Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023) review

King of Atlantis Arthur Curry (Jason Momoa) - who's also a new parent to Arthur Jr. - faces trouble from vengeful David Kane (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) - whose own pop was killed by Curry in the previous film - because he's collecting the metal orichalcum in order to power up his forces (and heating up the environment in the process) ... so, in need of assistance, Arthur must free his brother Orm (Patrick Wilson) from prison in the Sahara desert.  All the talk about "global warming" is just Wan and his team catering to its presumably eco-friendly target audience and the visual effects aren't that special, plus the clunky "narrative" needed a major re-write since it really isn't as immersive as it could have been.  I will continue to defend Momoa as an action star - he possesses a genuine kindness behind that bulked-up gym rat exterior - and can only hope future projects for him are more exciting (even though I realize he was given a story credit for this).