Wonder Woman: Hope, Humor and a New Perspective, Essay Example for Everyone

Wonder Woman first appeared in DC Comics in 1941, just 21 years after women in the United States gained the right to vote. At that time women were still in doubt about their own possibilities and the superhero had to embody all the possible female (and male) virtues, so that she could be considered equal to Superman, Batman and other idols of adolescents. Princess Diana was a perfect choice - an ideal woman, warrior, and ruler. Wonder Woman became a sensation, but even her magic powers were not enough to conquer the cinema world ruled by men. This is why the first "solo" film about Diana has been released only now, 76 years after the debut of the superhero, and one year after the blockbuster Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) appeared on the screen. There, the immortal Amazon played by Gal Gadot was a mysterious minor character that was intriguing enough for the spectators to wait with interest for a motion picture that would fully reveal the image. In 2017 such a movie was released. But it is more than just a detailed portrait of an attractive female superhero. The film accomplishes an important mission described by G. Roger Denson from The Huffington Post as "raising the esteem for powerful yet compassionate women as heroes and leaders to a level equal with that of men" (Denson). Wonder Woman is a controversial yet both compelling and intriguing live-action movie, built around the contrast of two worlds, two perspectives, which offers a surprisingly fresh historical and psychological insight.

Is your time best spent reading someone else’s essay? Get a 100% original essay FROM A CERTIFIED WRITER!

Order now

The plot is quite predictable, nevertheless, the director successfully employs the twist of a romantic and naive character finding herself in extremely gloomy and unusual circumstances. Two worlds and two tonalities collide. If the native island of Diana can be seen by the viewer as a small paradise on earth, where green grass and cloudless sky please the eye every single day of the year, then the war-struck mainland seems to be an embodiment of hell. The contrast helps the modern spectator (together with Diana) to get a more realistic feel of what it was like to fight in the World War I. Michael Phillips from Chicago Tribune compares this movie to the first Captain America in the way it "offers the pleasures of period re-creation for a popular audience": "Jenkins and her design team make 1918-era London; war-torn Belgium; the Ottoman Empire; and other locales look freshly realized, with a strong point of view. There are scenes here of dispossessed war refugees, witnessed by an astonished and heartbroken Diana, that carry unusual gravity for a comic book adaptation" (Phillips). The WWI scenes create plausible historical associations which evoke strong emotions: pain, loss, suffering, dirty trenches and the first use of chemical gases, the first tanks, and total destruction. Yet, in the middle of this roaring, dirty, bloody chaos there are still people who remain humane and are trying to stop this horror, even at the cost of their own lives. In my opinion, this superhero story is interesting first and foremost due to this contact of the worlds.

The collision of two worlds not only highlights the dark sides of one of them, but also allows for the light and cheerful humor of an archetypal situation where a person from an entirely different environment suddenly finds herself in our habitual life (even though in the film it is already a fairly distant past). In London, where women wear corsets, where they are not allowed to discuss important public affairs, and where it is impossible to openly wear a shield and a sword, the princess of the Amazons behaves decisively, sometimes too bold, often very honestly, but always incredibly funny. Wonder Woman is not a comedy, but many scenes (e.g. Diane's arrival in London and her shopping transformation) will arouse a smile. This is a movie not about a perfect superhuman, but about a superhero who is naive, touching and humane.

Though Wonder Woman is full of stamps and anticipated moments, its charm is in the atmosphere it creates and the emotions it evokes. In its world, there is still a place for admiration, romance, and respect. This world is essentially different from the one in which Batman and Superman live. Not only because it is a movie shot by a woman about a woman. Though, of course, Wonder Woman is also a story about feminism and the rights of the women. But more importantly, it is a movie about the global, serious, profound things. It is not about aliens capturing the Earth or a crazy maniac killing imaginary inhabitants of some imaginary city. It shows a real war very much similar to the ones that are going on today in Syria and Ukraine. This is why Diana is not perceived n the same way as other comic book heroes. Wonder Woman is a symbol of hope in a world where there is still war, injustice, pain and tragedy. In the words of M. Hudson from The Federalist, she is "Christ in the form of a beautiful and kick-ass Amazon" (Hudson) who becomes the last hope of all those, who have no say in the war - women, children, displaced persons. This is probably why Diana has excited such extraordinary sympathy among the cinema-goers. She is naively trying to help rather than to win.

The San Francisco Chronicle reviewer Mick LaSalle summarizes the qualities that set this film apart from its peers: "Wonder Woman is a different kind of action movie, and it's all the better for it. It has humor, and it's grounded in history. It's the story of a woman's coming of age, and it's a critique not only of a world run by men, but also of other action movies that glorify war" (LaSalle). So, if I were asked to describe this movie in only three words, I would say that it is hopeful, funny and, most importantly, different.

Works Cited

Denson, G. Roger. "The Wonder Woman "No Mans Land" Scene Is Rooted In History, Myth and Art." The Huffington Post, The Huffington Post, 5 Aug. 2017, www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/the-wonder-woman-no-mans-land-scene-is-rooted-in_us_59498fcae4b0710bea889a18.

Hudson, M. "The New 'Wonder Woman' Is Really A Story About Jesus." The Federalist, FDRLST Media, 5 June 2017, thefederalist.com/2017/06/05/new-wonder-woman-really-story-jesus/.

LaSalle, Mick. "Wonder Woman gives different perspective to an action movie." San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Chronicle, 27 July 2017, www.sfchronicle.com/movies/article/ Wonder-Woman-a-different-kind-of-action-11185883.php.

Phillips, Michael . "'Wonder Woman' review: Finally, a DC Comics movie that works." Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 29 May 2017, www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/movies /ct-wonder-woman-review-20170525-column.html.