Movie Review: Wonder Wheel (2017)

Genre: Drama  

Director: Woody Allen  

Starring: Kate Winslet, Jim Belushi, Juno Temple, Justin Timberlake  

Running Time: 101 minutes  

Synopsis: Coney Island, New York, the 1950s. Failed actress Ginny (Kate Winslet) is unhappily married to Humpty (Jim Belushi), and they live in the noisy shadow of the wonder wheel. Ginny's young son from a previous marriage is a budding pyromaniac. Humpty's grown daughter Carolina (Juno Temple) suddenly shows up, having left her mobster husband on bad terms. She is now marked for death by the mob. Ginny is having an affair with toyboy lifeguard and aspiring writer Mickey (Justin Timberlake), imagining that he can be her white knight. But when Mickey sets eyes on Carolina, Ginny's dreams are threatened.

What Works Well: Kate Winslet's layered performance is well above the material, with Ginny a worthwhile (if irritatingly self-destructive) character carrying the burden of guilt from a first failed marriage and now engaged in another affair. The only other positive is Vittorio Storaro's sparkling cinematography, capturing a 1950s postcard aesthetic.

What Does Not Work As Well: Woody Allen's attempt to channel Tennessee Williams falls emotionally flat. The dialogue is mostly cringey and shouty, the characters attached to stereotypical derivatives, their motivations superficial and repetitively articulated. The staging leans far towards theatricality as Coney Island Washboard on the soundtrack is replayed endlessly. Jim Belushi and Justin Timberlake are hopelessly miscast, lacking depth and taking shelter in obvious mannerisms.

Key Quote:

Carolina: You've been round the world.

Mickey: Yeah, but you've been around the block. 

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