Wonderstruck

I absolutely love this movie. David Ehrlich wrote:"This is a soul-stirring and fiercely uncynical film that suggests the entire world is a living museum for the people we've lost, and that we should all hope to leave some of ourselves behind in its infinite cabinet of wonders". I couldn't have said it better myself. Of course it is a bit slow and maybe too complicated for a kid (it's definitely not for everyone). But A LOT of people actually love The Greatest Showman or another rubbish...I am 25 years old - I watched it with my mother who is 60 years old and we enjoed it. The ending is quite outstanding in my opinion. Everyone involved did such a beautiful job.

Graceful and quite literally quiet, "Wonderstruck" makes for an unconventional (or at least uncommercial) family film, but one worth enduring thanks to director Todd Haynes, the cast and composer Carter Burwell.

Written by Brian Selznick, who authored the book as well as the book that became Martin Scorsese's "Hugo," "Wonderstruck" tells the story of a young boy in 1977 and a young girl in 1927 who take on New York City in search of secrets and a sense of belonging. Ben (Oakes Fegley) is a boy living in Minnesota whose just lost his mother and never knew his father, but has a lead pointing him to NYC; Rose (Millicent Simmonds) is a girl living in New Jersey who is deaf and feels misunderstood by her father in a world unkind to those with disabilities. She takes the ferry across the river to find silent film star Lillian Mayhew (Julianne Moore).

Much like "Hugo," Selznick's story is a love letter (in this case to silent film, New York City and museums) wrapped up in a tale of children escaping challenging circumstances in search of answers and finding friendship along the way. The key difference is that "Hugo" is a more focused mystery that moves concretely from A to B to C, etc. Haynes approaches "Wonderstruck" as more of an art piece that glides about, with both storylines slowly yet inevitably intertwining. The "Carol" and "Far From Heaven" director crafts a seamless audio-visual experience that makes a gentle appeal to our own sense of wonder.

Consequently, "Wonderstruck" will have trouble captivating audiences; children should definitely see it, but not necessarily children with short attention spans. The effort to play off silent films through the lens of deafness has great artistic and even educational value, but entertainment-wise it leaves something to be desired. As thoughtfully as Haynes switches between timelines and contrasts "hearing" scenes with "non-hearing" scenes to affect our perspective, graceful transitions can only be so riveting.

Children will for sure not notice Burwell's score that establishes place, time and wonderment extremely well. He even underscores moments of action, suspense and surprise in the way a silent film score would back in the '20s. These are just some of the artistic touches that make "Wonderstruck" special for adults whose tastes incline them toward films that appreciate history, the arts and other intellectual subjects.

One of the most critical artistic touches comes at the end of the film with an entire sequence told using models and dioramas. It also ties together the entire plot, so a lot hinges on it. It is both a beautiful conclusion and somewhat anti-climactic given that the reveals are not all that surprising (at least to an adult viewer). Yet the point is not for any startling revelations, but for the characters to come to terms with the answers they find and embrace the good that came from the journey.

~Steven C

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This was almost exactly what I expected based on the average reviews. Definitely a significant downgrade from Carol. I appreciated its ambition and some of its visuals, cinematography, and music is really good. But that screenplay is kind of a huge mess, and such a big missed opportunity. I don't see why this film would get much dislike, but I also don't see why it would get much love either. It's almost the complete opposite of mother!, which is probably the worst spot to be in. As soon as it was over I had forgotten it and felt so much apathy towards it. Not terrible or even bad, but not all that good either.

Carol was one of the best films I saw in 2015, as a matter of fact its probably the best film of that year. Everything about that film was so right. I really like Todd Haynes. Safe is also a fantastic film. I did like Far From Heaven and I'm Not There, though I'm not as crazy about those two. I saw the trailer for Wonderstruck and thought it looked interesting and could possibly be an experience like Carol or Safe. Wonderstruck is definitely a good film but its one of Todd Haynes' weaker efforts. That's really no knock on the film or the filmmaker, its just that Haynes' has set his own bar high.

The film portrays events in the lives of two children, one in the late 1927, the other in 1977. Both kids are deaf and have common elements in their life. Rose (1927) is running away from her dad to New York to find her idol, an actress in New York. Ben (1977) is recently orphaned and runs away to New York on a quest to find his estranged father. Both stories are intertwined and interwoven despite the already visible similarities from each tale. Its an interesting concept and Haynes utilizes unique filming styles to convey the tale, however the film doesn't always have high points and is a bit predictable.

The 1927 portion of the film emulates silent films of the era and is a tribute to movies of the time. The film is score heavy in this decade which makes the picture seem authentic. The score for this film is rather excellent and could be up for award contention at year's end. The 1977 portion has that gritty and colored frame that perfectly represents the cinematography of films of that era. I applaud Haynes for his presentation in style. The child actors do quite well. I actually didn't even realize Michelle Williams was in the film. Its a warm and fuzzy film that lacks any real conflict which I think was needed to perfect the film. Its a very saccharine effort which will appease younger viewers and Haynes definitely intended for it to be that way.

I have to go back to the score because its really riveting. Adds to the magic and wonder of the film and the experiences of the two leads. I love seeing New York in film throughout different decades so visually this film offers a definite viewing experience. Wonderstruck is not Haynes' best effort but like most of his other films its an ambitious effort and technically outstanding.

7/10

This film tells the stories of two deaf children, in different eras in New York.

It is unfortunate that the film is just painfully slow to the point that I can skip thirty seconds at a time and still miss nothing. I don't really need to see scenes of characters walking the streets for a whole minute, walking up the stairs for thirty seconds or just sitting for a minute. Most of the film has no dialogue, which is not a problem in itself, but there is just no message to fill the screen. The museum scenes in the two different eras may be trying to make viewers compare and contrast the treatment of deaf children in different eras, but it just does not work at all. It is just tedious and boring. Even Julianne Moore cannot save this film from being a tremendous bore.