KSL Movie Show review: ‘White Bird’ is a story of the bully, not the bullied

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SALT LAKE CITY — It’s rare to see a sequel to a movie focus on the bully rather than the bullied. However, sometimes people need a lesson repeated to fully get the point.

Such is the case in “White Bird,” as Julian (Bryce Gheisar) who played the antagonist in 2017’s “Wonder” gets an updated tutorial from his French grandmama (Helen Mirren).

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If you recall in “Wonder,” a young man named Augie (Jacob Tremblay) with facial differences was attempting to make it in a mainstream middle school with limited success. It was Julian who gave him the most trouble, forcing the school to expel Julian for his errant behavior.

Now in a new school, Julian has decided his best course of action is to avoid social interaction altogether. This forced Grandma Sara to show him a new vision by telling him her own traumatic childhood story of being a Jewish girl in occupied France during World War II.

In 1942, the Nazis were rounding up Jewish children from her small village. She was able to avoid capture, but would need help surviving. Her classmate Julien (Orlando Schwerdt) who is paralyzed in one leg by poliomyelitis and is also scorned by his peers, comes to her rescue, allowing her to hide out in his family’s barn until the coast is clear.

Young Sara (Ariella Glaser) realizes she wasn’t very kind to Julien in school, yet he came forward to save her life. A new respect is formed as Sara must stay inside the barn for an extended period of time, since Julien’s family suspects the neighbors are Nazi sympathizers.

So each day after school, Julien visits Sara to teach her the lessons he learned that day. In truly magical moments, the two imagine seeing the world through the windshield of a broken down truck in the barn. It is their way to escape this cruel reality that will go on for a long, long time.

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A great affection for each other develops, even as Julien grouses about his useless leg. Sara, by now, has seen the real Julien, as his kindness knows no bounds. They both have the support of Julien’s parents, Vivienne and Jean Paul (played by Gillian Anderson and Jo Stone-Fewings). The whereabouts of Sara’s parents remain unknown.

As this plays out, the story does dip a bit into the melodramatic, but the leads and Helen Mirren keep it from going over the edge. At its center is the notion that showing kindness in the face of great adversity is courage itself. A lesson hopefully learned by the young bully, who maybe this time, finally gets it.

WHITE BIRD (B+) Rated PG-13 for some strong violence, thematic material and language. Starring Ariella Glaser, Orlando Schwerdt, Gillian Anderson, Helen Mirren and Bryce Gheisar. Directed by Marc Forster (“World War Z” “Finding Neverland”) – filmed in the Czech Republic. Running time: 120 minutes.

The KSL Movie Show with Andy Farnsworth and Steve Salles airs Fridays on KSL NewsRadio from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Follow the show on Facebook, and join The KSL Movie Show Club for exclusive perks by texting MOVIE to 57500. Message and data rates may apply. Text STOP to cancel. Message frequency varies.