“Enjoyed it thoroughly, except for the boring ending…”

I really loved this movie. I’ll admit, I’m a big fan of movies with a strong female lead. I was disappointed with Batman Vs Superman (you can read my review here) but I really wanted Wonder Woman to succeed.

We watched this movie on opening day. Okay, you’re going to get idiots kicking your seat a lot more often when you go and see a movie on opening day. Still, I like the atmosphere and the shared experience of laughter, gasps and whispered words of enjoyment. t makes the mobile phone lights, chatting teens and bolshy mothers unable to control their flock bearable – at least for the duration of the movie. I’m also getting more refined in my tradeoff between diplomacy and rage when it comes to telling people to remove their stinking trainers from the proximity of my head. I guess that’s becoming more of the authentic cinema experience, though. Enough babbling, on to the movie…

I didn’t expect Gal Gadot to have the presence that such a movie really needed. Now, I am by no means sexist. I just think that, in an action movie, a female star has to work just that bit harder to keep things interesting. Gal Gadot certainly did that. I knew that the addition of Chris Pine (Star Trek, Carriers, etc) would help a great deal, but I didn’t expect Wonder Woman herself to hold the movie together. She did just that.

I went into this movie with an open mind. Batman Vs Superman had revealed Wonder Woman already, and it had shown that she was incredibly overpowered. I was concerned that the character would not be vulnerable enough in this movie. Let’s face it, in Batman Vs Superman she was withstanding super powered eye blasts from the General Zod / Kryptonian monster thing that Lex Luthor had cobbled together, and she was taking all the blows from that beast (which was standing toe to toe with Superman) without getting so much as a hair out of place. So, I was worried that the character would be overpowered and not vulnerable enough in her stand alone movie. Strangely enough, the way the movie progressed from beginning to conclusion assuaged my fears. Diana’s powers and abilities were developed and explained in a satisfying way.

I enjoyed the first act the most. I loved seeing the Amazons on their island, training and fighting together in armour that was all but impractical. I’m not a fan of bows and arrows, horseback fighting and swordplay, or at least I didn’t think I was! The opening act had a lot going for it and when the movie moved to a more recognisable and relatable scene (London, WW1) it didn’t jar at all. Chris Pine’s character was believable and enjoyable, happy to play support to Gal Gadot and confident in his role.

The movie moved along nicely and I enjoyed Wonder Woman’s assembled band of helpers. It was (and always is) nice to see the Nazis taking a pounding and they certainly did in this movie.

The only thing I didn’t really enjoy was the cliched and tired ending. It felt too much like the ending of Batman Vs Superman, XMen Apocalyspe and just about every superhero movie. But it wasn’t a bad enough ending to spoil the whole experience. So I give Wonder Woman a strong thumbs up!