172. Wonderstruck; movie review
Cert PG
116 mins
BBFC advice: Contains mild threat
It really is becoming a frustrating trend for movies to start very very slowly and demand that the audience perseveres to the finale.
The problem for me is that my mind wanders when it is not stimulated and, in most cases, I am past caring by the time the director throws in their big hits.
Such was the case with Todd Haynes' Wonderstruck which is two parallel stories about children trying to unravel their past, several decades apart.
Oakes Fegley plays Ben, who is desperate for knowledge about a father he did not know, following the death of his mother (Michelle Williams).
Meanwhile Millicent Simmonds is Rose, a deaf teenager, whose actress mother (Julianne Moore) is separated from her dad.
Both children run away to New York to try to find out what has happened to their respective parents.
Running the two stories (one in colour, one in black and white) might seem like a good idea but, without background knowledge, it is confusing.
In addition some of the scenes have no sound because they are seen through the eyes of the children (Ben loses his hearing when struck by lightning).
On the plus side, Haynes recreates both late 20s and 1970s New York with a great eye on detail and both of the children do their best to lift the movie.
I particularly enjoyed the scenes in the museums which recreated a wonder I felt for such places when I was a child.
But Wonderstruck left me dissatisfied and realising that I would not remember it beyond a couple of weeks.
Reasons to watch: If you have a leaning towards whimsy
Reasons to avoid: It takes an age before clarity prevails
Laughs: None
Jumps: None
Vomit: None
Nudity: None
Overall rating: 5/10
Director quote - Todd Haynes: "I was completely enticed by the concept, the story, the double narratives and by the theme of deafness and what that asked of the medium of film in telling a story on film."
The big question - How much do people of the past unwittingly follow those of the past?
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