Fixing Shawn Mendes “In Wonder”

I have to admit as a huge fan of Shawn Mendes’ music, I was highly disappointed in this documentary. It was a very unclear and idealized look into the celebrity’s life. Now, a lot of this could have to deal with the timing of this documentary, and my expectations for a documentary, but this was just not what I needed. Now, I would like to fix this story, but in order to do so it will take a small tweak to the narrative that keeps the same structure and goal of the film.

The Goal of the Film

A portrait of the singer-songwriter’s life, chronicling the past few years of his rise and journey.

So this was the only synopsis that I could really find on the film and it was listed on IMDB’s website. The problem with this, however is that, it does not really tell me much about the film or what to expect.

Going in, I had a very idealized version of Shawn Mendes and I thought this would enlighten me a bit more on his life and some of the things that he struggles with. So, in order to fix this film, I would like to adjust the approach to the film and alter this simple plot thread that was very weakly spun.

The movie should begin where it ended. The film begins halfway through the film, which sounds like it will be a much different narrative than the film actually presents. In a Genius way, the director would have started the film off with the song “Intro” from his newest album.

From my understanding of the album, it was developed as a reaction to the tour and how insane the tour felt for him. He expressed being physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted from the tour. So in order to effectively capture this, beginning with the “Intro” would send the audience full force into his wonderland.

Humble Beginnings

From there, we explore the vine days, and do some quick cuts to moments on tour. A small addition would be made to signal the different pieces and parts of the documentary interluding with instrumental versions or even concert performances of his songs. Each taking us further into his wonderland. In the beginning we could see Mendes’ rise to fame and the wonderful clips from his high school year. His experience with the agent, and how he grew to fame. Post fame would take us into the rabbit hole.

The Queen of Hearts

As each stage rises, the audience would see a new part of his wonderland. The Queen of Hearts, this would be the anxiety that Shawn Mendes feels. We would watch her appear with the pressure to be perfect. We would watch her grow as he cancels the tour. We would watch her scoff as the crowd chants outside his hotel room. We would watch her transform into Shawn Mendes and glow as he realizes that she is a companion that he has to learn to live with.

The Mad Tea Party

The mad tea party, would be the center of all of his craziest moments which he feels he is the the most important person in the room as the world is moving around him. He demonstrates how his friends keep him grounded in reality. They make the tea party feel a little less scary.

Going Home

The desire to want to go home, the entire time that Alice is in Wonderland, she wants to go home. Shawn mentions that he want to go home halfway through his tour. That stress and pressure of being in an unfamiliar, uncomfortable environment is a staple that should have been used more through the documentary.

Conclusion

Emphasizing the Wonderland effect would not only have made the documentary a little more personal, it would have also given the audience a chance to grasp and understand Mendes’ story through some unique analogies.

Now, there are many issues with this documentary, such as the fact that it fails to go deeper than a simple look into the pop-star’s shower routine. However, this one was focused on the album which was inspired by this journey. I believe that the world could have been wrapped up in this wonderland story, rather than whatever that documentary was supposed to be. Overall, I think I will stick to just listening to his music. I did find the Shawn Mendes concert on Netflix to be quite the spectacle and I felt like I was truly a part of the experience.