The Flash has been in development for years. Finally, the movie has arrived with an unbelievable controversy and with some people claiming that it is the ‘best comic book movie ever.’

I’ll start with the controversy. I have to address it. Ezra Miller has had an insane path over the last several years, leading an abusive stretch with others. I am really trying my best to separate my thoughts of the creative person from the content, so my review will not detail my thoughts on Ezra Miller’s real life craziness.

So, on to the review.

Barry Allen (Ezra Miller) uses his super speed to travel back in time to save his mother (Maribel Verdú) from her untimely death, which causes the universe to go seriously wonky and all kind of changes happen. Barry goes on a quest to try and right the wrongs he did, along with a younger version of himself, Bruce Wayne (Michael Keaton) and Kara (Sasha Calle).

Okay, first off, this is not the best comic book movie ever made. Period. That does not mean I did not like The Flash, because I did. But this movie is fun, but very messy.

Let me start with what I liked. Ezra Miller did a great job as Barry Allen, in particular as the older Barry Allen who had more experience. They had a confidence and a swagger that fit the character very well. Miller did a great job playing two distinctly different characters, as well. Honestly, they did such a good job that I never thought about it being the same actor playing two roles.

Michael Keaton was sensational as the older Batman. Keaton looked as if he was having a blast returning to a version of a role that he played in 1989. He was absolutely the standout character in the film and his re-introduction was epic.

Sasha Calle was a wonderful addition as Kara Zor-El aka Supergirl. She brought a character that was nowhere near a Kal-El and a character whose brutality made a lot of sense considering the situation that she had found herself in.

Some of the emotional scenes that we got between Ezra Miller and Maribel Verdú as Nora Allen were extremely well written and directed. They had some powerful moments together and brought a heart to the movie.

Then there were several parts of The Flash that I thought were a mixed bag, some good, some bad. One of these was the special effects. Honestly, the first 10-15 minutes of CGI in this movie (I’ll say one word… babies) was some of the worst special effects we have had in a major movie in awhile. It was really a turn off in that scene. However, there were also some CGI in The Flash that was amazing and awesome. The speed force and the way the Flash was shown using his speed were beautifully rendered. There were times when one Barry Allen was carrying the other Barry Allen and it was totally seamless. CGI was truly a coin flip for the movie.

I found the cameos and Easter eggs that were plastered throughout the film were great and a lot of fun. Some did not always look as great as it could be, but the film absolutely played on the nostalgia (‘member-berries). However, there felt like some of the nostalgia was too forced, especially with the dialogue for Batman/Bruce Wayne. Is there a reason Michael Keaton had to repeat so many lines from his original movies? We get it, we remember. That felt too ham-fisted at times. Still, the best cameo came right at the end of the film (no spoilers, of course), but this felt like a giant middle finger to everyone and I was here for it.

Another up and down aspect was the humor. Some of the jokes worked really well, but other times it felt out of place. Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying that I want always serious comic book movies like the Snyder films, but some of this worked and much of it didn’t. Part that I did not like was the way young Barry Allen was portrayed. He was so obnoxious and played as a moron for much of the film. I know it was meant to show older Barry Allen what he had been like and to let him understand how others had seen him, but it felt too much. Young Barry felt stupid and I did not get that from previous films.

I will say that I hated the post credits scene at the very end of the film. It felt totally unnecessary and just not funny.

It also is unclear after this movie what the direction of the DCU is going to be. This felt much more like a goodbye to the previous films/universe instead of something that was going to kickoff the next round of movies. This was loosely based on the comic run called Flashpoint (which had an awesome animated DC movie back in 2013). The only set up in this film was.. ‘hey, multiverse!’ The multiverse concept has been done better in Across the Spider-Verse, Everything Everywhere All At Once, and the MCU.

I had fun with The Flash. Do not go into the film with the expectations that it is going to revolutionize the comic book movie industry, because it is not up to that standard. It is fun, with some solid actors who looked to be enjoying themselves, and a sprinkling of emotions in all the right spots. It is not the best DCEU movie, nor is it the worst. In fact, I would place it in the upper half of the DCEU films, and I believe that The Flash gives you permission to move on.

3.5 stars