Wonder - Movie Review

Wonder is everything I expected it to be. It's the type of movie intended to pull at your heartstrings and make you smile, sometimes simultaneously. I found myself smiling a lot during this film. The story explores bullying from an extreme perspective, examining the topic from several perspectives. The intersection of characters around a fifth-grader with a disfigured face allows for a heart-warming story without ever getting too deep or heavy-handed.

August "Auggie" Pullman (Jacob Tremblay) was born with serious deformities. Three dozen surgeries later, he can breath, he can see and he can function. But his face still doesn't look normal. His mother, Isabel (Julia Roberts), home-schools Auggie through elementary school. She feels it is time for him to integrate into school as middle school is set to begin. It is a difficult decision, but she understands that her son needs to face the world. And Auggie understands he needs a science teacher that has better credentials than his mom. Dad Nate (Owen Wilson) is not keen on the idea, but relents. Auggie's transition to public school is difficult. The school principal attempts to ease the situation by having three students meet Auggie before school starts and show him around the school. The awkwardness passes, but Auggie still faces bullying from some of the students. Auggie's sister, Via (Izabela Vidovic) also struggles with her own issues as a satellite in Auggie's universe. It's your typical underdog story, but with a genuine heartbeat.

Wonder takes a cursory look at the relationships around Auggie and his struggles. While the parental relationships are explored directly, through Auggie's experience, we get to see him through the eyes of several other characters. Most important, his sister Via. Via loves her brother and often is the only one who can really give him straight talk. It is an important relationship in this story and it is handled well. Via also struggles with being outside the laser focus that her parents have towards her brother. She struggles with that, yet doesn't appeared damaged. Other writers may have written a sister who acts out or goes off the deep end. Instead, they give us a lovable sister who is a giver. Subsisting on the bit of attention she does get at times. I liked that approach. Had the writers been heavy handed with her character, they might have missed an opportunity. The delicate, nuanced approach worked for me. And it was credible to me, too. We also see Auggie through the eyes of his friend, Jack-Will (Noah Jupe). Jack is a typical fifth-grader. A kid with a good heart, but not always the best sense. I liked the duo. The friendship seemed genuine. Jack's story gives us a bit of back-story on Auggie before he integrated into his school, as well. We also get to see Auggie through the eyes of his sister's best friend, Miranda (Danielle Rose Russell). That approach gives us greater insight into the world of both Auggie and his other family members.

For a film that gives us characters who are likable, even in their imperfection, Wonder manages to also give us developed characters. There is a fine line there. Wonder is based on a book by R.J. Palacio. The screenplay was adapted by Stephen Chbosky (Director), Steve Conrad and Jack Thorne. The temptation may have been to create clear good guy and bad guy roles. That's the easy way out. We are dealing with characters that are primarily children. The soft approach was the correct one. While there were some peripheral characters that were a bit flat, that is okay in a story like this one. The essential characters were warm and engaging. Even the antagonists had redeeming qualities (for the most part). I felt connected to the characters and story. That's why I go to the theater.

Wonder is an excellent Christmas-season film. It will tug at your heartstrings. It will make you appreciate family. The film does examine bullying, with some mild language included. The minor thematic elements earned the film a PG rating. This is a film you should bring your kids to. It is an exceptional movie that is meant for a family to watch together. It may prompt questions from young viewers, which merely gives parents a great opportunity to speak their children about bullying. This film, from Lionsgate, runs 113 minutes.

I figured Wonder would be a feel-good movie. The trailers were pretty clear that this film would engage viewers at an emotional level. Films like this can sometimes be heavy handed, or at others, be cloyingly sweet. This film tilted more towards the cloyingly sweet realm, but did manage balance. It wasn't sickly sweet. It had a good blend of humor and heart. I smiled often and felt I knew the characters. The writing was excellent, the performances were spot on and the story was rewarding. There is not much not to like about this film. Definitely a family film worth watching. 8/10.

In the words of a precept by Auggie's teacher, Mr. Browne: When given the opportunity between being right or being kind, choose kind.