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46 out of 54 people found the following comment useful :-
Author! Author!, 6 March 2000

Author: mercury-26 (eriksend@hotmail.com) from grand rapids, mi

I am usually annoyed by films based on novels about novelists. Really, it's like the author couldn't think of anything else to write about. `Write what you know.' That's what the writing instructors tell you. But a novel about a writer makes it seem like writing is all you know. Who, except other writers, would want to read it? The opening scenes of Wonder Boys, however, buried whatever hang-ups I had. This story is less about writing than it is about the tortured souls that produce it.

This film is a departure from anything I've seen before. Really, has there ever been another major studio movie set in Pittsburgh? It's about time. Here's another departure: Wonder Boys triumphs as a character study. How many comedies can claim this? And a great comedy it is. Who can't appreciate the fact that one of the most important characters driving the story is a blind dog that's locked in a car trunk for most of the movie?

Not to be upstaged by said dog, Michael Douglas turns in his best performance since Wall Street. Douglas plays the ultimate tortured soul, Grady Tripp, a much-respected, award-winning, and soon-to-be divorced University of Pittsburgh writing prof, wrestling as many artists do with a novel that refuses to end. One of his students, James Leer (Tobey Maguire in his best performance ever), is trying his hardest to be a poor, struggling artist and is looking to be inspired. James all but cons his way into Grady's life and the scenes between these two crackle with life. James has his own novel he's finished, and Grady's editor, Terry Crabtree (Robert Downey, Jr.), believes he's found a true `wonder boy,' the next big thing. The film then dangles these questions in front of us: How will Grady find a balance between helping James, fulfilling James' expectations of his hero, and dealing with the fact that this kid is On The Verge while he himself is on page 1163 and counting? Always poignant and dazzling, the film's writer never strays from his characters in favor of overdramatization. Many opportunities exist and Mr. Kloves always wisely passes.

Grady's relationship problems are also piling up. The story takes place over the course of one weekend, and Grady is faced with one dilemma after another involving his married girlfriend, Sara (Frances MacDormand), the school's chancellor, his boarder and student Hannah (Katie Holmes, who will shine once she finds that good, meaty starring role), and of course his estranged wife (played by no one at all).

There's a lot to love about Wonder Boys and I assure you I've merely grazed the surface. The real reason I went to see it, though it looked interesting enough from the trailers, was Curtis Hanson. I liked parts of L.A. Confidential enough to see what other tricks he has up his sleeve. I must say that his work here is much more accomplished than Confidential, despite the fact that most critics thought it deserved to beat Titanic a couple of years back. I hope this gives you an idea of just how good I think Wonder Boys is. Unfortunately, this is an early-year, low-budget comedy about scholarly people, and Mr. Hanson will most likely be recognized for the mystery thriller that came before it.

I want to be wrong, so don't miss Wonder Boys.

Grade: A

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43 out of 56 people found the following comment useful :-
WONDERful, 6 February 2003

Author: keefy-d from Darlington

Not many people have heard of this film. It's not what the masses want, they yearn for Men In Black II, Legally Blonde, Die Another Day and so on. This minor gem is strange, unconventional, rich and moving. It is a classically written character study with unexpected comic twists and turns from every angle. You feel warmer for having watched this movie, and it is a shame that films like these only occur once or twice a year.

Grady Tripp (Michael Douglas) is a middle-aged professor of English, and is writing his second novel, `The Wonder Boys'. However, this character is not a stereotypical teacher but a fantastically original creation emphasized by Douglas' winning performance. He smokes weed and lives with a student of his (Katie Holmes), he is in the midst of his third divorce and is in love with his married boss, Sara Gaskell (Frances McDormand), and that second novel is forever incomplete, and has been for seven years. One of his pupils is James Leer, played to perfection by Tobey Maguire, who writes amazingly obtuse stories and is obsessed with the death of film stars. James and Grady become partners in crime when they shoot Sara's blind dog and steal the coat Marilyn Monroe was married in. From here on in we are absorbed into the life of Grady and those around him, from his publisher terry Crabtree (Downey jr) to his writer rival, Q. we see lives slowly fall apart, relationships blossom, a novel disappear into the wind and a black dude who refuses to be called Vernon Hardapple, all in one weekend.

