Cast: Shirley Henderson, Gina McKee, Molly Parker, Ian Hart, John Simm, Stuart Townsend, Kika Markham, Jack Shepherd, Enzo Cilenti, Sarah-Jane Potts
Director: Michael Winterbottom
Producers: Michele Camarda, Andrew Eaton
Screenplay: Laurence Coriat
Cinematography: Sean Bobbitt
Music: Michael Nyman
U.S. Distributor: USA Films
Over the past few years, Michael Winterbottom has emerged as one of Britain's most reliable filmmakers. Through nearly every one of his efforts, from Jude, a searing adaptation of Thomas Hardy's Jude the Obscure, to Welcome to Sarajevo, Winterbottom has proven himself to be capable of handling intriguing and difficult material. He has also shown exceptional ability when it comes to character development. His latest cinematic offering, Wonderland, joins the recent roster of quirky ensemble pieces that also includes Magnolia and Beautiful People.
Wonderland covers four days (Thursday through Sunday) in the lives of several characters as their paths intersect, merge, and diverge. The film is not constructed using events of momentous dramatic importance - almost everything that transpires is the kind of everyday incident that a typical viewer can relate to. The circumstances and situations take on an added importance because of the bond that Winterbottom creates between the protagonists and the audience. Only a few scenes into the movie, we have a strong sense that these are real people and that everything they do matters, if not to anyone else, then at least to them (and, by extension, to us).
Wonderland's three primary characters are sisters (although it takes a little while to puzzle the family relationship out - thankfully, there's no awkward exposition where this is explicitly revealed): single mother Debbie (Shirley Henderson), whose 11 year-old son is spending the weekend with his dad; lonely Nadia (Gina McKee), whose quest for a worthwhile companion has led her to place an ad in the personals; and pregnant Molly (Molly Parker), who is only days away from giving birth. There are men here, too, although they play secondary roles. There's Molly's husband, Eddie (John Simm), who is becoming unnerved by the possibility of fatherhood. Debbie's ex, Dan (Ian Hart), uses a VCR to babysit his son while he goes out to the pub. And quiet Tim (Stuart Townsend) allows Nadia to believe that not all the men responding to her ad are creeps. Finally, to round out things out, we're given a look into the unhappy married existence of Eileen (Kika Markham) and Bill (Jack Shepherd), an older couple whose feelings for each other are as empty as the rooms in which their children once lived.
Winterbottom uses this group of individuals to make broad statements about life in general - not just in South London or the U.K., but across the world. We all suffer from the human condition - it's an inescapable, universal malaise. The model couple, who have been married for decades and raised four children, are not always the portrait of communal accord that they appear to be from the outside. Expectant parents are plagued by worries, some of which can be overwhelming. The unmarried mom has to be concerned about her son's welfare when he's with his father. But being single and unattached isn't the answer, either, because of the associated loneliness and isolation. Wonderland is an excellent illustrator of the "grass is always greener" precept - the married wish for the freedom of being single, while the unmarried long for the closeness and companionship of connubial bliss.
Winterbottom turns his camera into a character by employing some interesting variations on traditional cinema verité approaches. He toys with different film stocks, lighting, and filters. Some scenes are bright and grainy. Others are veiled in shadow and tinged by a yellow-orange tint. Still others occur in near-blackness. Most, if not all, of these shots were created using a hand-held camera. Slow motion and time lapse photography are also occasionally employed to imbue a moment with a surreal, dreamlike quality. While none of these techniques are new, Winterbottom uses them in the service of a widescreen (2.35:1 aspect ratio) presentation - an unusual tactic that has the effect of immersing Wonderland's viewers in the movie, offering a "you are there" experience. (Those who are susceptible to motion sickness may endure a minor bout of queasiness as a result.)
Laurence Coriat's screenplay is low-key and smart, recalling the kind of storytelling favored by Mike Leigh. The cast members, an accomplished group of moderately recognizable (but not over-familiar) faces, essay their roles with conviction. There isn't a moment when we are conscious of watching actors in a movie; the camerawork and performances gel to mimic a documentary-style presentation. Frequent movie-goers may know Gina McKee (who had the female lead in this year's surprise indie hit, Croupier), Canadian Molly Parker, and Ian Hart, but others, like Shirley Henderson and John Simm, have had less international exposure.
On any given day in any major city around the world, it is possible to walk down a street and pass a myriad of anonymous faces, each of which conceals a share of secrets and tribulations. Watching Wonderland is like stripping away the public anonymity offered by the crowd, separating the individual from the vast human continuum that forms an ever-changing background. There's nothing extraordinary about any of the characters whose lives unfold during the course of Winterbottom's 108-minute film, so it's the essential truth of the material that makes Wonderland a compelling and rewarding experience.
© 2000 James Berardinelli