MOVIE REVIEWS
V for Vendetta
Matt Jameson
After much hype and media attention I decided to watch this film. I read about how this move was scheduled to release much earlier than it did; but due to the events of 9-11 as well as the war on terrorism the studio executives decided to delay it’s release. After all the main character is technically a terrorist, and we certainly didn’t need a film romanticizing terrorism. Pretty heavy subject matter for something originally released as a comic book.
I think it goes deeper than that however. After viewing the film it is rather obvious that the movie doubles as a jab at our current government and legislation, despite the plot being set so far in the future. It makes sense to delay screening a film that encourages the viewer to frown on a presidential figure, during a time in which his approval ratings were dropping fast.
Now that the hype has cleared, what remains is a social commentary on where we are now, and where we are headed as a nation. And this commentary paints a very discouraging picture of the future of our country and it’s government. The story revolves around a rebellious citizen named “V” with a flair for theatrical monologues and violent resistance toward Parliament. As the story develops we find out that V was part of a government experiment which lost funding and eventually went wrong, ultimately to be covered up by a suspicious fire destroying any evidence. Being the only survivor of these experiments V vows violent vengeance upon the very government that once tried to cover him up. Like most vengeance films V makes his was through a list of people to payback for what was done to him. V feels that he can ultimately expose the government and bring back power to the people by constructing violent events designed to expose the mistruths fed to the people by the Parliament via the news media. Sound familiar? It should. This film makes a point of focusing on how the media can be manipulated by the government in order to retain a feeling of security and well being for its citizens. This works perfect, especially considering that due to current events its release was postponed. Pure irony of this kind cannot be planned, thus making it all the more delicious.
In the future as portrayed by this film, government officials have complete control over all media. There is only a single channel, which airs news and satirical programming that has been pre-approved by censors. V uses these mistruths to his advantage by planning events that get covered up by Parliament, and then exposing the lies by commandeering the televised feed and claiming responsibility for the events as well as exposing the truths of what actually happened. Essentially he gives Parliament its own rope and then watches as it hangs itself.
Natalie Portman’s character meets V in a very comic book fashion, as he saves her from being accosted by several crooked police. He instantly involves her into his illegal exploits causing her to become a government target as well. After some shaky plot development she agrees to stay with V for a year while his plan is carried out to avoid getting herself killed by government henchmen. At this point in the film I feel that my intelligence as a viewer is being insulted for lack of better plot development. But hey it’s an adapted comic book people, so I’m not going to get too serious picking it apart.
Through the movie we learn more about V and how he came to despise the government, his intentions regarding the intended effects of his actions, and finally his ultimate goal to destroy Parliament. This film does a great job of depicting its political leaders as being very similar in nature to the current American government. And as a Noyse maker, I fell in love with its depiction of how dangerous absolute government control and censorship could be. The futuristic citizens are portrayed as people who have given up on reforming the government, and have instead chosen a life of denial based on false serenity and security.
In essence I liked this movie, but I still have a few reservations about giving it a glowing review. Part of my issue with this film is that it moves entirely to slow for a comic book adaptation. It feels like a cross between a decent film and a boring and drawn out drama. The last time this happened the movie was called Unbreakable, and if you’ve seen that movie you will know exactly what I mean when I say it’s a slow moving adaptation.
Despite its message, and the cleverness in which it attacks our actual government - it fails to deliver the cinematic punch I had hoped for. The ending left me feeling like the film was simply wrapped up and packaged well, but lacking in content. Natalie Portman gave a decent performance, but nothing to write home about - especially given her past work and talent as an actress. Hugo Weaving who plays V performs very well, but with the lack of facial expression due to the ever-present mask – I found myself wondering if his delivery would have been better had we seen his face.
All things considered I would rate this movie as decent. I wouldn’t recommend it to most “comic book turned cinematic release” fans, but fans of graphic novels might really love it. It’s just too slow for an action film oriented audience, and not catching enough to stand alone as a powerful drama. However, if you’re into revenge flicks such as Payback or the Kill Bill trilogy you will most likely enjoy yourself.
My final take on the entire film is that this should have come out prior to the Matrix trilogy. As a second major box office offering from the famed Watchowski brothers it fell short of my expectations of their talents, based upon their career making Matrix trilogy. All except for the crappy ending that is; one thing this film and the Matrix definitely have in common. Guess I’ll file this one under R for Refund.