Wonder Boys never disappoints. It's dry humour and bizarre imagination never stops for a second, and we are glued with a grin on our faces. Hardly realistic, the audience can still feel for the characters as their lives spiral into a comic frenzy. Grady and his off-beat world crumbling around him as he searches for happiness; Terry, the flamboyant homosexual who puts on a brave face, believing in others as he searches for a comeback novel (which he will not get from Grady); James, the loner who needs to release the genius within himself. These are the wonder boys. Frances McDormand and Katie Holmes gladly take a back seat in the story as this film refuses to be weighed down by sap.

The acting is flawless, with at least two superb supporting roles. Robert Downey jr sparkles in his greatest role since Chaplin, but it is Tobey Maguire who makes us feel he has always been that awkward, deadpan student that is James Leer. For those who have seen Pleasantville and The Cider House Rules will recognise Maguire for the talant he is (it almost makes one feel he sold out when taking the Spider-Man role), and here he has been sadly overlooked for a Best Supporting Actor nomination. Douglas is in fine form as he always is in these strange and demanding roles, the last one being Falling Down. He can play a suicidal maniac and a stoned teacher and both roles will seem tailor made. The direction is impeccable as Hanson allows the characters to shine and the story flow, and it is almost unbelievable that this man directed the gritty, deadly serious L.A. Confidential. He packs Kloves screenplay with comic beauty and I sincerely hope he continues to direct these understated movies.

The big money-makers over the past few years have been either remakes, sequels or by-the-number churned out garbage and all these have one objective: to earn copious amounts of cash. Many of these film are successful in this aim but fail to capture one's imagination as Wonder Boys does so well. It is a shame to see the public throw there money at `Rocky and Bullwinkle' when it really should go to those who deserve it, those who still care about the art of motion picture. Anyone that will sit down to watch this will agree that it is a treasure to behold. A hidden treasure

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33 out of 40 people found the following comment useful :-
small, oddball little film with a definite, quirky, dark sense of humour and a cast of eccentric characters that are never colourful for the sake of it., 10 May 2000

Author: J.D. Lafrance (j.d._lafrance@ridley.on.ca) from St. Catharines, Ontario

I have to admit that when i first saw the trailer for this film, I thought, "Sweet Jesus, this looks a lot like Rushmore!" complete with a dishelved Michael Douglas doing the Bill Murray/Mr. Blume thing and Tobey Maguire as a rambunctious, upstart kid a la Max Fischer. Man, was I wrong. Wonder Boys is the kind of small, oddball little film with a definite, quirky, dark sense of humour and a cast of eccentric characters that are never colourful for the sake of it. Michael Douglas disappears completely into the role of Grady Tripp, a burnt out English professor, who once wrote a much celebrated novel but has since been having a hard time with his follow-up. He just keeps writing and writing with no end in sight (current page count sits around 2100 pages!). the film starts at the beginning of a truly hellish day for Tripp as his wife leaves him, his girlfriend tells him she's pregnant and he almost gets killed by her husband's blind dog. throw in an eccentric writing protege (Tobey Maguire), Tripp's bi-sexual literary agent (Robert Downey, Jr.) and his transvestite date, and you've got quite an interesting mix of characters. in some ways, Douglas' character is a pot-smoking burn-out like the Dude from THE BIG LEBOWSKI. he is content to live outside of society, putt around, write his novel, teaching his classes but when he crosses paths with Maguire's character, he realizes that he's got to change. Douglas is more than up for this role. i'm not a huge fan of the man's work (WALL STREET and THE GAME excepted) but he's perfectly cast in this film. he hits just the right note of world-weary cynicism but with a romantic streak buried underneath. you can tell that he's got the capacity to do something about his miserable lot in life and during the course of the film his character undergoes a fascinating arc. the real stand out of this film, though, is Tobey Maguire. i've only seen him in a few things, here and there and i never really noticed him all that much before (although, he was great in PLEASANTVILLE. everyone in the film keeps harping on what a genius writer Douglas' character is, but it quickly becomes apparent that Maguire's character is the true genius. he writes pages and pages of beautiful prose in minutes. and like any true talent, it just comes pouring out of him effortlessly. Maguire nails that kind of visionary talent perfectly. his character is so different from his peers and you are never sure what makes him tick, until 3/4 of the way through when another side of his intriguing personality is revealed. at first, you think his character is pretty one-dimensional -- the oddball genius -- but Maguire provides all sorts of layers and subtle nuances to his character that are great to watch. it doesn't hurt that Steve Kloves' script is a solid piece of writing. clever, insightful dialogue that tells you volumes about these characters. the dialogue is humourous and offbeat in one scene, touching and thoughtful in the next. Kloves also wisely avoids the usual cliches... ie. the romance between the older man and younger woman. just when you think it's going to go there, the film veers off to something different and better. every character has their moment to really define themselves with the possible exception of Katie Holmes who seems to be sorely underused. which is too bad, really, because the scenes she does have are good. it's nice to see that she can do more than just DAWSON'S CREEK. and lastly, the mood and atmosphere of this movie is so magical. to me, the best films are ones that you lose yourself in completely. the characters and the world they inhabit are so real, so three-dimensional that you can't help but get sucked in. WONDER BOYS does that so well. the attention to detail -- a snowy winter in Pittsburgh -- is beautiful realized. esp. the night time scenes, like one in which Douglas and Maguire talk outside in a backyard while the snow falls gently around them... are so well done, i felt like i was right there. and isn't that what a good film should do? make it able for you to escape for a couple of hours? hard to believe that the guy who made L.A. CONFIDENTIAL did this one. a complete change of pace and mood and... everything. amazing stuff. anyways, i reallly dug WONDER BOYS. it's the first film i've seen this year that has really affected me in a profoundly personal way. a film that as soon as it was over, i wanted to go right back in and watch it again.

