Review of Professor Marston and the Wonder Women (2017) by Dylan N — 26 Jan 2018

I'm so glad the marketing for this film was misleading. It didn't make the thing look bad, by any means - it just put Wonder Woman at the center. The creation of that character, the most famous of William Moulton Marston's (the subject of this biopic) many accomplishments, is certainly recounted, but it isn't at the heart of the story. What we have here is a deeply thoughtful, masterfully crafted tale about love, sex, and the human psyche. The director's gentile touch keeps the proceedings gripping where they could be melodramatic - erotic where they could be lurid. As for the three leads - and their performances, which are the key to making this unconventional love story work - they are revelatory. I'm only passingly familiar with Luke Evans. I had no idea he was capable of such subtlety. Hall and Heathcote, the female leads, are simply stunning. The women they create on screen feel REAL - in every achingly beautiful, painful, breathtaking scene. So, yeah - I loved this movie very much - and very little of that has to do with Wonder Woman.

Director Angela Robinson is set to adapt Terry Moore's much-loved Strangers in Paradise graphic novel series as a film, next. I'd rather that story stay on the page - but if it's going to get made, it could not possibly be in better hands.