‘The Wonder Weeks’ Netflix Movie Review - Moms for Moms

Directed by Appie Boudellah and Aram van de Rest, and written by Appie Boudellah, Mustafa Boudellah, and Maikel Nijnuis The Wonder Weeks has Hiske Bongaarts, Frederik Brom, and Yolanthe Cabau in the lead roles. This film serves as an insight into the lives of three mothers and their hectic schedule till Moms for Moms comes and saves them.

Ilse is seen giving birth to her son. After some debate, they finalize their child to be named Samih. The child comes from two cultures and hence there were a lot of things Ilse had to tolerate like her mother-in-law and various bizarre traditions she wanted to follow. Anne also has a daughter and as soon as she gives birth, she asks for her APGAR score. Coming from a law background, she has a lot of medical knowledge. Mia’s pediatrician warns the parents that she is too heavy for her age and isn’t achieving the milestones. Anne worries a lot and after hearing this she triples her efforts.

The third family has the involvement of three parents: Roos, Kim, and Kaj. As Roos and Kaj are best friends and she is in a romantic relationship with Kim so, Kaj gave them his sperm. Theoretically speaking, he is the biological father of the children this lesbian couple shares and demands to be a part of their lives. Knowing nothing about parenthood and doing blunders is his way. One day, he even got Teum locked in the car. We can now imagine how irresponsible this guy is, but speaking in terms of efforts, he lacks none.

The Wonder Weeks is a good film, but I doubt the male audience will be able to relate to it. The film is all about young women and their newfound journey with motherhood. I wish that they could have shown the incredible role played by the fathers as well. To see a father's love, two characters have been included who are completely different. Barry is seen to not getting involved much with Mia and it is usually Anne who wakes up and caters to the need of their child. There’s a scene in which Mia’s babysitter took a day off and Barry rushed from home so that he doesn’t have to take Mia’s responsibility. This was rude of him because Anne too had a job to attend to. Comparing Barry to Kaj, the latter is very dedicated towards his children although he was just a sperm donor.

The film also shows how after giving birth women get conscious about their bodies due to changes like stretch marks and have less sex. Kim says a line “These stretch marks are tiger stripes”. Through Kim’s exclusive group, she was empowering young women and making them stronger. A mother can be best understood by a mother and this was the idea behind the formation of Moms for Moms. I liked the idea a lot as it provided a safe space for these moms where their children too get taken care of while they can stay carefree and do their jobs. Such groups should be promoted in reality as well.

With a duration of 90 minutes, I think that The Wonder Weeks is a great film and every woman should watch it with her partner or family. We get to learn that becoming a mom isn’t an easy task and sometimes you get too worked up that you start ignoring things that matter, like your relationships. However, Mia’s pediatrician was a snob because she continuously kept on saying things like “Mia’s too heavy” or “too fat”. There could have been better ways to convey such things to the parents.

Final Score – [7.5/10]
Reviewed by - Riya Singh
Follow @_riyasinghhh_ on Twitter
Publisher at Midgard Times