Aquaman is another big step forward for DC's extended cinematic universe. With so many missteps in the comic-book company's recent films -- only Wonder Woman stands out as a home run in the past several years -- Aquaman brings the Atlantean superhero to the big screen in a fun, exciting and overall successful production.

Of course, much of the credit goes to star Jason Momoa, who gives Aquaman/Arthur Curry a sense of gruff, good-natured exuberance to go along with his reluctant assumption of his place in the world. The movie serves as an excellent origin story for the hero, whom many thought (like, years ago, Marvel's Thor) would find it hard to carry a movie.

And yes, some of what takes place in this movie contradicts facts established in the less successful Justice League film. Let's not quibble, since director James Wan may have forgotten or simply ignored a few things in order to pull together an action-packed story, an excellent cast and some phenomenal special effects.

The latter is key in a movie set largely underwater. The movements of people, sea creatures, even hair and clothing must have been especially challenging to film in a realistic-looking manner, but for the most part it works. The rules of motion and combat underwater are, pardon the pun, somewhat fluid, but the movie still manages to look fantastic. You certainly get a sense of a society that functions under the sea.

Let's be honest, Wan doesn't do the kind of world-building that made Marvel's Black Panther so exceptional. In Panther, audiences saw a fictitious nation that felt real, with its own traditions and cultural identity. Aquaman never gives the audience much sense of Atlantis beyond its royal family and military; all we get are some cool but uninformative shots of architecture and traffic. Even so, the beauty of the underwater settings is astounding, and many of the scenes are gorgeously realized.

Besides Momoa, the movie stars Temuera Morrison as lighthouse keeper Tom Curry and Nicole Kidman as Queen Atlanna, who washes ashore after fleeing an arranged marriage, as Aquaman's star-crossed parents; Amber Heard as Atlantean princess Mera, who is unhappily betrothed to King Orm, played by Patrick Wilson, who is Aquaman's younger half-brother and rival for the throne; Willem Dafoe as Vulko, Orm's vizier and Aquaman's secret tutor, and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as a fierce pirate who becomes the villain Manta.

DC's track record since the DCEU reboot hasn't been great. Wonder Woman was awesome, but it was the exception, not the rule. Aquaman gives me hope that the franchise is not beyond saving. Let's see what they do next.