Wonder Woman (2017) Review

The following review is rated MS, for Mini Spoilers.

Wonder Woman just dropped, and I have literally just come back from seeing it in theaters. I’m here to tell you my own personal review (slight spoilers) about the newest addition to the DC Extended Universe.

Wonder Woman closely follows the ending of Batman v. Superman, with the premise opening with Bruce Wayne obtaining a photograph of Wonder Woman’s past, and she begins her recollection of the time of the photograph. It is her origin story, her Gotham, her Batman Begins, her Smallville. At least, I’m assuming that’s what it is. I’ve only really seen Gotham, I have a vague recollection of Batman beginning in Batman Begins, and I never had a taste for Smallville in the first place.

But this origin movie does what none of the rest could do for me: it captured my interest, it showed me the real side of the hero. The actual transformation from Diana the naive Amazon warrior to Wonder Woman, the inspiration.  As unrealistic as an origin story can be‒ only Batman’s is truly attainable because we can’t all be aliens or formed from clay, right?– her story was enrapturing through the human values it portrayed in someone who isn’t exactly human. Sure, Diana was the Amazon, the god killer, complete with all the skills that come with being a superhero, but she also was the most sheltered and naive. She had to grow up the fastest, in the shortest amount of time.

Despite her warrior-centric homeland, Diana first has to fight for the right to be trained as an Amazon warrior, and even then, her mother still refuses to tell her fully the history behind the Amazons as a people and Diana herself. Once war becomes a fully realized thing instead of just a distant concept, Diana has to learn quickly that mankind is a cruel and unforgiving type. Batman and Superman, Flash, Aquaman all grew up with some kind of tragedy in their lives that let them know the world wasn’t a safe place. You can throw a dart and find a superhero with a tragic origin. But all Diana knew was safety.

And still. After everything she learned of man and the war, Diana still chose to believe in the good of humanity, something that took the rest of the superheroes years to grapple with. Each took a dark turn before deciding there was good in humanity, but Diana never hesitated. In her final battle with Ares, he told her to look at all they were capable of, the mass murders and innocent lives lost. He told her to face the truth. Join him, and they could return Earth into the paradise it was before humans ruined it. She chose love. Diana Prince, Wonder Woman, Amazonian Princess, God Killer herself, said, “I choose love”. Because she knew there is always light in the darkness, even after humanity showed her its worst.

This movie was, in short, amazing. Awe inspiring. Jaw-dropping. It’s obvious the cast and crew cared deeply about their roles and took their jobs seriously. There’s never a moment where I feel any disconnect between them and the movie I’m watching on screen. Disbelief suspended, I am truly there, feeling what Diana feels as it happens. Sometimes a movie just clicks with you, and it is beyond indescribable. It’s something that can only be experienced with a movie as rare as this one. My fingers are crossed that the rest of the DCEU can live up to the impossibly high bar that Wonder Woman just set.

Go watch this movie. You won’t regret it.

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