Year of Release: 2022
Director: Sebastian Lelio
Starring: Florence Pugh, Tom Burke, Toby Jones, Ciaran Hinds, Brian F. O'Byrne, Dermot Crowley, Elaine Cassidy, Caolan Byrne, Niamh Algar, Kila Lord Cassidy, Josie Walker, David Wilmot, Ruth Bradley, John Burke, Mary Murray
Genre: Drama
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 8
Watch it on Netflix
Synopsis and Review
After the well received "Disobedience" and "Gloria Bell" (a remake of his own film, "Gloria"), director Sebastian Lelio is back, with "The Wonder" which had its premiere at the Telluride Film Festival to solid reviews. The film is an adaptation of the novel by Emma Donoghue which was published in 2016 (the same author also wrote "Room" which Lenny Abrahamson adapted in 2015 to much acclaim) and follows the story of Mrs. Lib Wright, a widowed nurse (as she explains in her own introduction) who in 1862 goes to a rural village in Ireland in order to observe a young girl, who has been fasting and surviving for 4 months. Mrs. Wright is to be assisted by a nun, Sister Michael, and they're both tasked with providing their reports to a council of local dignitaries (which includes the local physician). As Mrs. Wright becomes acquainted with the family, and with Anna the young girl herself, she quickly realizes how devout catholics the family is and soon hears the explanation of how this phenomenon has been happening from Anna, who justifies the reason for her resilience and strength from consuming "manna from Heaven". As Mrs. Wright continues her investigation, she soon realizes that some behaviors from the family may be at the root as to how and why Anna has managed to sustain herself. She also develops a relationship with a reporter who has come back to the village (he is originally from the village) to write about the young girl's fasting. As Mrs. Wright decides to change her tactic and curtail everyone's access to Anna, including her family's, the young girl's condition soon takes a turn for the worse.
"The Wonder" is an interesting and arresting observation of the unrelenting power of religion, when it goes unchecked and unquestioned, in parallel with an insightful look at the role of women in society, particularly at a time when their domestic shackles were being destroyed and their voices were slowly being heard across various professional domains. Mrs. Wright, played with a mix of nuance, tenderness and steely resolution by Florence Pugh, is in a way, an alien entity in that small Irish village, not only because of her views on religion, but also because in many ways she represents the future, in which women have a mix of autonomy/independence, expertise and capacity to challenge the patriarchy, as opposed to the docile individuals that many try to depict them as. Sebastian Lelio expertly captures the realities and hardship of that small community, and in particular of Anna's family. He also slowly reveals the layers that underline Mrs. Wright's own traumas, and what she has had to do, in order to keep moving forward with her life. It's a solidly built film, one which allows for some of the supporting characters to have enough dimension where their motivations are nicely illustrated, while also revealing the secret behind the young girl's apparent miracle of fasting for so long and seemingly always being healthy. It's a film that smartly weaves a reflection on the blinding aspects of religion, with the abuse and silencing of women, at a time when their voices were but a flicker in a society which refused to listen. While Florence Pugh is commanding in the central role, the supporting cast is just as fantastic with Tom Burke, Toby Jones, Brian F. O'Byrne and Elaine Cassidy all making strong impressions. The cinematography from Ari Wegner is beautiful, as is the score from the fantastic Matthew Herbert, with a strong production design hailing from Grant Montgomery. Another solid endeavor from a very talent film-maker.
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