Many films are happy to focus on minorities in society, because real-life inequalities create very strong dramatic conflict. For example, a large number of LGBTQ works emerge every year. On the one hand, such works focus on expressing the process of personal pursuit of emotions, but also do not forget to reflect the group struggle and entanglement. Because it is the new "political correctness", it is more narrative, full of conflicts, more extroverted and aggressive from time to time, aiming to break the stereotyped and demonized image of such people in society. The most striking example is the recent hit "120 BPM."
In addition, there are also films that focus on people of color, most of which reflect the racial discrimination experienced by blacks. In the past few years, racist films have mostly been period dramas, because the current political and social environment has improved a lot. Like last year's "Detroit", it was modeled on the infamous Algiers hotel case in the 1960s. At the 89th Academy Awards, "Moonlight" won three awards including the best picture. Although the focus of the film is not on the struggle against homosexuality and the discrimination suffered by black people, in the current context, "Moonlight" The ambiguity contained in The Boys, which also contains black and gay elements, makes it a politically superior one, and it is only natural that it will become an awards season hit.
And today's "Wonder Boy", which represents that kind of disease and disability movie. This subject is much milder than racism and LGBTQ, as they are less political (unless traumatized by war). Like "The Diving Bell and the Butterfly", "My Left Foot", "Unreachable", "I Am Sam", as well as "Tuina" and "Ocean Paradise" in the Chinese field, they are all more popular works. .
The reason why these minority-themed films are more popular and their sales are good is that one part caters to the curiosity of ordinary audiences, and the other is to take advantage of the audience's empathy. If we are not engaged in related industries, these people are less exposed to us in our lives, but they do exist around us. Their private lives hidden in reality are magnified through the screen, and because of the safe distance between the screen and reality, people can enjoy their living conditions.
Inevitably, many "minority films" will go astray where social significance outweighs artistic value. In order to express the injustice and difficulties of the minority, the impact of the image is deliberately enlarged, the rationality and self-consistency of the text are reduced, and even a certain degree of completion is abandoned. Some works also circumvent issues that are still controversial. For example, there is less attention to yellow people in racist themes, and the superficial performance of transgender people and queer people in LGBTQ. At this point, disease/disability films will do relatively well, and some works can even reach the height of life and philosophy by borrowing the title.
"Miracle Boy" has not reached this level, but it is still the most noteworthy work in mainland theaters in January. Due to the inherent advantages of the subject matter, it obviously has a huge sensational power. On the whole, the film belongs to an unconventional family/school type film. However, because the protagonist Auggie is a child with a congenital genetic defect that causes facial deformities, his school story is destined to be very different from that of ordinary children, and it will inevitably occur. Many tears.
What makes people feel a little gratified is that on the one hand, the film follows the mainstream formula and shows Auggie's integration into the campus in every detail, as well as the different reactions of other children on the campus to this special classmate. On the other hand, the film expands the narrative perspective of several other characters, namely sister Via, classmate Jack Will, and sister's best friend Miranda. This is enough to prove that the director of this film - Stephen Chobowski, who had filmed "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" and was involved in the screenwriting of "Beauty and the Beast", which was the No. 1 North American box office last year - did not want to make "Wonder Boy" into a complete film. Using the new techniques allowed within this framework, he tries to bring the audience to tears while also showing the complex and sensitive minds of teenagers more completely.
After adequately depicting the process of Auggie's admission, the film cuts into the perspective of Via and Jack Will, which at first glance does seem novel. As the elder sister of the family, Via is also a healthy person. While deeply in love with the disabled brother Auggie, she is also dissatisfied with the neglect of her parents. At the same time, her best friend Miranda, for some reason, is also estranged from her in the new semester. She couldn't figure out the reason. Instead, Via became friends with her new male classmate, Justin.
Jack Weir's perspective comes after the first stronger friendship crisis. At this point he has become good friends with Auggie, and Halloween is coming soon. For Auggie, Halloween is his favorite holiday because of the deformity of his face, which makes him ashamed to show his true face. On this day, everyone is a monster.
