The Wonder Boys

Films/DVD Asylum

Movies from comedy to drama to your favorite Hollyweird Star.

140.241.244.99

Rush headlong, do not run, to see Wonder Boys while it's still in town. One of only two films in recent memory to be re-released to theaters, I would vote for Permanent Exhibition. It's the best movie (American style) I've seen in years.
Briefly, Wonder Boys is both a light satire on writers and writing, and a trenchant, deeply human comedy. Many tropes of style and form are humorously engaged -- for instance, the Mystery: You'll see a dead body stuffed into a trunk (and how long has it been since you've laughed at *that*?) -- as in a multitiered novel, but here we are... watching a goddam movie! All very sly.
Michael Douglas as a beleaguered, unproductive professor-novelist, Tobey McGuire as a disingenuous undergraduate student-protoge, Francis McDormand as the boringly-married University Chancellor and Robert Downey, Jr. as a carboy of Habenero Sauce splashed on the proceedings, could not be better. The estimable Chris Hanson directed and DeDe Allen -- famous for her brilliant work on Bonnie and Clyde -- cut it.
But the top credit must go to the writers... whatstheirnames... The movie is populated by a chorus of secondary characters, each one finely drawn and most of them enjoying a surprise reprise. Likewise several zingers reappear, showing that characters have listened to each other and filed some good lines away for future use. Sample to remember: "Double Dickles on the rocks."
The audience at the Sunday matinee in Boston laughed loudly and applauded warmly (love that old tradition). On my way up the aisle afterwards I said to everyone, "Tell your friends. Tell your friends." And they said, "Yes. Yes."
clark

This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors:

Kimber Kable

Topic - The Wonder Boys - clarkjohnsen 08:53:40 11/27/00 (2)

Re: The Wonder Boys - edta 21:09:40 12/01/00 (0)

Great Flick! Everybody go see it, PULEEZZ!!! - Harmonia 21:03:36 11/29/00 (0)

You can not post to an archived thread.