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25 out of 27 people found the following comment useful :-
A Brilliant Film, 30 January 2005

Author: RobertF87 from Scotland

I really love this film. Based on a novel by Michael Chabron, the film is set in a university over the course of a week-end long writing festival. The story concerns Professor Grady Tripp (Michael Douglas) who's first novel was a huge success and has been struggling with the follow-up novel for years. When the film begins, Grady's young wife has just left him and his lover (who is married to the head of the English Department) is pregnant. Also, Grady's editor (Robert Downey Jr.) has arrived to see his (still unfinished) novel. To add to Grady's woes he has to cope with a brilliant, but deeply odd, student (Tobey Maguire).

The film has some very strong and witty dialogue, and benefits from great performances all around. Probably writers and aspiring writers will like this film for it's portrayal of the literary life. Anyone though will enjoy the humour, heart and fun of this inspirational movie.

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22 out of 27 people found the following comment useful :-
Time Out of Mind, 5 June 2003
Author: yayamagic from Boston, MA USA

At a recent Dylan concert, my friend Charlie pointed out a shiny gold statuette placed unobtrusively atop one of the speakers way in the back of the stage. It was the Oscar which Dylan won for his Best Song "Things Have Changed" from this movie, from "The Wonder Boys." I was glad that my friend pointed out that gold thing in the background because it added a whole other dimension to the concert. There was a story behind the statue - the whole "Wonder Boys" story and I was glad to be familiar with it. No, Bob never mentioned the statue. Why should he? He's Bob Dylan. He just did his thing, played his music.

Life presents us with the absurd as much as it does the mundane. Watching the way people handle the good and bad drama in their life is a hobby of mine. I liked the way Bob Dylan kept his "Wonder Boys" gold quietly present.

Michael Douglas' Grady Tripp doesn't call attention to his abnormally odd weekend, either. Douglas' Grady always maintains his cool even with a transvestite's tuba and his mistress' husband's dead dog and "the Crabtree pharmacopoeia" in the trunk of his ass-marked car. Grady deals with all of it. Grady deals with everything this peculiar weekend shows him - with a calm voice and an attitude mellowed from either age or experience or pot. In the here and now, he is calm and quiet but we all know that he'll have his anxiety or heart attack quietly near offstage with as few crowds and drama about them as possible.

Grady speaks lines like "gimme the gun, James" matter of factly, the same way that his married girlfriend tells him she's pregnant, the same way he'd order a drink from Oola. Why add drama and histrionics to the mix? He is what he is. Things are the way they are - even though things have changed.

One of the things that separates one human from another is the way we deal with change. isn't it? Personally? I want to hear about the absurdities of life. I like observing how people deal with it all. I like those stories.

Tripp's fellow travelers are in flux too - it's not just Grady going through change - his wife (unseen), his mistress (France McDormand), his editor (Robert Downey, Jr.), his students (Tobey Maguire and Katie Holmes) - all of them are experiencing an extraordinary weekend but there's hardly a voice raised in the storytelling.

