Review: ‘Wonder’ shows how kindness can make a difference
"Wonder" star Jacob Tremblay, center, with Kidsday reporters, from left, Sophia Napoli, Brooke Cappa, Chase Licatesi and Victoria Ducatelli in Manhattan. Credit: Newsday / Pat Mullooly
We were all so excited to recently be invited to a screening of the movie “Wonder.” Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson are both in the movie, but actor Jacob Tremblay, who plays Auggie, is truly the star of this film.
The movie portrays the struggles and triumphs of a 10-year-old boy named August (Auggie) Pullman, who was born with Treacher Collins syndrome. He lives in New York City with his mom (Julia Roberts), dad (Owen Wilson), sister Via (Izabela Vidovic) and dog Daisy.
Auggie has always been home-schooled, and the movie opens with him deciding to go to fifth grade at a public school. Auggie is nervous about making friends because people always have stared at his facial differences. He has a right to be anxious because upon entering the school, he does get stared at and bullied by a boy named Julian. This movie made us laugh and cry at times because we had so much empathy for Auggie.
Auggie has a strong support system of family and friends and does persevere. Eventually, he makes two best friends, Summer (Millie Davis) and Jack Will (Noah Jupe). The theme of this movie is kindness, and the movie had a big impact on us. We decided that from now on we will always try to choose to be kind because kindness is always possible, as the precept states. Auggie’s class eventually becomes more compassionate and accepts him for who he is. The class realizes everyone is unique and special in his own way. We all had different favorite parts of the movie because the entire film was so good. We encourage you to see the wonder in the movie “Wonder” and to try to be a wonder yourself.
Rating: 5 smiles
Jacob Tremblay says Julia Roberts, who played his character's mother, was "really fun" to work with. Credit: Dale Robinette
After seeing the movie, Jacob Tremblay visited us in the screening room to talk to us about his part in the movie. Here is part of our conversation with him:
What was your favorite part of the movie? Ours was the final scene.
Oh, that’s everyone’s favorite part, but probably my favorite part is the part where Chewbacca comes. That was the funniest. Did you know the actor was the real guy from “Star Wars”?
Did you feel pressured to stay true to the character while you were making the movie?
There are crying scenes, and it was emotional and draining, but I think Auggie was really fun to play, because what better character could you play?
Is it hot with that helmet on?
Yes! And it was really heavy, so I was trying to keep my body still, but my body was just swaying back and forth.
Were you able to work with so many stars? Was that challenging?
Just working with Julia Roberts was really fun. And Owen Wilson, he’s really funny. He knows when it’s time to have a funny scene, but then also he knows when it’s time to have a serious scene.
What message did you personally take from the story of “Wonder”?
The message I took away was choose kindness and be true to yourself.
