You know your protagonist is starting off in a rough place when the film starts off with him already having a wall full of interconnected newspaper clippings. Though, in the case of former private detective Arthur Bretnik (Aaron Eckhart), he might actually be onto something. While recording an episode of his conspiracy themed podcast with his co-host Jimmy Cleats (Tommy Lee Jones), they get a call from a woman who believes there is something being hidden regarding her daughter’s recent death. Arthur reluctantly accepts the task of looking into it, and begins to think there’s a connection between the girl’s death, and the similarly strange circumstances that surrounded his own daughter’s death years ago.
The film is called Wander, named after the small town where the girl has died as seen in a shot but ominous sequence that opens the film. It’s written by Tim Doiron and directed by April Mullen; the two have collaborated on several films previously. It feels like a modern update on the paranoid conspiracy thrillers of the 70s, the kind of film that is more rooted in exploring a character’s psyche than it is at providing clear cut answers and a totally cohesive plot. The film does eventually provide a payoff, although, whether it all makes sense or not is up to you.
I’ve long found conspiracy stories to be a ton of fun, but the general attitude surrounding conspiracy theorists has taken a bit of a turn in recent years. What used to be thought of as casual musings about who really killed JFK has morphed into a persona of hatred and delusion that results in some very real danger, especially as something like the QAnon movement has been gaining more and more followers. While Wander doesn’t ever namedrop or even gesture towards things like QAnon or Pizzagate, it is firmly on the side of those styles of beliefs. Hell, there’s even a plot point regarding chips being implanted inside people.
The filmmakers seem to be highly aware of this, so there are some very blatant attempts to skew the characters away from the right wing ideology that is typically associated with many modern conspiracy theorists. The targets of the mysterious villain in Wander are largely immigrants, and the film starts off with some text reading “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.” It also says under that the movie was filmed on land that had been previously occupied by the Pueblo, Navajo, and Apache tribes.
If the film intended on subverting usual conspiracy notions to explore the exploitation of marginalized groups, I’m not sure if it totally comes across through the story. Though, I will say the use of Indigenous music within the soundtrack is an interesting touch. If anything, the historical exploitation of Indigenous and Black people is mostly used as plot details to inform Arthur’s story rather than really digging into the implications of the practices as depicted in the film.
Despite that, I did find the film pretty entertaining, almost despite itself. I like Eckhart as a performer, and he gruffs it up here in all the ways you’d expect. He’s a man who has long fallen off the edge who still thinks he has a clear view of everything. Sometimes it’s laid on a bit thick with these moments where he records these logs that make him sound like Rorschach’s journal entries in Watchmen. Everyone else delivers solid work. Jones hams it up as the wacko host. Katheryn Winnick is effectively enigmatic as this woman who might provide Arthur the answers he seeks. And Heather Graham provides the only normal human anchor, which is very welcomed.
I’m not entirely convinced that Wander fully comes together, but it was an engaging watch. Mullen is a totally capable filmmaker, and considering how many disposable, low budget thrillers I see, it’s nice to see one that isn’t afraid to make some big choices, even if some of those don’t really work. The handheld camerawork provides some urgency to the storytelling while also reflecting the frantic mindset of our lead. As politically charged as certain moments and revelations might seem, where it ultimately stands on some of the issues it brings up is muddled at best. It’s not a particularly good movie, but it is just weird enough and well performed enough from Aaron Eckhart to make for a compelling watch.
Wander is now out in select theaters and VOD platforms.