The soundtrack alone is worth the viewing, thanks, Bob Dylan! And Curtis Hansen, Michael Chabon - tell me another story, please! If you can manage to bring a similarly wonderful ensemble cast - even better!

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18 out of 20 people found the following comment useful :-
Great story, great performances, 29 June 2001

Author: Anders Åslund (anders.aslund@xpress.se) from Karlstad, Sweden

Sometimes, movie makers manage to create a world that one cannot resist being pulled into. In this world one lingers for a couple of hours, waiting for the next minute with a smile on one's lips. "Wonder Boys" is one of the best movies of recent years in that it successfully drags the viewer along on it's whimsical and sometimes really strange journey.

The characters are believable despite their alien behaviors - the only normal person around might just be Hannah Green (Holmes), skirting around the main characters like an observing ghost. Douglas is pulling off what must be his best performance ever, portraying a decaying, once-famous addict writer with a severe case of reversed writer's block: he can't finish his novel and he can't stop writing... Tobey Maguire is very well cast with his innocent yet troubled look, and Frances McDormand is just as she always is: fantastic.

I'm very impressed with this film, which took me off-guard. Not many I know went to see it. I'm glad I did.

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16 out of 21 people found the following comment useful :-
Long Live Vernon Hardapple, 1 February 2002

Author: Tony Lopez (fushnicken69) from Chicago

Michael Douglas has always been one of my favorite actors. He deserved his Oscar for Wall Street, commanded every second of screen time he had in Falling Down, and has given some of the most underrated comic performances in history in Romancing the Stone and War of the Roses. But I'd have to give his performance in Wonder Boys as his best. His turn as stoner college professor Grady Tripp is the model for the laid back, totally likeable and loveable protaginist. He's the kind of professor I dream of having in real life.

After watching this movie, I seriously wanted to go and write a book. For any of you blocked writers out there, just pop in Wonder Boys and you have your muse.

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17 out of 26 people found the following comment useful :-
The best college movie since 'Animal House'., 14 March 2001

Author: mhasheider from Sauk City, Wisconsin

Funny and enjoyable drama about a self-centered English professor (Michael Douglas) who encounters several little dilemmas during a weekend festival on the college campus where he works.

The performance that Douglas delivers here got to be one of his finest in recent memory. Perhaps his best. Besides Douglas, Tobey Maguire, Katie Holmes, Frances McDormand, Rip Torn, and Robert Downey, Jr. make one of the best supporting casts that I've seen in quite some time. Downey and Maguire (who portray the curious editor and the prized pupil) both turn in super performances that should have earned the pair Best Supporting Actor nominations. Torn's character shares the same name as the man who gave James Bond those cute and exciting gadgets, which is "Q".

"Wonder Boys" is the first film directed by Curtis Hanson, who hit gold with "L.A. Confidential" a few years ago. Screenwriter Steve Kloves writes a smart and intelligent story here and places the funny moments with some perfect timing. Photographer Dante Spinotti ("Heat", "L.A. Confidential", "The Insider") provides the movie with great views of the campus during the fall and winter seasons. The movie's theme song, "Things Have Changed", written and sung by the legendary Bob Dylan, is great to listen to and deserves an Oscar for it.

Overall, this film is the best college movie made since John Landis' classic comedy spoof/satire, "Animal House". This movie is "Animal House" with much better morals and doesn't have the common clichés.

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12 out of 17 people found the following comment useful :-
Fresh, Funny and entertaining!, 15 March 2000

Author: Anners (anners80@aol.com) from St. Louis, MO USA

I truly enjoyed this film. I went into the theater not knowing much about it; perhaps that had something to do with the reason I liked it so much. I found this film to be extremely witty and entertaining. I found myself intrigued by each character, especially the dark, mysterious James Leer (Tobey Maguire). It has been a while since I have sat in a theater merely enjoying a movie. The storyline was rather odd, but kept my interest. The students in the film had a quite casual relationship with their professors. All in all, I can say that each actor gave a wonderful performance; and if you are looking to see a film that upon leaving the theater will make you feel happy and disturbed, then this is the film.

