Wonder Woman was a wonderful origin movie. Going in, I was psyching myself to be disappointed like I was with previous DC efforts like Batman v Superman. Thankfully, director Patty Jenkins managed to steer the ship away from the same iceberg that sunk Affleck's and Cavill's movie.
With Wonder Woman, Jenkins didn't leave a trail of gaping plotholes unanswered. Its storytelling was simple, direct to the point, and told in a non-fussy chronological manner.
The fact that the intro spiel was the same as the outtro spiel, despite being overused, did not feel overused. It even gave the appearance of the story having come full circle, and it left behind a satisfying taste in one's mouth.
So let's get this out of the way: everyone gushing about Diana on your newsfeed is right, Gal Gadot's face IS mesmerizing. I had to stop myself from physically swooning every time her eyes or nose or mouth did something beautiful because I was doing so every 5 minutes.
If there was ever any doubt in people's minds about the action sequences being directed by (gasp!) a WOMAN, then they have just been proven wrong. Why? Because, goddammit, Wonder Woman delivered.
The Amazonian fighting technique is MIND BLOWING. I promise you, your jaws will meet the floor when you see the fight scene along the shoreline, because these Amazons are not only beautiful, THEY HELLA DANGEROUS. I've never seen such insane twists and somersaults from any of the other superheroes. It legit looks like they're dancing midair!
Oh and by the way, if you're wondering why these Amazons are hella ripped, it's because the director hired actual athletes to play the parts. So they don't just PLAY strong female characters, they literally ARE strong female characters.
Gal Gadot's acting may be far from perfect, but she breathed new life into Diana like no one else ever could. She was equal parts cute and funny, which was totally out of left field. You would almost NEVER see Wonder Woman be the comic relief in the cartoons; that was a job relegated to the Flash.
Gal played the fish-out-of-water Amazonian princess so authentically (and her bewildered face, I'm not gonna lie, is FLIPPIN GORGEOUS). Diana was very much a hero, from the roots of her shiny black hair down to her little tippy toes. She stuck out like a sore thumb everywhere she went, being so purehearted in her desire to help save mankind. It was so much fun watching her fight both with her fists and her wit, because in the early 1910's, behavior like that was very unbecoming of a woman. And there she was, all 5'11" of her, exchanging words with pompous politicians like it was nobody's business.
I also have to give props to Chris Pine for his fantastic portrayal of Diana's budding lover, Steve Trevor (another Hollywood Chris, playing another superhero movie Steve). He let Gal shine in all her glory, without once ever stealing the spotlight. And we're talking about Captain Kirk here, folks, so we know his commanding presence can fill a screen. But as Steve, Pine was sheepish, respectful, and at times... even endearingly reverent.
This movie makes me so goddamn proud. Although it probably won't be breaking any records, it's still a certified blockbuster hit... that was directed by a WOMAN.
Some of you may say, "You can't be proud of a movie just because it's directed by and stars a woman! It's not feminist!"
No, I'm proud that this movie succeeded DESPITE being directed and headlined by two women.
Hollywood just hasn't made space for females to direct action movies. Even though judging from award-winning attempts such as American Psycho and Hurt Locker, we know that we are more than capable.
Hopefully Wonder Woman changes the narrative in this regard. Cheers to more broken glass ceilings, girls!
F. Paredes
