‘Aquaman’ Critics Reviews Have Dropped All the Way to 63% on Rotten Tomatoes, but Audiences Are Loving It

Aquaman is proving to be another divisive DC Extended Universe movie for critics and fans.

When review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes revealed Aquaman‘s initial Tomatometer score, the film had a 78 percent fresh rating. That would have been enough to earn the film a “Certified Fresh” seal of approval from the website.

However, additional reviews for the film have dragged the score down a bit. Aquaman‘s Tomatometer score is now 64 percent, which is still fresh, but not enough to get that coveted Certified Fresh badge.

Rotten Tomatoes’ critical consensus for Aquaman reads, “Aquaman swims with its entertainingly ludicrous tide, offering up CGI superhero spectacle that delivers energetic action with an emphasis on good old-fashioned fun.”

On the other hand, the film’s audience score remains significantly higher. 84 percent of fans who rated the film say they liked it.

That same sentiment is echoed by Aquaman‘s A- CinemaScore.

ComicBook.com’s own Brandon Davis wrote in his review of Aquaman, “Heavy exposition crowds Aquaman through much of its first half. Awkwardly nuanced attempts at somewhat cartoon-ish humor are also present, making some of the water here a little unclear (often seeming as though certain bits of Aquaman were unsure which tone it wanted to commit to). However, each of Aquaman‘s flaws, are complemented by brilliant action-sequences, stylish swagger, and an epic, massive adventure, like the character himself.

Aquaman is directed by James Wan and follows Momoa’s debut as Aquaman in 2017’s Justice League, directed by Zack Snyder. Speaking to ComicBook.com, Wan discussed the importance of putting his own touch on Aquaman while also staying true to the foundation laid in Justice League.

“It was very important for me early on to be allowed to make my own film and to have my own voice be in there,” Wan said. “After Furious 7 and Conjuring 2, I didn’t want to be a director for hire. After Furious 7, that’s kind of who I was to some degree, but after that, I don’t want to be that guy again. So, it was very important for me to be able to bring my own stamp, my own visual aesthetic, create the characters. Even though Jason has somewhat been established Justice League, I wanted to bring his character into this, basically, fresh in a lot of ways.

“So it was important for me to obviously pay respect to where he was left off in [Justice League], but then allow me the freedom to take him to where I want to take him at the end of the movie. My hero goes on this hero’s journey to become someone very different than where he started. That was something that was very important for me. But the movie I want to make, that I was allowed that freedom to do that.”

What did you think of Aquaman? Let us know what you think in the comments section!

Aquaman is now playing in theaters.

Upcoming DC Extended Universe movies include Shazam on April 5, 2019, Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of one Harley Quinn) on February 7, 2020, and Wonder Woman 1984 on June 5, 2020.