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13 out of 22 people found the following comment useful :-
An engaging, wonderful, inspiring motion picture--one of the years best. **** out of ****., 14 March 2000

Author: Blake French (dlfspartan@aol.com) from USA

WONDER BOYS / (2000) ****

Starring: Michael Douglas, Tobey Maguire, Frances McDormand, Katie Holmes, Robert Downey Jr., Rip Torn, and Richard Thomas Directed by Curtis Hanson. Written by Steve Kloves, based on the novel by Michael Chabon. Running time: 112 minutes. Rated R (for strong drug use and for language).

I have always dreamed of becoming a professional writer for a living. Curtis Hanson's new comic drama, "Wonder Boys," is as accurate and enriching to my opinions and hopes as any movie I have seen. This is a wonderful, inspiring motion picture--one of the years best. It is a movie that enlightens our culture and moves us passionately, while at the same time provides the audience with laughter and moral aspects. This is a great movie to start out the new year.

The film stars the extraordinary Michael Douglas as a college professor named Grady Tripp, who is around fifty years old. He has written an award winning novel, "Arsonist's Daughter," seven years ago. Since, however, his follow up is drifting and unfocused, wondering over 2,600 single spaced pages in length. Although he does not believe in it, everyone thinks he has writer's block.

There is an assortment of characters and events brilliantly portrayed within the film's setup, all surrounding Grady. His third wife recently left him, due to her loneliness. He is having an affair with the University's chancellor, Sara Gasket (Frances McDormand), who has become pregnant after several implied encounters and happens to be the wife of his boss, the chairman of the English department, Walter (Richard Thomas). A foreign, loony man, Vernon (Richard Knox), is furious over something to do with Tripp's automobile. His bisexual and antsy editor, Crabtree (Robert Downey Jr.), appearing with the company of a transvestite, desiring to take a look at Grady's long overdue writing piece, but uses the towns writer's conference as an ulterior motive. Also present, a high held writer named Q (Rip Torn), who raises the stress for Tripp, and two students of his, Hannah (Katie Holmes), who rents a room out of his house, and may even be willing to sleep with Grady, and his most brilliant author James Leer (Tobey Maguire), who bonds with him as the movie progresses.

A lot occurs in "Wonder Boys," and the plot is very labyrinthine, although it never becomes confused and always keeps its cool. The characters are perfectly defined and cast. Their intentions and motives are clear and developed with shape and gradual effectiveness. Curtis Hanson pays close attention to each separate character, giving them dimensional qualities, intelligence and depth.

Complications arise when several key events take place. There is a Monroe artifact stolen from the chancellor's closet and her pet dog ends up shot to death when James defends Grady who is being attacked. These occurrences lead to bondings between Grady Tripp and James, Heather and just about every other character in the film.

Heather says in one scene that Tripp's novel would be much better if he would lay off the marijuana usage. She is correct. Grady often lives under the influence, and this is just one of the ideas the film looks at, along with family dysfunction, adultery, abortions, theft, abuse, severe loss, and even violence. All these concepts apply to the morality of the movie.

The narrative through line enhances the story and characters thoroughly. Each scene propels the plot forward, either creating a new conflict or complicating a previous one. This film contains one of the most stolid structures I have seen all year. The conclusion of "Wonder Boys" is effectual and sums up everything in an apprehensive manor--and is of the same standards as its previous material. How rare is it to screen a movie when the finale is just as engaging as the overall story.

"Wonder Boys" contains dialogue that is decisive and smart. It has a wickedly witty mood, but is still beautifully written and portrayed. Improving the production is the moody atmosphere of a light thriller--and it still overlaps with comic travesty. Although the film is more conceptual than actual, and empowered with overtones rather than reflexive relief, the laughs are still frequent, the intrigue is constant and the statement is clear.

I also liked the film's visual style and cinematography. From the fitting soundtrack to the story's presentation, the atmospheres is absolutely mesmerizing from start to finish. Especially wonderful are the sequences in which it snows in the evening. The way the glistening white flakes drift gently down onto the ground from a peaceful and dark sky captures the characters emotional aspects is just stunning. Even the costuming, scenery, and tone are skillful.

Michael Douglas, known for characters more active than Grady Tripp, is utterly marvelous here. James writes in a page of his work that Grady, who was once capable for inspiring a world, is now unable to inspire himself. This painfully true scene in captured flawlessly by his Oscar worthy performance. As he, and the other earth shattering performers, entice the audience, we feel much emotion for these characters. So much that we do not realize it until the closing credits role past.

Brought to you by Paramount Pictures.

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