These past four years has certainly revealed to the world how crazy conspiracy theories can be, especially if you’ve kept you eye on the wacky doings of the QAnon crowd and their involvement in the attempted overthrow of American democracy. Wander ponders the question, “Are some conspiracies, true?”
Wander
Wander is a 2020 American thriller written by Tim Doiron and directed by April Mullen. It stars Tommy Lee (Men in Black) Jones, Aaron Eckhart, Katheryn Winnick, Heather Graham, and Roger Dorman. Arthur Bretnik (Aaron Eckhart) is a former homicide detective, now living in a rundown trailer. His physical and mental state is due to a car crash that killed his young daughter and put his wife into a permanent catatonic state.
Arthur is not right in the mind, and it can be due to the trauma of the accident…or the pills that he is taking, but he believes that his family was targeted because of a case he was working…an unusual death where the victim appeared to have something explode in his chest. When Arthur persisted in his investigation after the victim’s body was stolen from the morgue, the fatal accident happened that changed his life forever.
In between trips to visit his wife at a nursing home, Arthur runs a podcast with his friend Jimmy Cleats (Tommy Lee Jones) where they talk conspiracies. When one of the podcast listeners contacts Arthur to investigate the death of her daughter, Arthur and Jimmy accept the case because the daughter’s wounds are similar to the case Arthur was working on before the accident. Arthur goes on a rode trip to Wander, New Mexico with hopes of also finding out if this case is connected to his old case, and the accident. While in Wander, Arthur witnesses the kidnapping of an indigenous woman, and locates an underground lab where these victims are forcibly implanted with the exploding implants to keep them trapped in the New Mexico town.
Conclusion
Wander was interesting to watch even though I am totally burned out with any conspiracy themes right now. What kept me glued to the film was the opening text as the film began. “To all indigenous, black, and people of color who are targeted, and have been displaced through border control on stolen land. May we expose government violence, propel change, and honor the voices of those who have been silenced. Wander was filmed on the homelands of the Pueblo, Navajo, and Apache peoples.” Now, if you pay attention to the news, then you should be aware of the disappearance and murder of thousands of Native American women. These murders are happening on tribal lands. Who is killing these women?
Arthur is obsessed with tracking down the people responsible for the mysterious deaths and the death of his daughter. He has the help of Jimmy, and his lawyer friend, Shelley (Heather Graham), and her F.B.I. boyfriend…but not everyone can be trusted. And when you are dealing with conspiracies…the bad guys are people you most likely know. Aaron Eckhart is fabulous as the mentally unstable private investigator who is focused on finding the people responsible for all the murders. Tommy Lee Jones, as Arthur’s sidekick is at his best, although he’s not in enough scenes to please me. I would urge you to watch Wander on Amazon Prime. It is a film that is worth watching, especially if you like conspiracy films.
