Wonder Woman (2017)

Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, 

Robin Wright, Connie Nielsen, 

Danny Huston, David Thewlis

"Power. Grace. Wisdom. Wonder."

I grew up watching Lynda Carter as Wonder Woman in the 1980s. A tough woman fighting crime and just doing good for mankind. I never knew about her back story, the who, the how and the why she was a superhero. Well considering that this was back in the days when google didn't exist so information wasn't readily available in one click. So I was really invested in this film because it explores her background and how she became a superhero. 

At a young age, Diana (Gal Gadot) was already quite fierce. The daughter of Hippolyta (Connie Nielsen) an Amazon warrior and Zeus himself, she was of privilege stock. But this didn't keep her from watching other Amazon warriors practicing their warrior skills, led by her aunt Antiope (Robin Wright). Their little paradise like world called Themyscira filled with only women is suddenly 'invaded' by German troops who were chasing an American pilot named Steve Trevor (Chris Pine). He just happens to be a spy and somehow thinks he can stop the German army from winning the war.

Having grown in an all female environment, Diana is both curious and intrigued with the pilot. But once he mentions about a war, she becomes more interested as she was raised to believe that Ares, an evil demigod is out to destroy the world so she decides to accompany Steve to find so called villain to stop his evil intentions.

She soon joins Steve in his fight to stop the Germans in developing an vital tool that will annihilate the entire opposing forces. For a woman and an Amazon warrior, she is quite fearless yet at the same time she displays a certain vulnerability that makes her quite an endearing character to root for. 

Gal Gadot is a mesmerizing figure to watch as Wonder Woman. She is quite beautiful and has this twinkle in her eyes that adds to her charismatic superhero image. The innocence as well as the bravery of Diana is well manifested by Gadot in her first leading role. Her chemistry with Chris Pine is believable enough for a romantic interest without resorting to silly love scenes which can sometimes just ruin the entire love story angle. She carries the entire film on her worthy shoulders and although there are certain flaws in her acting, we are all willing to let it slide as she is the Wonder Woman, after all.

The setting is the first World War so there are enough fight scenes befitting a conflict. Action sequences are also a plenty and they are all executed well. The plot develops at a good pace with the usual theme of good vs evil  prevalent in superhero movies with an unexpected twist that leads towards an exciting, action filled conclusion. 

An entertaining movie with just enough relevance and gravitas to elevate it above the other superheroes movies, that simply rely on bombastic computer generated effects to draw a  crowd.