rated on a 4-star scale screening venue : cornerhouse ( manchester ) released in the uk by uip on january 28 , 2000 ; certificate 15 ; 109 minutes ; country of origin uk ; aspect ratio 2 . 35 : 1 directed by michael winterbottom ; produced by michelle camarda . written by laurence cordiat . photographed by sean bobbitt ; edited by trevor waite . there is a school of thought that believes striving for reality in art is not a worthwhile pursuit . i've never understood why ; we live in reality , we connect with it , it's exciting . think of all the types of situations you find yourself in every week -- there'll always be some forms of happiness , sadness , expectation , disappointment , serenity , tumult , calm and anger . life , to use a horrible cliché , dear friends , is an emotional roller coaster ! " wonderland " is glorious proof of that , a film of scruffy beauty and spellbinding power , which seems constructed to capture the appeal of eavesdropping . that pastime is involving , of course , because of our instinctive fascination with humanity ; this movie uses the same hook , diving into the lives of several londoners , all of whom are connected by family ties , but are at different stages of their lives and have different occupations . nadia ( gina mckee ) is an attractive but lonely waitress , who places a lot of personal ads but allows herself to get upset every time she goes on a date . one of her sisters , molly ( molly parker ) , is married and pregnant ; the other , debbie ( shirley henderson ) , is raising her son alone . their parents are eileen ( kika markham ) and bill ( jack shepherd ) , two pathetically unhappy people who mope around the house , and occasionally cringe ; because of barking dogs , broken appliances , boredom or simple fear of leaving the house . we also meet up with partners and ex-partners , friends , acquaintances , neighbours , estranged relatives , colleagues . . . " wonderland " never announces itself as a definite study of anything in particular , which gives it the freedom to roam around , to spy on whomever's interesting . the director , michael winterbottom , shoots everything in a grainy , hand-held , almost camcorder style which makes events seem imparted to us from the inside out , rather than staged and shot . it's as if invisible camera crews had been ceaselessly exploring london . it's essential to the sense that we're watching real people who aren't aware of our presence . this could have come across as solemn and grimy , like any of those pathetic tv documentaries that follow losers around their places of work and play . but in between the quiet , sober scenes are astounding sequences where the camera submerges in neon light , the editing plays around with cutting and speed , and michael nyman's grand score soars on the soundtrack . the whole movie uses london as a backdrop , letting us unconsciously absorb it ; these grand musical moments explicitly rejoice in the city's strange beauty , and announce that the film is not scrutinising life , but gazing at it in wonderment . so music is an important tone-setter in " wonderland " -- but it's always kept for these side-moments , and never interferes with the drama . scenes do not follow typical hollywood constructions ; there isn't a little climax every five minutes , characters don't subtly recap their situations to each other to let the audience know what's going on . everything plays out at a realistic pace , and we get our bearings by picking up on mood , tone , emotions . winterbottom , his actors , and even his extras , have a knack for capturing the way conversational rhythms actually do sound -- in homes , hairdressers' shops and pubs ; on dates , the phone , and everywhere else the story goes . and that is why this beautiful film has been made . it is a devoted record of modern human behaviour . i dreaded that there would be some hugely inappropriate surprise plot development near the ending , but no -- winterbottom and screenwriter laurence cordiat know that most of us don't end a typical weekend by stumbling into life-changing experiences . " wonderland " is such an acute observance of people that it makes us confront our essential feelings about our fellow man . and to any foreigners out there , wondering what it's like to be in britain -- just take a look at this movie . copyright ( c ) 2000 ian waldron-mantganiplease visit , and encourage others to visit , the uk critic's website , which is located at <a href= " http : //members . aol . com/ukcritic " >http : //members . aol . com/ukcritic</a> 
