Wonder
I had two questions that I needed answered before and while I watched “Wonder.” The first was if Owen Wilson is a good actor. The second was if that was Jacob Trembly’s real voice.
The first of these questions was answered by the end of the film. Owen Wilson is a damn good actor (his performance in Midnight in Paris was no fluke). To answer the second question, I had to watch the first six minutes of “The Book of Henry,” and yes, that is Jacob Trembly’s real voice. I don’t know why I doubted it.
“Wonder” is based on The New York Times Bestseller of the same name by R.J. Palacio and stars Trembly as Auggie Pullman. Auggie, real name August, is a fifth grader from New York who is obsessed with Star Wars and everything space-related and is starting his first year of school after being home schooled by his mother, Isabel (Julia Roberts), his whole life. His support system is rounded out by his dad, Nate, played by Wilson and his older sister Via (Izabela Vidovic).
The reason that Auggie has been home schooled for so long is because he has a rare medical facial deformity. He has had several surgeries to try and make him look as “normal” as possible, but his parents still thought it best to keep him home. Until now.
When the school year starts, Auggie has to deal with the obvious issues: stares and whispers from his peers and eating lunch alone. He is an outcast and uncomfortable and even meeting a few students before the year started didn’t help him acclimate as smoothly as anyone thought.
But this doesn’t last, and as the school year goes on, Auggie makes friends, loses friends, gets those friends back, and deals with a bully named Julian (Bryce Gheisar). There are no surprises to be found here, but there are a few head-scratching moments.
There is a scene in which Julian is in the principal’s office with his parents being suspended for his bullying. His parents threaten to have the principal fired and try to downplay their son writing a note to Auggie telling him to die. But the principal tells them that Julian is only being suspended for two days.
In the novel, Julian is kicked out of school for good, so I assume that they just didn’t change their reactions in the script. But turning them down a little (especially the mother who does most of the talking here) would have made the scene feel a little more realistic.
One of the few things that set “Wonder” apart is how it tells its story. Several characters get to become the narrator and tell the audience what exactly is going on in their lives. Via, Jack Will (Auggie’s best friend played by Noah Jupe), and Miranda (Via’s best friend played by Danielle Rose Russell) all get a chance to let us know their side of the story while also pushing the main narrative forward. I’m sure that this choice was made because of the novel but I appreciated the touch.
“Wonder” isn’t a perfect film by any means. It uses the same tropes and clichés as other films in the same genre. Isabel works too hard and is trying to finish her thesis while supporting her family. Nate is the cool parent with some really nice speeches, but he doesn’t really do most of the emotional heavy lifting in the house.
Then there’s Via, real name Olivia, who is often ignored by her family (which is often the case in most stories like this). The family has one “normal” kid who they think can take care of themselves, and the kid feels like no one sees them because everything revolves around their sibling.
In the film, Via is shown to be truly alone because her best friend Miranda hasn’t talked to her in months. Via finally feels seen when she meets Justin (Nadji Jeter), who quickly becomes her boyfriend. This situation is all too similar to the one presented in Netflix’s “Atypical,” but I enjoyed their take on it, and Vidovic is great in the role.
“Wonder” is a very, sometimes excessively, sentimental film about a little kid trying to find his way. It’s funny and heartwarming, and I enjoyed it immensely. The cast is terrific and Jacob Trembly proves that he is a star in the making. It is unfortunate that I watched “The Florida Project” right before watching this, as this had a strong case to be my favorite kid-focused film of last year. Through no fault of its own, “Wonder” is a strong number two.
I give it 3 out of 5 trash cans.
(p.s. I ended up watching all of The Book of Henry, and it was incredible.)
