Action, humor, and heart combine to drag DC away from its dour doldrums.
It was obvious from her few moments in Batman v Superman that Wonder Woman/Gal Gadot could be the shot of life DC’s stumbling efforts to craft a cinematic universe needed. A poised and enigmatic character, she stood above two Martha boys battling it out. Now she gets her own origins tale, helmed by Oscar winning director Patty Jenkins (Monster), that confirms not only her importance to the DC project, but that the studio can deliver a film that isn’t mired in dourness.
Diana is a young child, raised on the hidden isle of Themyscira, by her mother Queen Hippolyta (Connie Nielsen). Versed in the mythological origins of their people, her mother initially shields her from a warrior’s life, but she eventually allows Diana’s aunt Antiope (a fabulous Robin Wright) to begin her training, and as she approached adulthood, the extent of her powers become evident. Despite these Amazonians being charged with protecting humanity, they have hidden themselves away from mankind, but soon are discovered when pilot Steve Trevor (Chris Pine) crashes his plane into the sea nearby, with a platoon of Germans in hot pursuit. After an intense battle, the women question Trevor as to his purpose, discovering that beyond their borders mankind is consumed by the Great War, and that Trevor has intelligence on a new chemical weapon that could kill millions. Despite this, Hippolyta refuses to become involved once more in the world of men.
Raised on the teachings of the old Gods, Diana believes this Great War heralds the return of Ares, the nemesis of the Amazonian people, who holds a weapon created by Zeus to wipe out this bane on mankind once and for all. Stealing the sword, she leaves her people behind to accompany Trevor to London, intent on helping deliver the intelligence and then seeking out Ares at the front line, to bring an end to the corruption of man and the war that has engulfed them.
Let’s get to the point. Wonder Woman is good. Not just good in comparison to previous DC films like Suicide Squad or Batman v Superman; it’s good in its own right. Patty Jenkins had something of a clean slate in a way – people know of the character but have not been inundated by depictions of her, which is a shame because she champions a message that we should be exposed to far more. A deftly handled origin story weaves in an interesting mythology, bringing in action, commentaries on slavery and women’s rights, and a lot of heart. There’s also plenty of humor, with much of the comic relief stemming from a riff on the ‘stranger in a strange land’ theme, or banter between the cast. There are echos of Captain America (wartime heroic) and Thor (the fantastical realms of the Gods), but Wonder Woman certainly does enough to make her own mark on the genre.
Spectacle is there, notably an early battle on a beach, one given an emotional wallop after some decent investment in the Amazonians at the beginning. A thrilling clash pits German guns against weapons from a more civilized age. Arrows are elegantly unleashed against the terrible sight of bullets hitting these noble women. It encapsulates the film’s juxtaposition of these two worlds, one pure and one ugly, that persists throughout its runtime. What helps the film, both in terms of its integrity with the era it depicts, as well as its emotional resonance, is that it is rooted in realism, World War I being a more affecting backdrop than any of the fictional events of settings we’ve seen from the Snyderverse so far. Perhaps most notably seeing Diana ploughing through no man’s land, is a wonderful analogy with brilliant execution.
The core of the film is Diana’s journey from a pure soul to a battle-worn icon. While sweetly naive, she is always the most educated, if not straight up the smartest in the room. She interprets things literally or by a strong moral code that frankly puts the men of the era, and perhaps today, to shame, either on the battlefield or in a boardroom hundreds of miles from the front. She’s certainly too good for the blinkered asshats protesting the “women only” screenings being hosted by the right honorable Alamo Drafthouse.
After Steve Rogers got dragged into the mire, it feels refreshingly old fashioned to have a hero so pure on the big screen again. A figure that lacks cynicism, bringing to mind Christopher Reeve’s work in Superman: The Movie. Diana is a noble soul, one that is pure and ergo vulnerable. Initially, her faith in man is because of an assumption that the evils she sees must stem from the corruption of Ares. Obviously it’s more complicated than that, the Great War being a window into the darker elements of mankind. Through exposure to the horrors of war, even the necessary evils, she questions whether man is deserving of saving. It parallels with Leeloo’s path in The Fifth Element in a way, right down to how one righteous man can make a difference. Diana discovers the cost of being an iconic hero. It’s an empowering journey, but it comes with a sacrifice of innocence.
It’s unquestionably Gal Gadot’s movie. She delivers nuanced work, crafting this earlier iteration of the character, an educated but naive soul compared to the more composed, experience one we saw in Batman v Superman. Finely tempering rational thought with compassion, she shows the right balance of defiance and sheer incredulousness at what she sees in our world. From the action sequences to the character moments, she sells it, and in doing so crafts a character to inspire people of both sexes. She isn’t sanctimonious, she’s right, and above all, someone to love and root for. As a champion should be. Pine’s Trevor is a contrast in some ways, a weary soul who knows the darkness out there who serves to temper her at times, pulling her into the grey to understand what is what’s required of her. He also gets his own arc of heroism that does as much to inform Diana’s future path as any other moment in the film. Their chemistry is outstanding, offering the foundation for much of the film’s more affecting moments, whether dramatic or comedic. The supporting cast is solid for the most part; Lucy Davis offers great comic relief as Etta Candy, Danny Huston is serviceable as General Ludendorff, while Ewen Bremner, Saïd Taghmaoui, and Eugene Brave Rock are perfectly fine as the Trevor’s own ‘Howling Commandos’. Connie Nielsen and Robin Wright, the latter especially, are perfectly cast and deserving of more screentime. But Jenkins keeps much of the focus on the pair of leads.
Like the film’s commentary on the imperfections of mankind, Wonder Woman not without its flaws. While Wonder Woman successfully captures much of the horror and brutality of war, she’s not as deft in showing its scale nor its longevity as, say, Captain America, an issue of pacing in a film that feels a tad long. This latter issue is exacerbated by a over-reliance on slow-motion in its overly stylized action scenes. We do not need to see gauntlets deflecting bullets in slow-mo every five minutes, we get it. There’s also some sloppy use of CGI, most notably in the final act, which is where the film really stumbles, forsaking a character-driven ending in favor of something that feels lifted from the finale of Batman v Superman. It’s a CGI-driven slugfest that is devoid of any real tension or originality for a reveal that is evident a mile away. There’s a metaphorical subtext to this beat down, sure, but it is lost in the onslaught of muddy CGI. There’s also a sense that DC sacrificed a potential for playing the long game, cashing in a big bad too soon for a short term payoff, which may speak to bigger concerns within the DCEU. What compounds the issue is that the framework for a more fitting final act was already there. A counterpoint to Diana already exists within the film in the form of Dr. Poison, played by Elena Anaya. Poison is a female villain who feels thoroughly unexplored and could have been deployed in a far more interesting way, certainly to develop Diana’s arc and drive the film away from indulging the tropes it does.
Despite these problems, what works in the film washes many of the concerns away. It’s not perfect, but a huge step in the right direction for DC, a bold and refreshing entry that makes excellent use of female talent, both in front of and behind the camera. And surely a lesson that studios should have more confidence in their skills, and the demand for what they can bring to cinema.
Wonder Woman, unlike its protagonist, is not without its flaws. But it gets far more right than it does wrong. Patty Jenkins strikes a great balance between action and humor, while keeping focus on this character and her journey. Gadot leads the charge in an empowering effort that ensures you finally leave a DCEU film not just with a spring in your step, but eagerly waiting for Gadot & co. to return to our screens.
Wonder Woman is in theaters from June 1st.