The past decade has seen the release of countless films transparently designed to launch a cinematic universe. From superhero movies littered with crumbs of parallel I.P.
at the expense of narrative depth to toy adaptations that attempted crossovers based on little more than shared corporate ownership, virtually every filmmaker of a certain budget was asked to make a few compromises in pursuit of building a lucrative franchise. But even in an era of filmmaking defined by world-building, few could have predicted that “ Wonder ” would be the genesis of a multi-pronged film series. If anyone walked out of Stephen Chbosky’s 2017 film — which starred Jacob Tremblay as a middle schooler with facial disfigurement, learning how to navigate the endless cruelty of pre-teens in a story about the importance of kindness — wondering what happened to Julien (Bryce Gheisar), the bully who was ultimately expelled from Beecher Prep, you’re in luck.
Marc Foster’s “ White Bird ” catches up with Julien as he struggles to adapt to a new school. His behavior with his peers is as anti-social as ever, but without an established social circle that he fears falling back on, he struggles to make friends of any kind. After a particularly hard day at school, he expects to come home to another empty apartment while his neglectful parents hobnob at yet another black-tie event.
Instead, he finds his French grandmother Sara ( Helen Mirren ), who decides to teach him a lesson of her own about.