It is hard to believe that Wonder Woman (brought to us by the same man who dehumanized Superman – Zack Snyder; but directed by Patty Jenkins which explains so much) came at the beginning of a year that has turned into one of empowerment for females in “the business.” Gal Gadot, in her second outing as Diana “Queen of the Amazons,” proves once more that one can love a strong yet beautiful woman warrior with little effort.
The film itself shows that, Harley Quinn aside, there are positive female role models out there in the darker verse. It also takes Wonder Woman out of those 1970’s spandex short-shorts sported by the TV version played so capably by Linda Carter.
Despite the original outcry of dismay when Gadot was cast as the lasso spinning heroine, the actress (whose face could launch a 1000 ships) brings the DC seeker of justice to living breathing life. All the emotions missing in Snyder’s version of Superman are there for the taking in this film.
Set in WWI, versus the WWII origins of Marvel’s Captain America, Chris Pine easily plays the American spy who is running from the Germans, aka the Hun (the Nazis do not turn up for quite some time…) headed up by the maestro of acting, Danny Huston. The cast is full of familiar and well-known names, all of whom turn in splendid performances.
David Thewlis, that long, tall and talented Brit actor, who needs to be in more films damn it, kills it as the politico whom one suspects immediately of shady dealings and the crew that Pine collects to stop Huston’s character are all brilliant as well.
The only shocker, in terms of cast and actors, is the transformation of Lucy Davis (who is, perhaps, best known for playing Dianne in Shaun of the Dead) into a modern version of “Aunt Clara” from Bewitched, aka the late actress Marion Lorne.
Elena Anaya plays the sinister and scarred doctor who plans of murdering a lot of her fellow denizens with a new gas. She is a close colleague of Huston’s murderous general and the two make a great “couple.” Cameos by Connie Nielsen and Robin Wright round out this film with yet more stand out performances.
Make no mistake though this is Gadot’s film. She manages to surpass Carter’s TV heroine in this “origin” story with scary ease. Jenkins skillfully moves the film and her performers through the paces with admirable snap, crackle and pop.
Wonder Woman is up for a number of awards in the upcoming Oscar race and deservedly so. The effects, with the exception of that glowing lasso, are brilliant. The sets are spot on and London, for the brief time it is on show, looks authentic.
The story itself echoes real-life complaints of how the “war to end all wars” was run by generals sitting on their bums at Whitehall (see the last season of Black Adder “Black Adder Goes Forth” for a more blackly comic reference). Diana’s rant to the room of bureaucrats who have no problem sentencing thousands of innocents to death is spot on.
WW is a long film, it runs for two hours and 21 minutes, but does not lag or bog down in the middle. There is a jab at the ridiculous concept that glasses can adequately hide a superhero’s identity (Clark Kent anyone?) and we find that Diana works for the Dark Knight himself; Bruce Wayne.
There is enough time to wonder if the special gas that Dr. Maru gives Ludendorff is meant to be a tongue in cheek jibe at Viagra, but this does not distract from the overall film. (One also wonders if Wonder Woman would be so popular with fans if she were a plain yet muscly, superhero who looked horrid in those small warrior outfits. Although at the end of the day, the conclusion is that it really does not matter. Diana is appealing because of her mindset, not her appearance, although many teen boys, and girls, might disagree.)
Wonder Woman earns a full five stars. It entertains full stop. While it is up for a number of those little gold chaps that the Academy like to give out, it will, no doubt, be snubbed. It is, after all, a comic book film and not, for instance, Schindler’s List…
There is a good bit of violence, of the non-visceral sort, no intense cursing and no on-screen sex antics. This is a film that the entire family can enjoy. It is also amazingly pertinent at a time when the Weinsteins, and others with that “casting couch” mentality, are being drummed out of the business by some very brave and new “wonder women.”
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