Professor Marston and the Wonder Women

This kinky, provocative comic-book superhero true “origin” story begins with a public burning of Wonder Woman comics and a stern interrogation of Harvard psychologist Dr. William Moulton Marston (Luke Evans) by Josette Frank (Connie Britton) of the Child Study Association of America, who grills the former about his subversive obsession with bondage. Flashback to when Marston and his even-more-erudite wife, Elizabeth Holloway (Rebecca Hall), were fascinated by human behavior, specifically the manipulative dynamics of his DISC theory (dominance-inducement-submission-compliance). While testing their new invention (aka the lie detector), they become besotted with a student, Olive Byrne (Bella Heathcote), daughter of suffragette Ethel Byrne and niece of birth control pioneer Margaret Sanger. Open-minded Olive hides the Marstons in her sorority so they can observe ritualized hazing, while Olive enjoys sexual relations with both Marstons. Not surprisingly, this leads to their expulsion from Harvard. After moving to Rye, NY, both women bear William's children while continuing their penchant for costumed S&M role-play. In the 1940s, William starts writing stories, incorporating his psychological theories into the composite character of Wonder Woman/Diana Prince, a liberated role model with a radical sexual subtext, which intrigues comic book publisher M.C. Gaines (Oliver Platt). Writer-director Angela Robinson elicits memorable performances from her main trio (particularly Hall) in this film that is perfectly timed given that Wonder Woman was the pop culture hit of 2017. A solid companion to Jill Lepore's 2014 nonfiction book The Secret History of Wonder Woman, this is recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include the production featurettes “A Dynamic Trio: Birth of a Feminist Icon” (8 min.) and “A Crucial Point of View: Directing” (7 min.). Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are deleted scenes (6 min.), “The Secret Identity of Charles Moulton” motion comic (4 min.), and a bonus digital copy of the film. Bottom line: a decent extras package for an entertaining slice of kinky comic book history.] (S. Granger)