Review: If ‘The Wonder’ doesn’t quite live up its title, it remains something to behold
It’s too bad that there are so few films that, just by virtue of the idea alone, actually merit the label of wonder. But that’s the way the world works. And if you’ve managed to find your way through multiple decades, you know that wonder is hardly uncommon.
So it’s been nice to see a movie like “The Wonder” that actually comes close to living up to its lofty title. (It’s not as if it doesn’t know how to make a movie, mind you; the script is by director David Gordon Green and the film was directed by David Fincher.) And, as the movie begins, we just get ready to be surprised.
At first glance, you’d be forgiven for wondering if what we’re about to see is a low-budget “Love Actually”-esque slice of life that is devoid of any special effects or any real surprises. But you’d be wrong.
The wonder here is that everything about the film is a wonder. The first few minutes play on the “Hitchcock Moment” where you watch a bunch of people on a bus and wonder if one of them will kill you in an instant. Then, we’re introduced to our story’s star, Ben Affleck. And that’s when we get our first shock.
There’s a lot going on in this movie, and it wouldn’t be the first or second time in which we’ve gotten a glimpse into the mind of a great actor. And to be honest, “The Wonder” doesn’t quite live up to its title. It’s a beautiful movie and an even better movie than “The Town” was. It’s a very rare example of the kind of film that is able to hold our attention for far beyond the two hour or so length — which it manages to do.
There are a few reasons why “The Wonder” is a special effort. First off, it’s a truly great film that comes together thanks to the work of the two-man writing team of David Fincher (who co-wrote the screenplay with Eric Warren Singer) and Matt Charman. And this duo has crafted one of the most enjoyable scripts to grace the screen in a long time.
The second reason is that, in all honesty, the film does live up to its title. A few things occur that would make anyone believe that Ben Affleck is playing the
