Movie Review Of "Wonder Woman"

The movie, “Wonder Woman” is a 2017 one hundred forty one minute action American movie featuring a partial mythological and partial human D C Comics superhero woman and her adventures. In the current movie scene, there are two woman superhero movies, Wonder Woman with Gal Gadot as lead, and Atomic Blonde with Charlize Theron as the star. The characters of these two superheroes are an interesting contrast with both being warriors. Wonder Woman has a variety of mythological strength and mysterious powers including a magical powerful wide wrist band and a special Lasso of Hestia. Atomic Blonde is an intelligent, tough killer British spy, an expert with guns, and has amazing karate-like fighting skills.

The basic plot of the Wonder Woman film involves a heroine, Diana Prince (Gal Gadot, an Israeli actress and former soldier in Israel Defense Forces, Batman vs Superman, Fast and Furious 6, TV The Beautiful Show, Miss Israel 2004) is the daughter of Queen Hippolyta of the Amazons. The D C Amazons are described in Greek mythology as part of traditions of the Greek Gods on Mount Olympus, both a mythical home of the Greek Gods and a real mountain in Greece.  The Amazons were the children of Ares and Harmonia. Ares, the God of Conflict, War, the Dead, Ruler of the Underworld, is the son of Hera and Zeus, God of the Sky and Earth, and Ruler of the Olympian Gods. Ares was supposedly slain, in disgust, by Zeus, and is the DC Comics supervillain. Harmonia was a goddess of concord and harmony.  In the film, Ares, playing role of Sir Patrick Morgan, (David Thewlis, Harry Potter and Deathly Hollows), is a member of the allied Supreme War Council in London. He deceptively appears to support peace during World War I, but has a plan of conquest and destruction. He is later revealed and killed by Diana. The Amazons were a mythical race of superhuman women warriors, who lived isolated and opposed to the rule of men. They called their hidden island and nation, Themyscira, probably in the Aegean Sea near Greece. Patty Jenkins (Monster, The Killer), the film’s director, is the first female director of an American superhero movie, and is slated to be a writer in the sequel. Diana’s mother, Queen Hippolyta, (Connie Nielsen, The Confessions, Music, War, and Love, TV boss) believes Ares will not return, and forbids Diana from training as a typical Amazon warrior. However, Diana’s Aunt and the Queen’s sister, General Antiope, (Robin Wright, Everest, Forest Gump, TV House of Cards, previously married to Sean Penn) continued secret training of Diana.

Life had become a routine of warrior training on their island, and Diana’s mother had reconciled to her daughter continuing her training. An American pilot and spy Steve Trevor, (Chris Pine, The Finest Hours, Star Trek Beyond, TV Saturday Night Live, SuperMansion) crashes offshore of their island, and is rescued by Diana. His arrival drastically changes the routine life on the island when German troops arrive from their cruiser looking for Steve. A battle ensues, and, in spite of the German’s having more modern weapons like rifles and machine guns, the skilled women warriors kill all of them Diana’s Aunt General Antiope takes a bullet meant for Princess Diana.

Princess Diana has special strengths, agilities, a special large wrist bracelet which deflects bullets, a special golden Lasso of Hestia which can reveal secrets when lassoing a person, and a special sword called the “Godkiller” from Zeus for killing Ares. Hestia is a Greek mythical god of the hearth, architecture, right ordering of domesticity, family, home, and the state. Diana using the Lasso finds out that Steve is involved in World War I, which was not known to the Amazons. He is revealed as an Allied spy, who has stolen a special notebook. This notebook has information from a Spanish chief chemist Isabel Maru, (Elena Anaya, The Infiltrator, Skin I Live In, Room in Rome) who is developing a deadlier mustard gas for war. She is doing this weapon research under the orders of the evil General Eric Ludendorff (Danny Huston, Clash of the Titans, Birth with Nicole Kidman). Princess Diana mistakenly thinks he is Ares. Steve takes Diana back into modern life in London, and slowly, they fall in love. Going to London, Steve returns Maru’s notebook to a Supreme War Council, which unknowingly includes the evil Ares disguised as Sir Patrick Morgan. Diana’s translation of the notebook reveals that the gas is to be used against the allies.

Steve recruits a team of specialists with him and Diana to go to the front in Belgium to stop release of the poisonous gas. Diana with her fighting skills pushes through the no man’s land, rallies allied troops to follow, and they liberate the Village of Veld. Steve, Diana, and their team infiltrate a party at the German High Command to try to locate and destroy the gas. General Eric Ludendorff, however, ordered releasing the gas on the Village of Veld, killing everyone. She locates him.at the base where the gas intended for London is being put in a bomber. Diana thinking he is Ares, fights and kills him. She is confused when his death does not stop the war. Later, she encounters Sir Patrick Morgan, who says he has given humans the propensity to do violence and war since they are basically corrupt. He attempts to persuade Diana to help him to destroy mankind to have paradise on earth, and destroys the “Godkiller” sword. Diana thinking of the nobleness and love of Steve believes that humans are basically good. She is revealed as the true “Godkiller,” she and the team spare Maru, and she kills the evil Ares. In typical Hollywood fashion, the movie has a very sad and happy ending paving the way for a sequel.

This movie is recommended for older youth and on up.

Bob Rittenhouse

I am mostly retired Have had careers as a librarian, high school and college teacher, scientist in the life siences and information science, occasionally work as a Cuyahoga Board of Elections poll worker, have a little consulting business, Rittenhouse Info Trak

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Volume 13, Issue 16, Posted 6:15 PM, 08.15.2017