Boy Wonder

Sean is a 10-year-old Brooklynite who witnesses his mother's murder during a carjacking; nine years later, he has matured into a young man living a double life: he's a straight-A student by day and a ruthlessly brutal vigilante by night. The cops at the local precinct allow Sean (Caleb Steinmeyer) to hang out and study mug shots in an attempt to find the killer who left him motherless, but no one initially connects the seemingly mild-mannered youth with the twilight violence that is creating havoc in the streets. Eventually, however, a young police detective named Teresa (Zulay Henao) begins to connect the dots and tries to pin Sean to the attacks. While the title may give the impression of a Batman-style romp, Boy Wonder is a dark and dreary thriller that has nothing to do with the comic book genre. First-time director Michael Morrissey never quite finds his groove, largely because the story is stuffed with too much information—including a distracting subplot about Sean's relationship with his ex-alcoholic father (Bill Sage) and Teresa's interactions with her comic-relief partner, Gary (Daniel Stewart Sherman). And Steinmeyer is never entirely convincing as either the mild Sean or his wild alter-ego. Although Boy Wonder picked up a number of awards at second-tier film festivals, this is not a necessary purchase. (P. Hall)