie Nation says, “But Miller times two, complemented with a bracing, world-weary turn by Michael Keaton as a Batman who’s moved on but not traded cars, and a story with consequences and pathos give this genre outing an edge your typical DC Universe picture lacks. It’s damned interesting, and that goes for the characters, too.” Moore notes, “With Miller, the viewer can’t really separate the art from the troubled artist because the performance and the characters he’s playing won’t let us. But that never takes you out of the movie, and the film’s earnest ‘Save others’ ethos and ‘Don’t relive your past, live your life’ messaging resonates.”
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Avi Offer of NYC Movie Guru notes, “Anyone who describes ‘The Flash’s’ plot beyond the short synopsis above would be doing audiences and the film a disservice because it would spoil the plot’s many twists and surprises. Screenwriter Christina Hodson does a great job of introducing Barry Allen/The Flash to the audience with an exciting action scene while also introducing the tongue-in-cheek, offbeat humor that’s reminiscent of the humor in ‘Deadpool.’ Without revealing any spoilers, it’s safe to say that ‘The Flash’ becomes increasingly zany and even trippy at times, much like ‘Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.’” Offer does ding Shannon as Zod, saying the actor “isn’t very interesting as a villain, although he’s quite menacing like a villain should be.” In conclusion, “Ezra Miller has a lot of fun as Barry Allen which turns out to be a role that’s a lot more complex than you can imagine. He’s a charismatic lead with great comedic timing while also doing his best to not make the maudlin scenes cringe-inducing.”
Matt Zoller Seitz of RogerEbert.com was less impressed, noting, “One of the most spectacular and frustrating mixed bags of the superhero blockbuster era, ‘The Flash’ is simultaneously thoughtful and clueless, challenging and pandering. It features some of the best digital FX work I’ve seen and some of the worst. Like its sincere but often hapless hero, it keeps exceeding every expectation we might have for its competence only to instantly face-plant into the nearest wall.” In conclusion, Keaton “underplays and reacts in a way that adds freshness to a story that’s probably too dependent on recycled situations and makes Miller’s jumpy, abrasive tendencies easier to take. He’s the acting version of a shock absorber, smoothing the ride without slowing it down.”
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