The Wonders (2014)

The Wonders Poster
Original Title: Le meraviglie

Gelsomina’s family works according to some special rules. First of all, Gelsomina, at twelve years of age, is head of the family and her three younger sisters must obey her: sleep when she tells them to and work under her watchful eye. But the world, the outside, mustn’t know anything about their rules, and must be kept away from them. They must learn to disguise themselves.

Film Introduction
"The Wonders", an Italian drama film, was premiered at the 2014 Cannes Movie Festival where it won the Grand Prix. Directed and composed by Alice Rohrwacher, the film's focus is on a countryside beekeeping household living on the margins of society with their makeshift honey production operation.

Plot Summary
The story primarily revolves around the oldest daughter, 12-year-old Gelsomina, who has nearly genuine love for their rural homestead and her beekeeping role. Although Angela, her mom, appreciates of their way of living, her father, Wolfgang, deals with financial obstacles, extreme laws, and the unyielding wildness of their children. The struggle of rural life becomes much more complicated when an uncomfortable occurrence with Gelsomina's little sibling and a high-end tv reality show hosted by the attractive Milly Catena interrupt their lives.

Character Analysis
Gelsomina, the main character, is represented to be smart beyond her years, functioning as a foundation of their familial unit and enthusiastically welcoming their unconventional lifestyle. Portrayed as their precious follower, Gelsomina is trained to supervise the honey production mainly by Wolfgang, who is illustrated as stern yet affectionate. Notably, he is depicted grappling with contemporary concepts and a quickly changing society, a battle reflected in his insistence on maintaining their off-grid lifestyle.

Styles and Symbolism
The film draws heavily on themes of family bonds, rural vs. modern lifestyle clashes, the advancement of the modern-day world on conventional methods, innocence, and loss. Making use of beekeeping as a connection between custom and nature is substantial. Treatment and regard for the bees are mirrored by the method that the members of the family treat each other and the outsiders that stumble into their lives.

Film Reception
"The Wonders" has been admired for its realistic representations, in specific how it captures the struggles and beauty of farm life. It looks at the pressures faced by this traditional way of life in the encroaching wave of modernity, embodied by the invasion of a television truth program. Critics have actually applauded the film for its poignant story, along with its spellbinding cinematography which captures the raw magic of rural life. The instructions, with its subtly symbolic and atmospheric visuals, has actually been especially appreciated.

The film likewise generated discussions due to its expedition of a more basic, yet disappearing lifestyle. This element was identified as a quiet review of the encroaching industrialization and commercialization.

Conclusion
"The Wonders" is an evocative film that with dignity balances between the enchantingly rustic and the extreme truths that intrude upon it. It is a remarkably sincere look into a rural household's primitive beekeeping practices and how their world clashes with global motions material on pulling them towards modernization. Its exploration of familial connections, children's innocence, cultural displacement, and economic challenges paints an immersive and mentally resonant picture of a way of life seldom depicted. Through Gelsomina's viewpoint, it provides a tender point of view on the simple yet complex life of a rural family.

Top Cast

  • Maria Alexandra Lungu (small)
    Maria Alexandra Lungu
    Gelsomina
  • Alba Rohrwacher (small)
    Alba Rohrwacher
    Angelica
  • Sam Louwyck (small)
    Sam Louwyck
    Wolfgang
  • Sabine Timoteo (small)
    Sabine Timoteo
    Cocò
  • Agnese Graziani (small)
    Agnese Graziani
    Marinella
  • Monica Bellucci (small)
    Monica Bellucci
    Milly Catena
  • André Hennicke (small)
    André Hennicke
    Adrian
  • Luis Huilca
    Martin
  • Eva Lea Pace Morrow
    Caterina
  • Maris Stella Morrow
    Luna
  • Carlo Tarmati
    Carlo Portarena