However, Jack Will unfortunately said words that deeply hurt Auggie's heart, and even more unfortunately, Auggie, who made a face, heard it. This brought an end to the friendship between the two. But instead of stitching up the rift through Augie's point of view, the film cuts to Jack Weir's point of view, directly confronting the audience with his psychological activities. In my opinion, the little actor Noah Jupe is the biggest surprise in "Wonder Boy", his performance is real and full of spirituality, his expression is rich and natural, and he interprets the complicated little boy Jack very convincingly.
The technique of multiple viewpoints does enrich the narrative layer of the film, unfortunately, it does not push the story to a higher level in structure. The film did resolve the estrangement between Via and her family, and also repaired the conflict between Jack and Auggie, but the process was relatively simple, and it did not depict deeper conflicts, and the themes and emotions to be expressed were shallow. Even though Via and Jack's perspectives complement Auggie's story, they still seem out of place in terms of the scale of the play.
And Miranda's perspective is a little weird. Her story seems to want the film to expand into a larger proposition. Through why she is estranged from Via and the family problems behind it, it explores the important relationship between adolescent growth and family environment. But her reconciliation with Via is handled more delicately in the film, so it seems relatively rough. However, the stage play is very purposeful and well done. This scene not only resolves the contradiction between Via and Miranda, but also makes the mother played by Julia Roberts realize that she ignores her daughter, but lacks enough reaction scenes and does not form enough emotional tension .
Therefore, if we look carefully, we will find that "Wonder Boy" has an introduction to a multi-line narrative, and it is still Auggie's personal story. It got off to a good start, but it didn't seem to have the guts to turn a simple story about the growth of a disabled boy into a youthful poem about a group of sensitive teenagers. Ultimately, it's an inspirational love song about how Auggie gains friends and builds confidence. Of course, the emotion from the beginning to the end of the film will not be diluted by the wandering perspective. Although this is a small regret and flaw in the play, it is harmless.
In the same way, there are thoughts and reflections on campus bullying. Principal Tashman's conversation with Julian and his parents is the only time the film focuses on bullying. Basically, due to the space, this conversation did not reflect this phenomenon in depth, and threw the problem to the parents of the bullying student, which ended in transfer. The film basically mentions a little bit of everything, but the focus is still on Auggie's experience of integrating into the campus, and it is decided that he does not want to carry too many propositions.
The actor's performance is good enough. The energy and tension contained in their restrained and delicate interpretations are the key to the emotional progression of the entire film. Julia Roberts actually has new works every year, but it seems to have been out of the mainstream for a long time. The performance in "Wonder Boy" this time is still impeccable. Owen Wilson made a lot of knowing smiles in the film, and the image of a wife who is afraid of his wife, but also a good husband and father, is ready to come out. Also, his nose seems to be more crooked.
After Jacob Tremblay's amazing performance in "Room", he still dedicates acting skills beyond his age in this film. Behind the special effects and makeup, he can still impress people with his eyes, which is not easy. At the exchange meeting on the day of the screening, the little boy looked like a little adult, which also left a deep impression on people.
As a viewer of "Homeland", I am also familiar with Mandy Patinkin, who plays the principal, and this performance is still very solid. Sister Vidovic and best friend Daniel performed well. Of course, the biggest surprise in the whole film is Noah Jupe, who is really spiritual.
The film also incorporates many elements of popular culture, such as the many indiscriminate "Star Wars". Chewbacca and the Sith the Great have appeared, making the film full of childish parody in some scenes. As well as the world's hottest sandbox game "Minecraft", the only display of the game screen also carries the function of resolving conflicts. These are all tools to increase the intimacy of the film.
In short, you can completely regard "Wonder Boy" as a warm and touching fairy tale. The film is not overly brutal, everything happens in an environment full of children. Even if there is bullying and discrimination, it does not show excessive violence, and the ending is of course happy. This is a story of growth, kindness, tolerance, acceptance, and forgiveness. It touches on family, friendship, and love, and highlights how precious they are. The tenderness and beauty in it, as well as the deep care, are destined to add a touch of warmth to this winter.
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