Simon Williams (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) is a struggling actor who can't get out of his head. He's talented to a fault and unable to not second guess himself at every turn.
When we first meet him, he preps for a bit part in American Horror Story, effectively showing up as an exposition dump to move the plot along. Before we know it, he's giving the director notes on how to run the scene because it doesn't match the elaborate backstory he built for himself. Naturally, he's fired within minutes.
Meanwhile, across town in Hollywood, Trevor Slattery (Ben Kingsley) returns to America after his years in exile. He was once The Mandarin, the fictional face of a terrorist ring, and he deeply regrets taking on the gig which he didn't think was that big of a deal. Slattery is also talented, thoughtful, and capable of great things, but like Simon he is also his own worst enemy. There isn't an opportuniy that he hasn't messed up, and Slattery is acutely aware he's running out of rope and excuses in this life.
The unlikely friends meet while tending to their wounds at a revival screening of Midnight Cowboy, another movie about losers on the outs, and discover an odd kinship neither can quite put into words. There's no agreement about anything, they just suddenly and worldlessly understand each other in a way nobody else has before.
But this is a Marvel story, and things aren't quite as simple as they appear. Simon is an undocumented superhero (or a mutant, though the M-word is never used). In a world figuring out itself after decades of gods and monsters, being supernaturally powerful isn't the gift it once was. Today, nobody in Hollywood will insure or even work with people like them. It's just too much of a risk.
So when opportunity comes calling in the shape of a reboot of Wonder Man, a cheesy 80s sci-fi flick Simon loves, the two men see it as one last chance to make a difference in their lives. A last hurrah before it all slips away.
Wonder Man sounds like a lot with deep themes of acceptance, failure, and even allusions to Hollywood's awful past with gay panic and the red scare, yet it never feels like a miserable time. Instead, this is a light, breezy, and often very moving buddy comedy that revives Marvel after years in an aimless slump.
For the past six years, the miracle studio that changed the face of the entertainment industry hasn't been outright bad (except for that weird business with Secret Wars), but it has felt lost and unsure of itself. As if Endgame left them without an idea of who they'd be without their star lineup. In Wonder Man, Marvel has discovered an answer, though it might come too late as the studio ramps up to their mammoth return to nostalgia with Doomsday later in the year.
But gosh, what a gift Wonder Man is, even if it turns out to be a one-off. This is everything that made me love Marvel in the first place. It has that rambunctious and chaotic energy of the first Iron Man where anything can happen. The story is deeply rooted in relatable, everyday themes, and the characters feel grounded and true.
I often felt annoyed by Simon's inability to just stop making things worse himself. I would fidget in my seat, uncomfortable in the way he would ramp things to eleven without warning when there was no reason for it. Then, I realized I was annoyed at myself. I know that anxiety because it is the same one I live with. I recognize myself in both Simon and Trevor and the ways that Abdul-Mateen and Kingsley carry their broken dignity from one disappointment to another. I haven't felt that kind of connection to this franchise in over a decade.
The stakes are delightfully low, but they feel high because that's how things usually work in reality. For Simon and Trevor, this audition is everything. If it fails, there's a chance there won't be another. Kingsley's portrayal of a man so innately aware of his failures, who still musters up incredible strength to put on a good show, is surprisingly tender and poignant. He could easily have coasted on an established presence in this cinematic universe. Instead, he delivers one of his best roles in years.
Wonder Man is short and sweet but so full of rich subtext it feels much larger. It ends on a note that in theory offers a path for future adventures, but is also perfect as a conclusion for this kind of story. It sits somewhere at the crossroads of melancholy and optimism where all hopefuls wait for their opportunity like Vladimir and Estragon.
It might never arrive, but you can't just give up. Who knows what tomorrow brings.
