You better believe The Flash is the best superhero movie of 2023. I can’t believe I’m actually saying that with all the dysfunction with Warner Brothers and DC over the last 10 years, it’s the best movie since the Snyder cut of Justice League. To say I enjoyed every minute of it is an understatement! Of course, I’ll admit that there is a lot of nostalgia for having Michael Keaton back as Batman, but this movie works on every level. It has a lot of heart mixed with the right amount of comedy, it’s emotional and filled with the perfect amount of action. I’m not going to say that Ezra Miller is the best version of Barry Allen as the Flash. He’s average. He’s also not the one that carries this film. Michael Keaton as Batman is the one who saves this film from the disaster that it could have been. But this is also the best performance of Ezra Miller as the Flash. I’m glad that he got a chance to shine. But we also need to acknowledge the performance of Sasha Calle who played Supergirl. The Flash doesn’t have the same dark tone as most of Zack Snyder’s DC movies and it doesn’t need to be that dark. Barry Allen as the Flash is not really a dark character. So, to have a DC movie that’s a little bit light-hearted in the Snyder verse is very welcoming. If you’re wondering whether you should go see this movie, yes, an emphatic yes. Here’s why!
The story takes place after the events of the Justice League movie. The world knows about the Justice League and they’re all pitching in to try and keep the world safe. Barry is faced with the last criminal appeal for his father Henry, who is still in jail after being accused of killing his mother. Through his anger, he discovers the ” speedforce” and how he can manipulate time. We’ve seen this kind of story played out time and time again and nothing ever good comes from it, but in this version, Barry decides that he can go back and stop the murder of his mother. What he ends up doing is going to another universe.
He goes to a universe where Superman, Wonder Woman, Cyborg, and Aquaman don’t exist. He ends up on the Earth where Michael Keaton’s Batman exists, but 30 years after the events of the Tim Burton movies. That’s also where he encounters a different version of himself, and they will all discover that it was really Supergirl who ended up on Earth. Sure, it’s another multiple-universe superhero story, and even though you may be tired of exploring these kinds of stories, but this one works because we get the best Batman in the twilight of his years we will once again get a chance to say the world. The best parts of this movie are the interactions between Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen and Michael Keaton’s Bruce Wayne, especially when he’s trying to explain the Justice League on his earth. Ezra Miller really does shine because he has to play two versions of himself.
The one who has learned to be confident after being a part of the Justice League and the nerdy irresponsible teenage version of himself who doesn’t have powers yet. The two of them together make for the funniest parts of the film, especially as the first Barry Allen is trying to teach the second Barry Allen how to be the Flash. Creating a universe where Zod ends up back on Earth to take over and having to fight Supergirl is a good storyline, it’s one of the strongest parts of the film. The pacing is perfect where you get just enough action with all the superheroes versus all the emotional moments of them having to come together, especially with Barry Allen bringing Bruce Wayne out of his funk to suit up as Batman again. That’s as much as I will tell you in this review. I can’t spoil anything, But the best performance really does have to go to Michael Keaton as Batman. Yes, he has gray hair, but in some ways, I feel like we get to see more of an action-packed Batman than we did with the Tim Burton movies. For those who think Michael Keaton is the best Batman you will not be disappointed.
It’s a great superhero film and one of the best DC films that have come out in the last 20 years. However, it isn’t without its flaws. While it was nice to have the Justice League back a little bit. We certainly could have had more scenes with Ben Affleck’s Batman, Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman and even have a scene with Henry Cavill as Superman. I mean he did make a cameo in Black Adam. There are definitely some missed opportunities. The other issue is the movie introduces Iris West but doesn’t develop her character. She is essentially a glorified extra. She has one or two funny scenes, but it’s as if her character isn’t really that important even though we all know what’s going to happen with her and Barry Allen. There certainly could have been more to Supergirl’s backstory. We get just enough explanation of how she ended up on Earth First and why she’s being imprisoned. That may be a bit of a spoiler, but you also get that from the trailers. She has some great emotional scenes before she’s whisked away into a lot of action-fighting Zod, but her character could have been developed a little bit more, especially with how her story ends within the film. I know that this is much more Barry Allen’s story, but the characters of Batman and Supergirl are just as important in the universe he ends up in. This is one of those times where just like Batman v Superman a 3-hour version would probably work better and maybe we’ll get to see that on HBO Max. But these are minor critiques. There’s always more you can do with a film and maybe a longer version would make it better, but what’s being released in theaters is a great superhero movie and better than anything Marvel has released in the last few years.
There’s an awful lot to like about this film. It’s very enjoyable and you’ll have a fun experience at the theater, so, yes, it’s worth the price of a movie ticket. Ezra Miller does a great job as Barry Allen and gets his time in the sun with his Standalone film, but it’s really Michael Keaton as Batman that makes this a great superhero movie. Once he puts on the iconic suit, it feels like we are transported back to the early 90s. He really does save the film and makes it better than expected. And getting to see all the different versions of superheroes in the end when they are trying to fix the timelines like Christopher Reeve and Helen Slater as Superman and Supergirl. It was cool to get a version of Nicolas Cage as Superman from the Tim Burton film that was never made. The worst part about this film is it’s a great way to go to the next phase of DC characters for when they would have to fight the ultimate villain in the DC universe, Darkseid. Sadly, this will be the last of the Snyder verse DC Films, but it is a great send-off to these characters that we’ve brought attached to over the last decade. I don’t care what anybody says, Ben Affleck turned out to be a pretty good Batman. Yes, The Flash is the best superhero movie of the year and definitely be enjoyed in a movie theater. It by far exceeded expectations despite all the controversy, we heard coming out of Warner Brothers and of course all of Ezra Miller’s antiques. In the end, Ezra, Michael, Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Sasha Calle, and Michael Shannon as General Zod delivered a great superhero movie. It may be largely forgotten in the years to come with James Gunn rebooting the DC Universe, but it will be a fun film to revisit time and time again on HBO Max. The Flash is a great swan song for the Snyder verse and Michael Keaton coming back is Batman knocks it out of the park just making this film one of the great surprises of 2023. I can’t wait to see it again.
