Wonderstruck follows Ben, a boy in rural Minnesota in 1977, and Rose, a deaf girl in New Jersey in 1927. Ben loses his hearing after a lightning strike and travels to New York to learn about the father he never knew. Rose leaves her strict father to find the silent film actress she believes can answer questions about her family. Their separate journeys lead them to the American Museum of Natural History, where a hidden family link brings the stories together.
Deafness shapes both stories, not just one character's side plot. Rose is deaf from birth, while Ben becomes deaf, and the film uses silence, captions, written notes, and sign language to show their trouble with the hearing world. The story presents Rose's father and old hearing rules as barriers, while deaf communication and family belonging offer a better path. A Latino friend and a deaf lead actor add visible representation, but the film does not use modern political speeches or identity slogans.
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Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for Wonderstruck.
Woke representation / casting
The film puts deaf characters at the center of both timelines. Millicent Simmonds, who is deaf, plays young Rose, and the production searched deaf schools and theater groups for the role. Oakes Fegley plays Ben, who becomes deaf, while Julianne Moore plays Rose as an older woman. The casting is closely tied to the plot, but the public focus on deaf talent and the use of several deaf performers make representation a clear production choice.
42%
Woke political dialogue
Not present. The characters talk about family, deafness, loss, and finding answers. The film has no recurring modern DEI, gender, or activist lines.
0%
Identity-driven story themes
Deafness shapes the main conflict in both timelines. Rose is isolated by a father who hides her and tries to force her toward hearing norms, while Ben faces a sudden loss of sound and struggles to communicate. The film treats visual communication, sign language, and connection with other deaf people as ways to find belonging. The message stays personal and historical, but identity and disability are central to the story.
50%
Western institutional / cultural critique
Rose's father hides her and orders her to study lip-reading instead of meeting her on her own terms. The film shows the change from silent movies to sound as a barrier for Rose. These moments criticize old treatment of deaf people, but the movie does not attack modern Western institutions or promote a broad activist view of society.
15%
Woke character or canon changes
The novel first described Jamie as white, but the film casts him as a Latino New Yorker. Todd Haynes said the change was meant to reflect 1977 New York and shape how Jamie connects with Ben. Jamie is an important friend but not the main story, so the change is visible without driving the whole plot.
30%
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
Not present. The reviewed news and social posts show no clear anti-woke or right-leaning campaign against the film. The main dispute concerned a hearing actor playing the older deaf Rose, which was an authenticity complaint rather than an anti-woke complaint.
0%
Creator track record context
Todd Haynes has a strong history of queer films and is a major figure in the queer film movement. Producers Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler have repeatedly backed queer and social-justice stories. Brian Selznick has a milder pattern of stories about outsiders and overlooked people, with some later queer material. This background raises the context score, even though this film is mainly about deafness, family, and belonging.
63%
Production
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