Wonder Woman

After receiving a decades-old photograph of herself from Bruce Wayne, Diana Prince (Gal Gadot) recalls her past. Raised as an Amazonian princess on the remote island of Themyscira, she is trained as a warrior by her aunt Antiope (Robin Wright) and taught to be on guard against the return of Ares, god of war and corruptor of men. When a plane crashes into the water, Diana saves the pilot, American soldier Steve Trevor (Chris Pine), who informs her of the ongoing War to End All Wars (World War I). Against the wishes of her mother Hippolyta (Connie Nielsen), Diana joins Trevor on a mission to London to deliver stolen notes on a new German weapon that could change the tide of the war. Despite a looming armistice and the loss of the notes, German Gen. Ludendorff (Danny Houston) and his top chemist Doctor Maru (Elena Anaya) are determined to complete the weapon and ensure a German victory at all costs.

Given both the disappointment of prior DCEU films and the dearth of female superheroes, Wonder Woman risked overhyping had it shown a modicum of competence. Thankfully, Patty Jenkins’s take on this classic heroine’s origin tale is quite a bit more competent than that, and its success is more than relative.

Like other DCEU films, Wonder Woman is highly stylized and visually engaging with well-choreographed fight scenes. Unfortunately, this film also shares its universe’s vices: an indulgence in gimmickry (in this case, overuse of slow motion) and an overblown fiery final battle. Aesthetically, however, Wonder Woman at least manages to brighten up the palate. Whereas Dawn of Justice offered a monotonously grim cityscape, Wonder Woman at least gives the beauty of Themyscira and the sorrow of war-torn Belgium as visual counterpoints to dreary, bustling London.

Beyond that, Wonder Woman benefits from much better treatment of pacing and plot. The movie doesn’t feel like a slog, and Jenkins’s direction and Allan Heinberg’s script tell a tale that doesn’t inspire lots of confused head-scratching. That isn’t to say that Wonder Woman is without thematic depth: whether or not humanity is worth fighting for despite its cruelty and destructiveness is an idea that the film engages head-on.

For better or worse, the film also makes significant changes to Greek mythology, world history, and the title character herself. For those whose Wonder Woman reference points are Lynda Carter and an invisible plane, Gadot’s take will come as a shock. However, this is hardly a bad thing. Gadot preserves Diana’s bravery and formidability while also adding a facility with languages, a frustration with the status quo, and a naivete that turns to cynicism by the time of the frame story. This makes for complex, well-developed characterization. Whether swinging her lasso or declaring her ideals, Gadot does an excellent job.

Given the wartime setting and the presence of a brave American soldier named Steve played by an actor named Chris, Wonder Woman invites comparisons to Captain America: The First Avenger. The comparisons aren’t baseless. Just as Cap had the Howling Commandos, Diana and Steve recruit a band of mercenaries including a master of disguise (Said Taghmaoui), a sharpshooter (Ewen Bremmer), and a black market trader (Eugene Brave Rock). But as with the title role, there are wrinkles in these characterizations that add complexity. Trevor, though certainly competent, is given a healthy dose of vulnerability while Bremmer, once again the hapless drunk, lends shell-shocked pathos to his role. Also of note: the Danish Nielsen and the American Wright convincingly match their accents to Gadot’s, and Lucy Wright provides effective comic relief as Trevor’s chipper British secretary.

In contrast, the villains are decidedly simpler and less interesting. Ludendorff, an exaggerated caricature of the real WWI commander, comes across as a poor man’s Red Skull. Maru, though thankfully no longer an offensive “Yellow Peril” stereotype (the character was originally Japanese), gets little development beyond an enthusiasm for concocting deadly gasses and scarred face. At least when Ares finally reveals himself, he is given a more compelling motive and some manipulative charm, but even then, his dialogue degrades into hammy shouting (“I will destroy you!”) before all is said and done.

It would be too much of a stretch to place Wonder Woman in Avengers/The Dark Knight territory at the apex of superhero cinema, but with its charismatic characterization, thrilling action, and ability to both inspire and entertain, it is both the DCEU’s shining star and its biggest reason to believe that future outings (i.e. Justice League) may outpace past disappointments.

8.25/10