Wonder Woman

I rented the new Wonder Woman today. I should have skipped that part and just bought it, as I knew I would want to own it, but instead I rented it first.

The female clerk at blockbuster commented that she had watched it and that it was really good. We then had a brief conversation about the comic related animated features that have come out, and the Green Lantern one that is in the works. She seems like she is probably a comic reader, but I guess she could be a comic watcher. Either way I feel like I should have given her the url to this. I think if you are a fan of comics it should always make you happy to find others who are also fans, and if they are in a different demographic than you you should be twice as happy. Wait... I was discussing a video I think.

Wonder Woman is rated PG-13 and I think it sort of benefits from this. I watched it with my 9 and 15 year old daughters and they both loved it as much as I did. My youngest only asked a question about a comment referring to Themyscira as 'chastity belt island', but other than that they laughed a lot at Steve Trevor's attitude and the interactions between him and Wonder Woman.

The plot, aside from the basic origin story, is a pretty standard 'Ares likes war a lot' setup. The thing that makes everything work well in this movie, really is the relationship between Diana and Steve Trevor. There is a good bit to enjoy, but that is what really shines. It is pretty standard stuff, and in a way is the same sort of dynamic that works in other things, like the TV show Bones, where you have a woman who sees everything through a scientific filter, and a cast of characters around her (including but not limited to her male 'partner' who is not exactly her opposite, but close).

I think Diana is portrayed well in this. I think her strong traits of duty and honor and strength and determination, etc. really come through, and she is capable, independent and a powerhouse.

The story has plenty of mythology-ness about it, and lots of action. The humor and relationship aspects are smoothly distributed and nothing really gets in the way of anything else. I think another pretty great thing in this is the fight 'choreography' Wonder Woman definitely has her own fighting style in this and it is portrayed very well and consistently. There are also some scenes with animated corpses who again fight in a different way than everyone else. There is a lot of fighting in it, but that isn't the only thing in it.

I think this movie is probably over the heads of the littlest comic fans, but it was well within the grasp of a 9 year old. The important thing is to watch things with your kids and be ready to explain if they ask questions, and talk if you judge from their reaction to what they are watching, that they need something explained.

I highly recommend this. Hopefully they use this as a starting point and we will get a series of really great WW features.