Aquaman (film)

Aquaman is a 2007 superhero film, based on the DC Comics superhero of the same name. It is the fourth film in the DC Cinematic Universe and the fourth film of Phase One. The film was released on July 3, 2007 in the United States.

The film is directed by Bryan Singer and stars Jason Momoa as Arthur Curry/Aquaman, Adrianne Palicki as Mera, Patrick Wilson as Orm Marius, Temuera Morrison as Tom Curry, Jonathan Frakes as Nuidis Vulko, and Willem Dafoe as Nereus.

Plot
As a child, Mera asks her father, King Nereus, to tell her the story of Atlantis. Nereus explains that long ago, Atlantis was the technological capital of the world. However, a civil war ravaged the city and caused King Atlan to sink Atlantis, and its people adapted to living underwater. Atlan's descendant, Atlanna, ruled Atlantis until her recent death. Due to her bearing no children, Nereus was given the title of King, making Mera a princess. Nereus also reveals that legend states Atlanna had a secret child with a human, who was hidden away so he wouldn't be killed for his hybrid genetics. Mera tells her father she wants to find the boy.

In the present, Arthur Curry owns a bar in Maine and takes care of his ailing father, Tom, a lighthouse keeper. Arthur possesses superhuman strength, though Tom claims to not know why. In Atlantis, Nereus's adviser Orm Marius seeks to take the throne from him. Mera discovers this and tries to warn her father, but he doesn't listen. Orm tries to have Mera killed, but she is rescued by scientist Nuidis Vulko. Vulko reveals he was friends with Queen Atlanna and helped her hide away her son, confirming the myth as fact. Mera realizes that the child is the true heir to the throne, and he could stop Orm. Vulko informs Mera of where Atlanna had the child.

Mera travels to Maine and locates Arthur, where she is able to confirm he is half-Atlantean. Arthur believes she is crazy and tries get rid of her, until Orm comes to the mainland, having followed Mera, and attacks Arthur. Arthur realizes he is able to breathe underwater and forces Orm to retreat. Mera and Arthur go to see his father, who is now close to death, and he reveals he met Atlanna thirty years ago and they bonded. She would travel to see him often and became pregnant. She hid her pregnancy from Atlantis and was forced to give up the boy to Tom to spare his life, and vowed to return, but she was eventually killed in Atlantis. After revealing the truth, Tom dies. Arthur is upset learning he has been lied to his whole life, but Mera convinces him to return to Atlantis with her to stop Orm.

Orm informs Nereus of his daughter's betrayal, and he orders Orm to bring her to him. Arthur and Mera travel to Greece to find King Atlan's trident. Orm sends an army after them that attacks the city. Arthur and Mera protect the citizens, which results in Orm finding the trident and wielding it, giving him great power. He also captures Mera, leaving Arthur on his own. Arthur returns to Maine, where is visited by the spirit of Atlanna, who tells him that Orm killed her as part of a plan to gain the throne, and he is the only one who can stop Orm. Arthur uses his abilities to get to Atlantis and discovers Orm has taken over the throne and is preparing a public execution for Mera. Arthur finds Nereus in a prison and releases him so they can save Mera. They are able to rescue her, but Orm kills Nereus instead, devastating Mera.

Arthur tells Mera about Atlanna's visit and she is able to convince Atlantis of what Orm has done, using their love for Nereus against Orm. Arthur and Orm enter a one-on-one fight without the trident and Arthur is able to defeat him, gaining the trident and the title of King. Orm is locked up and Vulko becomes Arthur's chief adviser. Mera learns that the media has dubbed Arthur "Aquaman" after the Greece incident, and he decides to be a savior of the seas and the land, while also naming Mera as his Queen.

In a post-credits scene, scientist Stephen Shin hires mercenary David Hyde to find Atlantis.

Cast

 * Jason Momoa as Arthur Curry/Aquaman
 * Adrianne Palicki as Mera
 * Patrick Wilson as Orm Marius
 * Temuera Morrison as Tom Curry
 * Jonathan Frakes as Nuidis Vulko
 * Willem Dafoe as King Nereus

Box office
Aquaman grossed $157 million in the United States and Canada, and $324.6 million in other territories, for a total of $481.6 million. The film had a domestic opening weekend of $54.6 million, and a four-day total of $99.6 million.

Critical reception
Aquaman received generally positive reviews from critics, with many praising the performances of the cast (particularly Momoa, Wilson, and Frakes), Singer's direction, musical score, costumes, production values, and faithfulness to the comics. On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an 83% approval rating, based on 248 reviews, with a rating average of 7.1/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Refreshingly traditional in a modern era, Bryan Singer's Aquaman proves DC hasn't lost any of its old-fashioned magic." Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 67 out of 100, based on 47 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". According to CinemaScore, audiences gave the film a grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale.