Aquaman
Warner Bros. | Release Date: December 21, 2018 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
55
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 50 Critic Reviews
Positive:
22
Mixed:
21
Negative:
7
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
RogerEbert.comMatt Zoller SeitzDec 20, 2018
Aquaman is as concerned with scientific accuracy as “SpongeBob Squarepants.” And that’s one of many reasons why I like it. Read full review
85
TheWrapWilliam BibbianiDec 11, 2018
It’s a weird and wonderful superhero adventure that strives — and almost succeeds — to be the most epic superhero movie ever made. Read full review
80
TimeStephanie ZacharekDec 20, 2018
In its best moments, Aquaman is transportive. There are worse ways to spend a Saturday afternoon. Read full review
80
Film ThreatChris GoreDec 20, 2018
Aquaman is worth seeing if only for its original visuals and the grand vision from director James Wan. As a whole, it is a bit of a mess and ends up being an exhausting experience that would’ve benefited from some judicious editing. Read full review
75
The AtlanticDavid SimsDec 23, 2018
Aquaman works because it isn’t laughing at itself—it’s both joyously whimsical and confident in its own seaworthiness. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperDec 19, 2018
I don’t see Aquaman ever reaching icon status, but I’ll say this: He’s a lot more fun on his own, when he’s not saddled with those overly serious stiffs Superman and Batman. Read full review
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)John SemleyDec 19, 2018
In making the first DC superhero film in a long time to aspire to anything like levity, Wan finds a way to catalyze what might have been yet another dust-dry origin story. The secret? Just add water. Read full review
75
Original-CinJim SlotekDec 19, 2018
A big dumb acid-trip of a super-hero movie, Aquaman is relentless, noisy, entertaining nonsense – particularly in 3D IMAX - as overlong as any of them, but not boring, and as I say, at times trippy. Read full review
75
IGNJim VejvodaDec 11, 2018
The glee that director James Wan clearly has playing in the world of Aquaman is infectious. He’s made a movie for both types of 10-year-olds: literal kids and those who are 10 at heart. Aquaman is one hell of a popcorn movie. Read full review
70
The VergeDevon MaloneyDec 19, 2018
There’s a level of self-awareness in Aquaman’s more grandiose images and plot movements that’s certainly been missing from previous DC movies. The story is so deliberately corny that it’s never really moving, no matter how much it reaches in the direction of emotion. Read full review
70
SlateSam AdamsDec 18, 2018
Wan not only embraces the inherent silliness of a hero whose signature power is talking to fish; he revels in it, finding the childlike awesomeness at its core. You can still see every plot beat coming from miles away, but it feels like destiny rather than repetition, the fulfillment of a promise every movie makes and few deliver on. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranDec 11, 2018
Notwithstanding the inevitable formulaic dialogue and a superabundance of boilerplate superhero action sequences, Aquaman turns out to be, almost despite itself, an engaging undersea extravaganza. Read full review
70
New York Magazine (Vulture)Emily YoshidaDec 11, 2018
Aquaman’s as formulaic, excessively thrashy, and mommy-obsessed as any other entry in the DCEU, but its visual imagination is genuinely exciting and transportive, and dare I say, fun. Read full review
70
We Got This CoveredMatt DonatoDec 11, 2018
Aquaman is imaginatively ambitious superhero cinema with no rules, which is more positive than negative as Wan's vision is realized like an underwater laser light spectacle that the DCEU so desperately needs right now. Read full review
69
Paste MagazineDom SinacolaDec 20, 2018
For the most part, the DCEU just can’t square its admittedly exciting set pieces with solid storytelling. In turn, whenever Aquaman pops a squat to unload exposition, it grinds to an interminable halt. Those action scenes, though. Revolutionary at best, innovative at worst. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMatthew MonagleDec 20, 2018
Aquaman also benefits from a cast that is unafraid to chew a little scenery. Momoa is an established entity at this point in his career; equal parts cartoon character and Eighties action lead, he carries the film through its muddiest moments through sheer charisma. Read full review
67
ConsequenceClint WorthingtonDec 11, 2018
Aquaman is a pure piece of bright, ridiculous spectacle, hammering its Saturday morning cartoon sensibilities down its audience’s throat with a huge, cheesy grin on its face. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubIgnatiy VishnevetskyDec 11, 2018
It owns up to its cheese. Read full review
67
Vanity FairRichard LawsonDec 11, 2018
There’s a joy to the film’s ornate beauty, a loving craftsmanship that rescues Aquaman from the branded synergy that so haunts and chokes it elsewhere. Read full review
63
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliDec 21, 2018
Aquaman refuses to do anything original or unpredictable and turns into a by-the-numbers tale of how the trident-carrying King of Atlantis becomes a protector of both land and sea. It accomplishes this by hoping that special effects saturation will compensate for screenplay weaknesses. Read full review
63
New York PostJohnny OleksinskiDec 11, 2018
An Aquaman sequel is reportedly in the works. The series already has a strong leading man and a feel for an epic. The filmmakers just need to find the heart of their ocean. Read full review
63
USA TodayBrian TruittDec 11, 2018
Even with its flaws and struggles with originality, Aquaman is reminiscent of the early Marvel movies in its storytelling, best when taking wild swings instead of being an earnest superhero jam. Read full review
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