Wonder Woman gets it right. A thrilling origin story that feels utterly unique despite its clear influences. Despite an obnoxious framing device designed to remind you of an overbearing cinematic universe, the film is clearly belongs to Gadot's Diana. Both Diana and Gadot are stellar in their roles in the storytelling and as an actor; Gadot comes across as utterly perfect as Wonder Woman, making it impossible to imagine another actress playing her. More importantly though, Diana is fantastic; the first hero put forward by DC Films in years that actually is worth aspiring towards. She's charming, reasonably flawed, funny, and a badass, everything Wonder Woman should be. The film blends her mythological background with a WWI setting in a way that actually feels really fresh. The action, although clearly influenced by Snyder, is nearly always awesome and that theme still gives me chills.
Most of all, the best thing about the film is the direction. Patty Jenkins does not really give the film a style or flare, but it doesn't feel like it came out of a house. She knows when to let the camera linger or when to cut to make an emotional impact. Moreover, she knows why this movie is unfortunately important. The first female-led superhero movie in more than a decade, Jenkins smartly and subtly takes on the gender and ethnic roles usually assigned in blockbusters, reestablishing them in empowering ways that's always just a joy to see, blending that with a timeless feel that makes one realize something oddly melancholy. This film could've easily been released ten, fifteen, maybe even thirty years ago, and it'd fit in fine in tone and in quality. We should've got a Wonder Woman movie like this years ago, and that's a true shame. However, now that we finally have one, thank goodness it's this one.
Chris Pine is excellent as Steve Trevor; his chemistry with Gadot makes the romantic scenes really shine in a film where they could've easily been an afterthought. The only clear flaw of the film is the third act, when it unfortunately becomes, for a brief five minutes, a generic CGI slog-fest with dull visuals and boring action. Thankfully though, the rest of the film doesn't fall into the trap.
You can insult the other DCEU films as much as you want, but they've always nailed the iconography of these characters. Wonder Woman does that multiple times, but more importantly, it has strong character work and an engaging story to back it up for once. Gadot and Jenkins make a mighty team that delivered a quality blockbuster with moments of awe, laughter, and emotion. Wonder Woman is... well, you probably guessed it... Wonderful.
