What a little kindness can do
Wonder | Stephen Chbosky
Drama/Family | PG | 1h 53m
Wonder is a film about a young boy named August (Auggie) Pullman. Auggie has a medical face deformity and has been homeschooled by his mom for the past few years but is now about to start at a public middle school. He struggles to make friends and becomes bullied by almost the entire school. Eventually, he becomes befriended by a boy named Jack Will. Throughout the film you see their rollercoaster of a friendship, from their exciting adventures to their fights. The film goes back and forth between Auggie’s point of view and his sister Olivia’s (Via). I loved hearing Via’s point of view and how her little brothers condition affected her, her friends, and the family.
Obviously the film does a wonderful job in the makeup category. Arjen Tuiten is the special makeup artist that created the prosthetics for the character of Auggie. The prosthetics went all the way down his neck, onto his chest and all the way back up all the way over his head. Jacob Tremblay, the actor that plays Auggie, became unrecognizable once he had the prosthetics on, the only part of his body that we saw that was actually Tremblay’s were his arms and eyes.
Wonder was directed by American novelist, screenwriter and director, Stephen Chbosky. Recently Chbosky has had many successes including his writing and directing of the film The Perks of Being a Wallflower (based on a novel he wrote in 1999). He also worked as the screenwriter for the new live action edition of Beauty and The Beast. Chbosky has won Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature for The Perks of Being a Wallflower as well as the Humanitarian Award for Wonder.
Julia Roberts plays Isabel Pullman, Auggie and Via’s mother. Roberts has been said to be one of the most successful actresses in terms of box office totals. She won an academy award for her performance in Erin Brockovich. She also won a Golden Globe for this film as well as for the films Steel Magnolias & Pretty Woman. The other popular actor in this film is Owen Wilson. He plays the father and husband, Nate Pullman. He played this character perfectly, occasionally adding in jokes and comments about him being a “cool dad”.
The film Wonder, largely addresses the issue of bullying and really follows the idea that you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover because Auggie is a kid that just wants to be like everyone else. Throughout the entire film Auggie gets bullied by different kids however, after they spend a little bit of time with Auggie, the bully begins to actually like him and eventually apologize for their bullying.
If you enjoyed this film (and who wouldn’t) then I would also recommend these other popular dramas and family films. These could include Millions (2004), An American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong (2009), A Monster Call (2016), and The Pursuit of Happyness (2006). Although each of these are little different, they can all be enjoyed by the entire family.
