Wonder Woman

After the disappointment of Batman Vs Superman and Suicide Squad, Wonder Woman is the quality DC film we have all been waiting for, delivering a beautifully directed and thoroughly enjoyable superhero origin film that explores Diana’s transformation from naive warrior to an inspiring hero aware of mankind’s flaws.

Wonder Woman begins with some brilliant empowering scenes of the amazons training in the secluded paradise of Themyscira, as we see Diana (Gal Gadot), daughter of Queen Hippolyta (Connie Nielsen), training rigorously. However, her world changes when charismatic Steve Trevor (Chris Pine), an American working for British intelligence, crash-lands close to the shore. He tells the amazons about the great war and Diana leaves the island with him in the hope of stopping the destruction caused by Ares and saving humankind. They assemble a team and using the information which Steve stole from scientist Doctor Poison (Elena Anaya) they set out to stop General Erich Ludendorff (Danny Huston) and, hopefully, end the war.

Gal Gadot brings a graceful athleticism to the role as well as a sweet comic innocence to Diana’s encounters with the modern world. However, the stand-out scene is the marvellous no-man’s land sequence which is at first emotional but then builds to be thoroughly awe-inspiring as Diana’s full costume, designed by Lindy Hemming, is revealed. Moreover, the chemistry between Gadot and Pine is delightfully underplayed as, with Patty Jenkins citing Casablanca as one of her inspirations, their romance is reminiscent of an old-fashioned love story.

Therefore, though the third act is a little excessive, the journey of the first leading superheroine in cinemas in over a decade, is one worth exploring.