The Wonder Movie Review: Florence Pugh stamps her mark in tense Netflix drama
The Wonder Movie Review: Florence Pugh's riveting performance helps the latest Netflix film The Wonder sail past its biggest shortcomings, the sluggish pace and predictability. The actress, who plays the role of nurse Lib Wright, is at the center of this science vs faith debate, with the story set in a quaint Irish town in 1860s when religious fanaticism was driving people to great lengths. Lib is brought in to observe 11-year-old Anna O’Donnell (Kíla Lord Cassidy) who has been surviving without food for months. Is she a miracle child or in Wright's own words, 'a fraud'? The Wonder peels off the rather uncomfortable layers of blind faith in a deeply atmospheric and indulgent setting.
Director Sebastián Lelio's posits Lib as the only 'sane' person in town who doesn't believe in Anna's story since the beginning. So her costumes are coloured differently than others and she is shot singularly. Never once does she doubt herself and thus takes the whole town, consisting of religious and overbearing men who pose warnings like "It's not your job to question us, Nurse," head-on. The trauma of losing her newborn daughter drives Lib to save Anna from what she believes to be an outright tragedy. Will she succeed?
The Wonder sets itself up nicely. The chilly weather and isolated town add to Lib's paranoia about her own safety. This keeps the viewers on the edge throughout the film's runtime. Ultimately, the focus shifts from Anna's truth to Lib's fight against faith and its Christian masters. Pugh dominates the narrative with her presence in each and every scene. It's almost like the director foreshadows what is to unfold. By putting his own trust in the central character, there isn't much scope for a challenge to Lib's side of the story. Thus, wherever the twists lead, we subconsciously know what the ultimate truth will be. On this level, the tension does not build as much.
The pacing of the film is extremely slow and this is one of the major drawback. Somewhere in the second act, you may lose interest but Pugh picks up the pieces and propels it to a satisfying climax. The haunting score by Matthew Herbert and cinematographer Ari Wegner's masterful use of shadowplay make The Wonder look like a horror film. But it isn't. It's a story about the triumph of truth and how Lib gets to the bottom of the 'miracle' child mystery and saves an innocent life.
The Wonder does tackle a challenging theme, that of religious indoctrination and its true cost. Pugh is remarkable in the film and even in profile shots, she is able to emote and take the viewers along. She may be taking on roles of women pushed to the wall far too often (Midsommar and Don't Worry Darling), but she delivers catharsis like no other.