Boy Wonder

Boy Wonder is a thriller on the heels of vigilante justice films such as Kick Ass, and in lieu of the Phoenix Jones capers in Seattle. In the vein of films such as The Dark Knight, Boy Wonder is as much a thriller as it is a dark drama. Although unassuming at first glance Boy Wonder packs a visceral punch that is certain to leave at least a mild impression.

When a young boy witnesses the murder of his mother during a car jacking the crime leaves him mentally scarred. These scars fester into a sort of dissociative paranoia that causes him to take to the streets in search of crime, and where he finds crime, he roots it with violence and murder. Although the vigilante crime story is certainly an aspect of the plot, Boy Wonder works to distance itself from other films of this style by containing a weighty, paranoiac, and unsettling storyline which seems to twist tropes usually found within this genre. In the end one has to ask themselves whether the vigilante in question was a hero, or an unbalanced psychopath who garnered unusual amounts of sympathy from those who should have been trying to prosecute him.

Although Boy Wonder's plot line and unusual interpretation of a vigilante hero-style movie are attractive other aspects of the film fall by the way side. The acting from the two lead roles, Caleb Steinmeyer and Zulay Henao, are surprisingly flat and unconvincing. Although Steinmeyer does come off emotionally stunted and kind of awkward it seems disingenuous, more like it's coming from a place of bad acting rather than a place of authenticity. Henao plays a rather generic character with a rather generic set of problems and kind of reminds me of the character Renee Montoya from Batman. Henao comes off lifeless with her one dimensional delivery breaking long enough for her to shed a single tear near the end. Henao's character might have been written to be a cut throat, self-centered, status seeking bitch, but she just came off as an annoying, pushy, and weak nag. I never felt the characters strength instead I could only focus on her implicit weakness, and if that was intended then it's a resounding success, but any indication at the character's personality or motivation was not translated in the acting. Some of the strongest acting came from characters who did not receive enough dialogue or screen time, and this is unfortunate because these characters usually made the movie shine.

Boy Wonder is a neat concept with a satisfying conclusion that will certainly raise an eye brow or two, but it feels amateurish and unfocused. It's a stout film, the acting of the two lead roles leaves much to be desired, and this ultimately left a less than sweet taste in my mouth. Regardless, it's a decent film and should kill an hour and a half without leaving too many feelings of regret.

Sean (Caleb Steinmeyer) witnessed the murder of his mother by a carjacker when he was a kid and, now a high school student, he obsesses about it. He scans mug shots at a local police precinct searching for his mother's killer. His early trauma has produced in him an anger that surfaces in acts of vigilantism against perpetrators of abuse and cruelty.

This movie is pretty much carried by Steinmeyer who in most respects appears as quiet and studious, but he skillfully gives evidence to Sean's underlying hostility. It is not too easy to pull that off I think. Thus, Sean's acts of sudden violence do not come as a big surprise. While it does not fly to have people taking the law into their own hands, Sean's acts will probably not meet with your total disapproval, appealing as they do to the vigilante in our dark sides. Much of the action is filmed at night, suitably dark to match the subject matter.

The supporting cast is uniformly good. Sean's life is complicated by his having a recovering alcoholic father (Bill Sage) who used to abuse his wife. The conflict between father and son is well played.

While Sean's background and response to it resemble Batman's, the movie is played pretty straight. However, in many of the altercations Sean gets badly beaten, but miraculously he seems to recover rather quickly and completely. Sean can get carried away in dispensing his personal justice. In one scene he has to be restrained from murder in response to a minor slight. The violence is overplayed in my opinion.