Yes, she's Wonderful.
Wonder Woman
Grade: B+
Director: Patty Jenkins (Monster)
Screenplay: Allan Heinberg from Zack Snyder story
Cast: Gal Gadot (Fast & Furious 6), Chris Pine (hell or High Water)
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 2hr 21 min
by John DeSando
“It is our sacred duty to defend the world. And it is what I am going to do.” Diana (Gal Gadot)
That’s a simple manifesto spoken by Amazonian princess Diana, aka to us Wonder Woman. Here’s a DC Comics hero to go nose to nose with the big boys from Marvel, at least on a par with the best of them. You go, Girl.
From Diana’s island paradise, Themyscria, to the WWI front lines, she remains steadfast in her goal to rid the world of war, starting with the one to end all wars. That she cannot end any of our wild wars, even as a demigod, is a lesson she learns.
That simplicity is also naivety, but innocence is part of her charm leading to a satisfactory second act where the comedy is affecting in a heroine-out-of water motif in London.
The love affair between her and spy Steve (Chris Pine) may be the best this summer because like her, it has innocence and idealism all in one. Although Pine’s role may seem to be better written, the actors have an unmistakable chemistry. Do the characters make love? See for yourself, and let me know if you like the answer.
The scenes of the origin at the island have a freshness I haven’t seen this summer. Amazonian women fly like Cirque-du-Soleil acrobats to dispatch German soldiers; Queen Hippolyta (Connie Neilsen) and her sister, Antiope (Robin Wright), are as believable warriors as Thor and Wolverine, and certainly just as pretty. The idea of an island of competent women does more for feminism than all the high-blown speeches of sociologists, and without the rant.
How Diana and Steve help the war to its armistice is part of the film’s fun to figure out. The film does not have the rampant sardonic humor of the mature Marvel series (although the mercenary soldiers are amusing), and it relies too much in the third act on those old superhero staples, electricity and excessive mayhem. Yet it does have a heroine more interesting than many of the males who have dominated the genre.
Wait, wait! Could a reason for its success be that it’s directed by a competent Patty Jenkins? Female hero, female director. That’s a Marvelous combination!
John DeSando, a Los Angeles Press Club first-place winner for National Entertainment Journalism, hosts WCBE’s It’s Movie Time and co-hosts Cinema Classics. Contact him at JDeSando@Columbus.rr.com
