The Wonder(2022)

Set in 1862, eleven years after the Great Famine, The Wonder follows English nurse Elizabeth “Lib” Wright (Florence Pugh), hired by a committee of Irish locals, to observe a perplexing case in a rural village. The committee, led by Dr. McBrearty (Toby Jones), landlord Sir Otway (Ciarán Hinds), and nun Sister Michael (Josie Walker), tasks Lib and Sister Michael with alternating 24-hour watches over 11-year-old Anna O’Donnell (Kíla Lord Cassidy), who claims to have eaten nothing for four months, surviving miraculously on “manna from heaven.” The devout community, eager for divine hope post-famine, reveres Anna as a living saint.

Lib, skeptical of the miracle, begins her vigil alongside the pious Sister Michael. Anna’s parents, Rosaleen (Elaine Cassidy) and Malachy (Caolan Byrne), devoutly support their daughter’s fast. Lib meticulously documents Anna’s declining health, noting her frailty and ritualistic routines, including daily recitations and drinking minimal water. Local journalist William Byrne (Tom Burke), a cynical Irishman writing about the case, forms an uneasy alliance with Lib, sharing his suspicions of fraud.

As Lib grows closer to Anna, she discovers the girl’s deep guilt over her older brother’s death. Anna reveals she prayed for her brother to die so he could “be with God” after he confessed sinful thoughts; when he drowned shortly after, she believed her prayers caused his death. To atone, Anna began fasting, convinced God would sustain her. Lib also uncovers Rosaleen secretly feeding Anna via chewed food transferred mouth-to-mouth during kisses, exploiting the watch shifts’ handover chaos. Confronting Rosaleen, Lib learns the family perpetuated the “miracle” to bring hope to the village, though Anna’s self-imposed starvation persists beyond their control.

Horrified by Anna’s deteriorating state, Lib implores the committee to intervene, but they dismiss her concerns, prioritizing faith over science. Desperate, Lib and William devise a plan: they administer a sedative to simulate Anna’s death, intending to fake her burial and spirit her away for medical care. During Anna’s wake, Lib and William replace her body with a decoy. Rosaleen, remorseful, allows the ruse, while Malachy resists but is overpowered.

The trio escapes by boat, with Anna awakening mid-journey. Lib reveals their destination—Australia, where Lib’s estranged sister will shelter them. In the epilogue, text reveals Anna survives, recovers, and becomes a nurse herself, inspired by Lib.

The film concludes with a modern-day meta-narrative: the original Irish set transforms into a studio, where a crew dismantles the scene, reminding viewers they’ve witnessed a constructed story “about the need to believe.”