Wonder Boys (not perhaps the best title for a movie of this nature,
but never mind) is an engaging if slightly rambling weekend snapshot of
characters experiencing life-changes in a variety of ways. Comparisons could be
drawn with a number of other films in the recent past which evoked either a
similar ambience, utilised the same unfolding intersection of events within a
circle of related people, or a mixture of both: Scent Of A Woman,
MagnoliaAmerican Beauty
and for starters, with perhaps a sprinkling of
Good Will Hunting
for good measure.
Part teacher/pupil two-hander, part road-movie, its magic lies in an ability to
weave a convoluted and somewhat surreal tale of domestic dysfunction, emotional
turmoil, long overdue self-discovery, wayward prodigies and - without revealing
too much - canine mishaps, while still retaining a pleasingly muted momentum
and wry humour throughout.
A magnificently weatherbeaten and cynically benevolent Douglas, ever more
bedraggled both physically and psychologically as matters spiral out of control,
is the film's central figure around which everything revolves but not, much to
his chagrin, always for the better. Sleepwalking through an unsatisfying life
of marital discord and professional underachievement with the aid of illegal
substances and an illicit romance, his very being is brought into sharp focus
by a bizarre chain of events sparked off by his most troubled literary student.
Wonder Boys, however, is not a one-man show. Far from it. The ever-impressive
Tobey Maguire follows up outstanding performances in
The Ice Storm,
Ride With The Devil,
Pleasantville and The Cider House Rules with yet another intensely
vacant (there's an oxymoron) portrayal of a gifted young author plagued by
inner demons of uncertain origin and equally indeterminate veracity.
Once again, Maguire is the epitome of understatement, something which could
never be said of Robert Downey Jr. Aside from his remarkable tour-de-force
in the 1992 Chaplin biopic, it's been a disjointed and largely
underwhelming career for such a naturally talented actor. Here he gives a typically
flitsome turn as Douglas' bisexual Editor, mildly camp and vivacious but not
quite finding the same sublime level of excellence as his male co-stars.
Comparisons have been drawn between Wonder Boys and
American Beauty
and in terms of both being unashamedly intelligent yet uncompromisingly mischievous
examples of supreme quality US cinema, it's pretty much on the mark. And, as
with Sam Mendes' multi-Oscar winning masterpiece, Wonder Boys
is a unexpectedly life-affirming experience.
As of April 2009, Blu-rays and DVDs reviewed by the editor are watched on a Panasonic TH-37PX80B
37" Plasma TV with a Sony BDP-1500 Blu-ray player and played through a Yamaha DSP-AX820 amplifier.
PC games reviewed by the editor are on:
Since Jan 2011: Intel Quad Core Dell XPS 8100, i7 CPU 860 @ 2.80Ghz, 8Gb RAM, nVidia GeForce GTS 240, Windows 7
Since Nov 2005: Intel Pentium D 830 3.0Ghz, 1Gb RAM, 128Mb nVidia GeForce 6700XL, Windows XP
Since Aug 2003: Intel Pentium 4 2.66Ghz, 512Mb RAM, 128Mb GeForce4 MX440 graphics, Windows XP
Since May 2003: Intel Pentium 4 2.6Ghz, 512Mb RAM, 128Mb ATI Radeon 9600TX graphics, Windows XP
Since Jun 2002: Intel Pentium III 600Mhz, 384Mb RAM, Windows 98 SE, 64Mb ATI Radeon 8500LE
Since May 2000: Intel Pentium III 600Mhz, 384Mb RAM, Windows 98 SE, Voodoo 3 3000 AGP
