Moroccan Superhero Flop: ’Atoman’ Crashes and Burns

Sad fate for Atoman, a Belgian-Moroccan production directed by Anouar Moatassim and available on Prime Video. Since a post by Maxime Chao on X, this film whose main actors are Samy Naceri and rapper Lartiste has been harshly criticized on AlloCiné (238 reviews and almost 500 ratings). Only a few positive comments, notably on the way the film highlights the Rif region of Morocco, have been made. "A film that is out of the ordinary and with a beautiful story. The means are not those of Marvel, but there are very good ideas. A nice little film that highlights the Berber landscapes and culture," comments Yahya D.

For others, it is one of the worst superhero films ever produced. "Nothing to save! The worst film of the year, if not the decade! Actors without talent or charisma! This film is shattered on the Moroccan ground!!!" comments Frederic O. Another, MasterMinds, goes further: "I had a lot of hope seeing the praise the actors of this film gave in each interview about the first superhero from the African continent. The casting is as distressing as the acting, not to mention the editor who has his own vision of the narrative." Karim expresses great disappointment: "It’s hard to find the words, this film is so uncomfortable. The direction and the acting are disastrous. I was in constant discomfort. Nothing is to be saved: an embarrassing experience from start to finish. One piece of advice: run away!!"

Like Dragonball Evolution, the live-action adaptation of Akira Toriyama’s manga, Atoman gets a rating of 0.8 out of 5 and is now on the list of the lowest rated feature films on AlloCiné. It remains to be seen whether this science fiction film could one day acquire the status of a "cult bad movie" like "The Room."