Wonder
Lionsgate | Release Date: November 17, 2017 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
66
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 33 Critic Reviews
Positive:
24
Mixed:
9
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
Village VoiceBilge EbiriNov 21, 2017
It tempers its fairly blunt narrative approach by constantly shifting its perspective. It starts off as the portrait of a troubled child, but expands to become a film about community. Read full review
90
The New York TimesGlenn KennyNov 16, 2017
Wonder is that rare thing, a family picture that moves and amuses while never overtly pandering. Read full review
88
St. Louis Post-DispatchCalvin WilsonNov 16, 2017
An emotionally involving drama that deftly sidesteps mawkishness. Read full review
80
Time OutJoshua RothkopfNov 20, 2017
Although the film takes place in a fantasy version of brownstone Brooklyn, it’s more cutting than the book, especially for the way it shuns the concept of a star vehicle and sharpens the material into a forum for several moments of guilt. Read full review
80
IGNAlex WelchNov 20, 2017
Featuring several stunning performances by its stars, with Jacob Tremblay shining brightest of them all, Wonder ends up being a much better and wiser film than its trailers or premise let on. Read full review
80
New York Magazine (Vulture)David EdelsteinNov 18, 2017
Wonder has an overflowing humanism that extends to less-sympathetic characters. Read full review
80
VarietyOwen GleibermanNov 13, 2017
It’s a very tasteful heart-tugger — a drama of disarmingly level-headed empathy that glides along with wit, assurance, and grace, and has something touching and resonant to say about the current climate of American bullying. Read full review
75
RogerEbert.comChristy LemireNov 17, 2017
Uniformly strong performances help ground the story. Tremblay, who showed instincts beyond his years in the devastating 2015 drama “Room,” provides both a sweetness and an intelligence to his 10-year-old character that make him accessible even when he’s wearing an astronaut helmet to hide his face. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneRick BentleyNov 17, 2017
It has a wonderful message about tolerance, acceptance, understanding and respect. There's no guarantee the message would register with all moviegoers, but social ignorance can be cured one person at a time. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperNov 16, 2017
What elevates Stephen Chbosky’s adaptation of the bestselling novel of the same name by R.J. Palacio is the myriad ways in which Wonder catches us just a little off-guard and puts lumps in our throats even when Auggie is off-screen, and we’re learning about supporting characters who rarely get their own sections in movies such as this. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleNov 15, 2017
For the vast majority of its 113-minute running time, Wonder stays genuine and true. Read full review
75
Washington PostStephanie MerryNov 15, 2017
Wonder does occasionally suffer from kid-movie pitfalls, straining to be cute or mining humor from ridiculously precocious little ones. But mostly it succeeds in telling not one complicated story, but many, and giving the experience of being a confused or lonely or scared youngster the space it deserves. Read full review
75
The Film StageJordan RuimyNov 14, 2017
Much of the film’s success does reside upon Chbosky’s mostly restrained execution, but it is Tremblay that carries it. His fully rendered and exceptional performance is something of a miracle as it joyously goes past the prosthetics and into the core of his character’s roller coaster of emotions. Read full review
75
IndieWireDavid EhrlichNov 13, 2017
Wonder is as manipulative as movies get, but that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes a story needs to steer you; sometimes a story tells you what to feel, but redeems itself by virtue of the sincerity with which it shows why you should feel that way. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterSheri LindenNov 13, 2017
Wonder is a story of connection, not suffering. Dramatizing one boy's effect on the people around him, it invites the viewer into that fold. Read full review
70
New York Daily NewsJoe DziemianowiczNov 13, 2017
Kids may not notice or care, but the movie, which advocates kindness, comes with an irony. It’s a film about embracing differences and seeing beyond appearances, but it rarely bucks convention or gets more than skin deep. Read full review
70
TheWrapAlonso DuraldeNov 13, 2017
Giving the film credit where it’s due, Wonder never cheats in its pursuit of emotion. It’s never mawkish or manipulative, and its characters are so well-established both in the writing and in the performances that the movie ultimately does the hard work of earning those damp Kleenexes. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubKatie RifeNov 15, 2017
The film features some of the most clichéd aphorisms about kindness and inner beauty this side of an inspirational wall hanging. But honestly? It could have been a lot worse. Read full review
67
The PlaylistWill AshtonNov 14, 2017
Wonder promotes the benefits of human decency in a time when those virtues feel limited, and wins you over by being a pretty good film about being good — and that’s good enough for it to work. Read full review
63
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliDec 4, 2017
Because Wonder wants to attract viewers of all ages and seeks to provide a “positive” experience, it glosses over the darker aspects that a story of this sort should address. In doing so, it at times feels dishonest and the Pollyanna-ish ending borders on cloying. Read full review
63
Rolling StonePeter TraversNov 18, 2017
Wonder is an emotional wipeout, that's for sure, but Chbosky handles it with such tenderness and delicacy, you won't hate yourself (too much) for giving in. Read full review
63
Movie NationRoger MooreNov 17, 2017
Wonder, through depictions of the burdens shouldered by its characters, through jolting displays of childhood cruelty and heartfelt moments of compassion, earns that reach-for-the-handkerchief. Read full review
63
Philadelphia Daily NewsGary ThompsonNov 16, 2017
A movie that succeeds as a tearjerker, if you can withstand those pushy moments (and there are a few) when it kind of makes you want to hate kindness. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeMark FeeneyNov 15, 2017
Much as there is right with Wonder, there’s just as much that isn’t. Emotionally, the movie rarely feels false. Read full review
60
EmpireLiz BeardsworthDec 4, 2017
It sometimes over-plays its hand but, anchored by a terrific Jacob Tremblay, Wonder is a warm persuasive argument for tolerance. And it’s always great to have Julia Roberts back on the big screen. Read full review
60
VoxAlissa WilkinsonNov 20, 2017
While the movie’s premise feels prone to the maudlin, it’s ultimately quite poignant; Wonder is a family-oriented tale in which people make mistakes in the way they treat one another, but learn and grow in a way that doesn’t feel condescending to the film’s younger audience. Read full review
60
Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranNov 16, 2017
Though it keeps Auggie's fine sense of humor and his remarkably even-keeled attitude about himself and his situation, the movie version of Wonder feels more pat and After School Special-ish than the novel. Read full review
60
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzNov 16, 2017
Wonder will make you cry — that’s one of the main purposes of its existence — but it’ll also drive you a little crazy. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Brad WheelerNov 17, 2017
Owen Wilson cries, but audiences will more likely roll their eyeballs at writer-director Stephen Chbosky's outrageous emotional manipulations. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineKeith WatsonNov 16, 2017
The film has an almost pathological need to ensure that everything turns out well for every single character, while at the same time eliding any truly difficult issues. Read full review
50
Austin ChronicleMarc SavlovNov 15, 2017
The film is being marketed to kids and their parents, and as such, it’s well worth mom and dad’s hard-earned sawbuck for the implicit lessons it stresses. Be kind, especially to the seemingly strange ones who might not look like you. Read full review
50
Screen DailyTim GriersonNov 13, 2017
Because of the quality of the performances and the sincerity of the execution, Wonder doesn’t need to artificially stir our emotions, so it’s a shame that Chbosky lets the tone get away from him, badgering viewers with his points rather than simply letting the material speak for itself. Read full review
40
The GuardianPeter BradshawNov 13, 2017
It is a film with all the depth of a fridge magnet. Read full review
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