7 worst CGI moments in the DCEU, ranked from bad to worst
2. The underwater scenes in Aquaman (2018)
Dive into the deep blue sea of Aquaman, and you'll find yourself in a world brimming with talking fish, trident-wielding royals, and cities that sparkle like underwater jewels.
It's like a fish tank, but if the fish were supermodels and the decorations were crafted by intergalactic architects. But amidst this dazzling display, there's a bit of seaweed clogging the filter. We're talking about some of the underwater CGI scenes that sometimes felt more like we were swimming through a bowl of digital alphabet soup than the majestic oceans of the seven seas. The ambition was sky-high, but at times, the execution was a bit like trying to keep your eyes open in a chlorine pool - blurry and pretty uncomfortable.
Now, imagine an octopus playing drums - sounds magical and cool, right? Aquaman threw everything but the kitchen sink into creating an underwater spectacle. But amidst the sea of creativity, some scenes ended up feeling like you were watching through a snorkel that had seen better days. What we ended up getting were armies of sea creatures clashing in battles with so much going on that you'd need a submarine periscope to catch all the details. The issue wasn't the imaginative vision - it was more about the tsunami of CGI making it hard to focus, like trying to read a book underwater.
While the movie made waves for its bold storytelling and visual ambition, some of those waves came with a bit of a digital undertow, pulling us away from the immersive experience we were promised.
3. The climactic battle in Wonder Woman (2017)
Wonder Woman was a thrilling ride from start to finish, filled with heart, heroism, and a dash of good old-fashioned butt-kicking.
It did a wonderful job at getting us all invested in Diana's journey, from her mystical origins on Themyscira to the gritty trenches of World War I. The movie also did a fantastic job of blending real, tangible settings with the fantastical elements of Diana's powers. Then, suddenly, you're catapulted into the climactic battle, and it feels like you've been zapped from a gripping tale into a video game cutscene. The heavy reliance on CGI during this showdown between Wonder Woman and Ares sticks out like a sore thumb. Instead of the realistic, mud-splattered battlefields and the tangible weight of earlier conflicts, we're treated to a spectacle that feels more like a fireworks display than the culmination of our heroine's journey.
Why does this matter? Well, it's a bit like biting into a juicy apple and finding the center is made of foam - it's unexpected and takes you out of the moment. The rest of Wonder Woman did such a stellar job of making you believe in this world and its characters, weaving CGI seamlessly with live-action to the point where you forget you're watching special effects. Then the final battle rolls around, and the magic wobbles. The CGI, instead of being the invisible hand guiding the story, becomes the story. It's not that the effects are that bad - it's just that they shift the movie's tone so drastically, it feels disconnected from everything that came before. This stark contrast makes this climactic battle stand out as one of the DCEU's less shining moments in what is otherwise a beacon of superhero storytelling.
It's like sprinting a marathon and tripping at the finish line: not a deal-breaker, but certainly a moment that leaves fans wishing for what could have been a more grounded finale.