Cheap Wonderland (DVD) (Michael Winterbottom) Price

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Customer Reviews of Wonderland

What It Is.
Watching this film, I was struck at the ambition of the film maker. A small family drama is told in the large scope of a sprawling city. This story of three sisters, their parents, their lovers, and their neighbors is a messy, yet elegantly nuanced slice of life. The acting is natural. No character is perfect and the exposition of the story is quiet and imprecise. The viewer is bound by the small details of the characters' lives. The city of London is not just a landscape, but an entity unto itself, complete with its own music.

For better of worse, the film lacks centrality and it is hard to empathize with every character. The murkiness of the family backstory is frustrating at times. Attempting to apply a moral construct to every sequence of the film is useless. To me, this movie had strong echoes of Mike Leigh's films.

Does the movie work? Sort of. Are the charcters revealed in a satisfying manner? Yes. Is the film's arc and execution admirable? Yes. Is the movie enjoyable? Not really.

The actors did a tremendous job. Gina McKee is fine as Nadya, the emotional touchstone of the film. Canadian Molly Parker does credit to her English accent. My particular favorite performance is that of Shirley Henderson (Bridget Jones, Harry Potter). She is wonderfully natural as the cheerful, tarty single-mom sister.

All in all, this film is better than fine but not great.

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INDEPENDENT FILM HYPE
Just because you have a camera and a credit card does not mean that you're a trendy independent filmmaker. There are those that gush over these little low budget films - instant 5 star review because it was made without studio backing. There are indie films that are amazing - Reservoir Dogs, Donnie Darko, etc. that worthy of praise. However, Wonderland is pure boredom coupled with that grainy look and a shaky hand-held camera - it looks cheap, the acting is poor and the story goes nowhere and stays there.

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Excellent
I avoid the "grade inflation" so prevalent at this site. There are few movies I rate "5", but this one certainly deserves it. It has the feel of Magnolia, but with more subtlety. Wonderland depicts modern urban alienation, but with tremendous human compassion and artfullness instead of cold philosophy or polemics. The directing and photography are both top-notch. The occasional visual gimmick works because it is employed only where appropriate. Unlike Magnolia, the several characters intermix throughout the movie. Our understanding of the them is established with impressive economy. The only criticisms I have are the several instances of indistinct dialogue (I'm thankful for subtitles) and the lack of extras on the DVD.