Rating: 
Summary: Mine's Edited For Content
Review: Why is there a title just before the movie begins that says that the film has been edited for *content*? Has it really? If there is some difference between the video version and that which was on the "big screen," I'd like to know what it is. In very small print on the DVD case, it does say, "Video version." What is this? Just a head's up. Other than this little mystery, the DVD production was handled quite nicely, with handsome menus and fantastic sound.
Rating: 
Summary: A Fabulous Film
Review: I rented this movie because it was nominated for a Golden Globe and I try to see all the nominated films, and because I will watch anything with Robert Downey, Jr. in it. I'm not sure what I expected, but I was surprised to find this film to be a dark comedy along the lines of "American Beauty'. It was one of the best movies I have seen in a long time, with outstanding performances by the whole cast (especially Michael Douglas and the aforementioned Robert Downey, Jr. who is always great). I am inspired by great acting and this film was exactly that - inspiring!
Rating:
Summary: Fall in Love with Them!
Review: Michael Douglas' last prime class film - and for some reason I can only remember very well done films with this actor (!) - is called "Wonder Boys." It is a slow paced film about life's purest comedy and about its most bohemic dramas. It borrows some of the adventurous spirit and absurd comedy of "Feeling Minnesotta," some of "Fargo"'s impossible winter, some of the artists' poetic nature from "Being John Malkovich," and some of the innocence of the young dreams of "Dead Poets Society." It is a film with and about wonder boys, super boys, extraordinary boys - of all ages, occupations, and sexual orientations. But not only this. It also features a very "adult" (as in mature) female character - coherent and real - played superbly by Frances McDormand. In the front line shine Michael Douglas (who will most likely NOT get the Academy Award for this one because the entire film can easily be misunderstood), Tobey Maguire (from "The Cider House Rules," which every day I regret having not seen yet), and Robert Downey Jr..... Hollywood does not make too often films that are both realistic and well done - "Wonder Boys" is a rare bird and should not be missed. If you see it and by the end you find yourself not falling in love with at least one of the wonder boys described (most likely you will fall for the one played by Tobey Maguire) than there is something wrong with you. And this has nothing to do with sexual orientations in the least.
Rating:
Summary: Fast paced entertaining tour de force
Review: Wonder Boys has more than meets the eye. Not only is this a film filled with delectable characters brilliantly acted by such solid performers as Michael Douglas, Tobey Maguire, Frances McDormand, and Robert Downey, Jr.,and Richard Thomas, it has a pacing by Director Curtis Hanson that simply sweeps you along with a very madcap story. And as with all good comedy writing there is a strong message about individual worth and the concept of heroism that completes the package. This is very fine film making, worth owning for repeated viewings. I think this is Michael Douglas' finest hour.
Rating:
Summary: Wondering When I'll Hate It....
Review: An unfinished novel, a stolen car, a murdered pet and a failing marriage are just a few of the crises piling up like a logjam in this often hilarious story of bright promise gone awry. During a single hectic weekend, college professor Grady Tripp (Michael Douglas) scrambles to gather together a life that has suddenly reeled out of control. Along for the ride are his gifted but troubled student (Toby Maguire, Cider House Rules), his eccentric editor (Robert Downey, Jr.), the married chancellor of his university (Frances McDormand, Fargo) who is pregnant with his child and his sultry student boarder (Katie Holmes, Dawson's Creek). Directed by Curtis Hanson (L.A. Confidential), this darkly comedic odyssey of self-discovery was hailed by Roger Ebert as one of the best movies of the year.
