This introspective exploration of the disintegration of a father-daughter relationship suffers due to lethargic pacing.
Gelsomina (Lungu) is a teenager living on a farm somewhere in Italy with her parents and three younger sisters. The self-sufficient family of beekeepers produce their own honey, locally renowned as being the best in the region up until now Gelsomina has been her father's right hand 'man'. Lately however she has become disaffected with life on the farm: she has taken an interest in jewellery and boys, and it's her that pushes her father to enter Countryside Wonders, a tacky TV show (hosted by Moncia Belucci) that hosts a competition for the best naturally produced food...
Based on writer-director Alice Rohrwacher's youth, The Wonders has that living-in-the-moment docudrama style with the director's handheld camera eavesdropping on intimate family moments. The Joanna Hogg-esque penchant for narrative space allows the Wolfgang and Gelsomina story to emerge from largely inactive story.
And dad and daughter experience a strange dynamic. He's an odd fish: Wolfgang might follow through on his promise to get the girls a camel, but the animal it isn't presented with anything resembling joy. He's blind too: when a visiting friend remarks that his daughter is now a woman, Wolfgang poo-poos the notion. Whether it's financial pressure or succumbing to the glaring fact that this way of life is not sustainable, but Wolfgang is not painted as a good guy. He's shown to be a comical figure, walking about the farm in his vest and underpants and his bluster disappears when the TV cameras turn on him, making him look like a fool.
There doesn't seem to be a lot of love between him and Gelsomina. She is gripped with fear when she takes her sister to the hospital and forgets to replace the bucket that collects the dripping honey. Coming home to find that the supply has leaked all over the barn floor, she throws herself to the floor and scoops the golden mess up by the armful.
Watching Gelsomina find her voice and make the first tentative steps to individuality keeps The Wonders ticking over. But, boy, does it take an age to get there. The plot drags with little happening other than Gelsomina's slow rebellion.
