The following contains spoilers for Netflix's The Wonder and a discussion on sexual assault.
Netflix's The Wonder occupies a very thought-provoking space in the science vs. religion debate. Lib (played by Black Widow's Florence Pugh) is an English nurse who comes to Ireland in the 1800s, cynical of a young girl, Anna, who's supposedly been fasting for four months. She's tasked with observing the child and a nun, Sister Michael, with Pugh delivering a masterclass as she did in Midsommar.
No matter what, Lib doesn't think Anna's defying science and logic while Michael is carrying out the parish's mission of trying to prove Anna's a miracle. After all, following the famine that swept the lands, the people want proof of a deity, even if it martyrs Anna. However, when the truth emerges, there's an issue with Anna's quest.
The Wonder Confirms Anna's a Fraud
Lib stays with Anna's family and has an epiphany while eating soup. She realizes Anna's mom has been spitting food into her mouth when she visits to kiss her goodnight, like a mother bird masticating to feed its kid. She confronts Anna, who admits it's true, but part of her penance after an incestuous relationship with her rapist brother, who died from an illness.
Lib, though, can't prove it because the family and Anna lie in front of the tribune. It pushes Lib to trick Anna into thinking she died, was reborn and paid off the debt to save her brother's soul. As such, she kidnaps the girl, with Michael keeping mum on the incident. Lib and Anna flee to Australia, away from religious extremism, giving them a chance at the family they never had.
The Wonder's Twist Doesn't Make Sense
However, there are problems with Anna's predicament. First, Lib bans the family from delivering this "manna from Heaven" in their nightly meets. Thus, Anna begins starving, looking pale and emaciated as she gets sick. But this should have been the family's plan in the first place. They shouldn't need Lib to stop the feeding because once the public props Anna up as a saint, cutting off the food would have made her a martyr. In that sense, the family would have punished her as they wanted her to be to fit the narrative. That would have created the sacrificial lamb they thought was ready to be received by the Holy Father, which would help their boy be plucked from "the flames of Hell."
Also, if the family was genuine in trying to repent in God's eyes, it doesn't add up that they're lying, deceiving the church and the townsfolk. Their fellow Christians back them fervently, but while they can fool the people, they can't lie to their God. Thus, by their logic, they're damning the son even more through this sin. Ultimately, these counterintuitive arcs clash, making The Wonder feel disconnected and inconsistent.
To see the issues with the family's plan, The Wonder is now streaming on Netflix.