Rating:
Summary: A Solid, tightly cast, Ode to Academic Life
Review: Since a plot summary has already been mentioned, I'll forgo the usual style of reviews. I really enjoyed this film and on many different levels. There's something emotionally picaresque about Hanson's ode to college life. Perhaps from a personal standpoint, the nostalgia that lingers from my college days is conjured-up so affectively by this movie about 3 generations of English-lit men. I, myself, was an English major with aspirations (still) of becoming a writer and I believe this film captures, in it's essence, the simultaneous perils that face each option on screen. From the misunderstood undergraduate who, while misguided, is a literary bright-spot but who must contend with the outside world in order to maintain a social standing in which to present his work, the mid 30's career editor, who perhaps not the greatest writer, has an eye for good literature, and who has to struggle with the business details of creative art and finally our protagonist, a 50 year old writer/educator who must let go of the trappings the other two face in order to feel free to create on his own terms. For anyone who went to college, this film will make you surrender to every flight of fancy, every idealistic notion you ever held before entering the "real world." It will conjure up the ruminations of past regrets when the choices made may not have led you to the end you idealized, but it will show you that it wasn't all for naught, and that everyone gets a second chance. Dylan's theme song is so appropriate and such a perfect match that this alone makes the film worth the money. In fact, one can almost see Bob Dylan's career and the plight of a lot of baby boomers in Hanson's film. People born out of ideals and dreams supported by the academic world and the intelligentsia, who've grown cynical by the world's reaction to them, but have nonetheless withstood the "Pittsburgh snow storms" and are ageless, if a little disheveled, rocks for which the young can bounce their own ideals off of.
Rating: 
Summary: ZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!!!
Review: I have heard how wonderful Wonder Boys is and how it has been unjustly ignored by the Oscar voters this year. So I rented it and have to say that there really isn't anything special here. In fact, I ended up watching it in three different sessions as I fell asleep during the first two portions that I watched. That says something on its own. I think that Curtis Hanson was trying to make an intellectual slapstick comedy when he made Wonder Boys. But that combination just doesn't work here as the disasters faced by the main characters aren't very funny. I thought that the only performance worth talking about was that of Poe, the blind dog who meets an unfortunate end. With a great cast of actors who I have enjoyed in other flicks, it just didn't do it for me.
Rating:
Summary: ONE OF THE YEAR'S BEST FILMS
Review: Bestselling author/college professor Grady Tripp (Michael Douglas), is struggling with his follow-up novel, he doesn't have writer's block, he just can't seem to STOP writing. As his eccentric editor (Robert Downey Jr.) urges him to complete his novel, Grady's life is going up in smoke. Over a single, chaotic weekend, Grady, must deal with his unfinished novel, a deeply troubled student (Tobey Maguire), the married chancellor of his university (Frances McDormand) who is having his baby, and his sexy student boarder (Katie Holmes). Things spin out-of-control for Grady, as, (for the first time in his life) he tries to get control of his life. "Wonder Boys" is one of the best films of the year; comedic, and touching, the film works on all levels, and keeps the viewer dazzled. In the best performance of his career, Michael Douglas, takes the role of Grady, and has him explode off the screen. The first rate supporting cast of Robert Downey Jr., Frances McDormand, Tobey Maguire, and Katie Holmes help keep the laughs coming in this dark comedy. Director Curtis Hanson (L.A. Confidential) does an exceptional job of bringing the bestselling novel by Michael Chabon to the screen. Place "Wonder Boys" on your must see list, for it's one of the best movies of the year. Nick Gonnella
Rating:
Summary: Mediocre all the way through
Review: I watched this movie because it was filmed in Pittsburgh, and I used to live there. Recognizing settings in the movie was by far the most enjoyable thing about it. My main problem is that I found the characters to be altogether implausible. The number of ways these people got themselves into trouble over the course of a weekend is staggering, but I don't believe that people would react to their situations the way they did. Also, the dialogue was at times quite pretentious. The acting was fine, but the movie just wasn't that good.
Rating:
Summary: tremendously entertaining, involving, and funny
Review: This is an outstanding film. The performances are all excellent, and Douglas is terrific -- his performance has none of his "Wall Street" character, which he's been reprising for years -- he is completely unmannered and unselfish in his portrayal of an amiable, burned-out literature professor. (I think that there is no question that this is his best performance.) The movie manages to capture the atmosphere of an aging "wonder boy" while putting the characters through a weekend of surreal and hilarous misadventures. I've seen the movie twice and it holds up very well. I was somewhat disappointed that the DVD didn't include a commentary track (neither did my copy of "L.A. Confidential"), but there are some good bonus materials, and the transfer was good.
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