The Flash Review: DC movie has a good headstart but then runs all over the place

The titular speedster in The Flash is a multiverse anomaly and the movie as a whole is a cancel culture anomaly considering the troubled history of its lead actor Ezra Miller. From second-degree assault charges to breaking in a couple’s home to allegedly grooming children with a cult-like mindster, Miller’s controversies were what dominated The Flash’s updates last year.

However, ever since August 2022, when Miller, who uses the pronouns they/them, revealed that they are apologetic and seeking treatment for “complex mental health issues”, it became difficult for everyone to totally cancel out Miller.

Further, the DC fans who were intent on separating the art from the artists got Miller’s redemption as a good-enough justification to watch The Flash. 

ALSO READ: Ezra Miller is not alone. More celebs who have spoken up about mental health issues

Enough fan service with more than enough cameos

Now that it’s finally out in theatres, people have many reasons to look forward to. Catering to fun service with cameos to the level of Spider-Man: No Way Home or the Deewangi Deewangi song from Om Shanti Om, The Flash offers multiple versions of Barry Allen (Ezra Miller) and not just Ben Affleck’s but also Michael Keaton’s original take on the Dark Knight. We also have Man of Steel’s General Zod and Co returning while Supergirl (Sasha Calle) makes her big-screen debut. 

Then, there are some brief yet jaw-dropping guest appearances, one of which director Andy Muschetti himself ruined for some reason (yes, Nicolas Cage plays Superman, reprising his role from a cancelled 90s Superman movie). I, unlike Muschetti, won't spoil any more cameos for you. 

The (now) frustrating cliches of time travel and multiverse

Once we are done with the fan service, The Flash also has a moving narrative to offer. If you are familiar with the CW show The Flash (that recently ended its nine-season run), the plot might seem like familiar territory. Barry Allen’s life changed since the day his mother died, a murder for which his father went behind bars. But with Barry running faster than light and reversing time, he intends to undo time as it is so that he could protect his parents. 

And even though the scarlet speedster attempts to run back in time, he manages to run into some timeline-altering space-continuum mumbo-jumbo. From Back to the Future to Everything Everywhere All at Once to Spider-Man: No Way Home and the more recent Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, we have watched enough movies now to understand that you just stay put and not mess around whenever alternate timelines and parallel dimensions are involved. 

But despite all his scientific brilliance, Barry somehow ignores the cardinal rule “DON’T PLAY WITH TIME”. He instead ends up landing in an alternate timeline where he meets a young Barry. This dimension also has Supergirl instead of Superman and boasts a much older Batman. Also, remember how General Zod landed on Earth and then waged war in Man of Steel? Yes, so that is going to happen soon in this timeline unless the two Barrys, Keaton Batman and Supergirl stop them. 

As campy as The Flash’s tight costume (and that’s a good thing)

With so many multiverse options to watch these days, The Flash is unabashedly derivative. But is it fun? Yes, it is. Once you are at terms with the convoluted story and cartoonish dialogues, The Flash is a campy take on the genre that makes for good popcorn entertainment. 

The Flash runs around to save a bunch of babies falling off a building. Batman literally flies like a bat. One Barry tells another Barry “Come on Barbie” to which the other Barry says, “Let’s go party?”. This is what you can expect from this trippy ride into the fabric of time. 

But the fun can give you a headache (and let’s not start with the visual effects)

The Flash is humorous, moving at times, adrenaline-inducing but ultimately nauseating. The psychedelic running sequences and the final boss battle can be so monotonous at times that after a moment of time, the fun gets to the point where you are getting a headache. Also, people with tendencies to have epileptic seizures should try avoiding The Flash because this movie is filled with flashing lights in almost every blink. 

Recently, Marvel has been getting flak for its CGI work but DCEU is no less with some laughably shoddy VFX in recent offerings. While The Flash’s special effects aren’t as laughable as Black Adam, it does have some unintentionally chuckle-inducing animation that seems like it is straight out of the 2000s. 

Whenever The Flash runs, his feet are rendered out with flashing clarity but when you focus on his face during running, that’s simply nightmare fuel. Probably due to Miller’s legal troubles affecting reshoots, the crew had to resort to CGI-fying the life out of Barry Allen. Even when Supergirl arrives on the scene, her combat plays out like a video game cutscene. Whenever Barry runs back and forth into time, the faces of everyone in his life turn into 3D-animated caricatures which just adds further to the headaches. 

Is The Flash worth all the delayed production?

Finally, the superhero comedy-drama is still worth all the anticipation it generated after emerging out of production hell. The formulaic time travel premise from the original Flashpoint comic is still forgivable but it’s the VFX headache that serves as The Flash’s ultimate drawback. Still, it is an exhilarating self-indulgent ride that offers promising potential for how James Gunn envisions the future of the DC Extended Universe now. 

Despite its multitude of cameos, The Flash still doesn’t feature even a glimpse of Grant Gustin (the actor who played Barry Allen in the CW series). The Flash’s nine seasons might have become unbearable but Gustin still was as passionate as ever while donning the scarlet costume in every episode. The least this new movie could have done is to incorporate him somehow. 

Anyway, The Flash definitely sets up room for sequels (which hopefully won’t be this visually chaotic). So, Ezra Miller doesn’t need to worry about lawyer fees anymore as they are bound to earn a couple of millions more as the speedster. 

We're going with 3 out of 5 stars for The Flash.