Directed by:
James McTeigueCinematography:
Adrian BiddleComposer:
Dario MarianelliCast:
Natalie Portman, Hugo Weaving, Stephen Fry, Sinéad Cusack, Rupert Graves, Stephen Rea, John Hurt, Tim Pigott-Smith, Roger Allam, Ben Miles, Eamon Geoghegan (more)VOD (3)
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Set against the futuristic landscape of totalitarian Britain, V For Vendetta tells the story of a mild-mannered young woman named Evey (Natalie Portman) who is rescued from a life-and-death situation by a masked man (Hugo Weaving) known only as "V." Incomparably charismatic and ferociously skilled in the art of combat and deception, V ignites a revolution when he urges his fellow citizens to rise up against tyranny and oppression. As Evey uncovers the truth about V's mysterious background, she also discovers the truth about herself - and emerges as his unlikely ally in the culmination of his plan to bring freedom and justice back to a society fraught with cruelty and corruption. (official distributor synopsis)
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Reviews (11)
The film is at its weakest in the action-packed beginning and ending, everything in between is a surprisingly thought-provoking narrative, full of reflections on the individual's struggle against dictatorship, their right to be different and non-conforming (an interesting take on the fate of a lesbian woman, probably the most emotional part of the film) and their willingness to submit to the fight against evil and totalitarianism, even at the cost of losing their own lives. Yes, thought-provoking, but ultimately somewhat contradictory, because I really don't think blowing up historic buildings in the manner of terrorists is the right and effective way to fight the establishment. The action scenes weren't anything great, and their lack was more of a plus in my eyes. The film's main problem is its unconvincing depiction of totalitarianism. The allusion to the omnipotence of the media and its ability to manipulate the crowd is obvious, but I missed the Orwellian despair, the heaviness of life in a totalitarian system. That's also why the overall emotional impact of the film on me was somewhat negligible. On this subject, next time I'd rather reach for Radford's 1984, Truffaut's Fahrenheit 451, or Kachyna's The Ear.
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A utopian story about a romantic avenger. An appeal for revolt against the order. A provocative caricature of today's world. V for Vendetta wants to be all of these things. It is the first of these thanks to the great Weaving and the decent Portman. It wants to be the second thing too much. It could be better at the third thing if the realities were more elaborate. Overall, V for Vendetta is a great movie with many cons. The main downside is the Wachowski brothers syndrome - a simple and impressive parable to please as much as possible, go in all possible directions and lose sight of the path that leads to the goal. Such is the middle passage of the film, where the great onset of the introduction literally bursts in all directions and the film only manages to glue things together in the nice finale. I don't mind the activist touch, the shallow provocations. It's a sort of cute anarchy, supported by the protagonist, which combines black and white adventure movies with postmodern comic book superheroes. V for Vendetta does not lack great inner strength and persuasiveness. But it needs more sophistication and better screenwriters, unfortunately. Even so, this is confirmation of the rule that comic book remakes have sent commercial cinema in an interesting direction.
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The comic book of the same name, written by Alan Moore, is considered one of the most famous comic works on the edge between classical superhero and alternative comics. At one point, I couldn't resist and bought it, only to be thoroughly disappointed afterward, although it is a successful work from an artistic point of view and several characters or motifs are also interesting. However, the comic "V for Vendetta" fails in two very important aspects for me, which are primarily the unbelievable portrayal of the authoritarian state, its origin, support, the whole system, and finally its downfall. It is evident in the story that this dystopia was written by a person from a nation that has not experienced true tyranny since the first half of the 17th century. That world is simply lifeless and unbelievable. The second negative aspect lies in the romantic hero who wears a theater costume and a mask in the middle of a city filled with informers and cameras, making him look like an undercover police officer trying to infiltrate a criminal gang. The film version, at least when it comes to the first problem, is much better because a film requires significant costs, and therefore it is necessary to make things easier for the viewer from a commercial perspective, and the script is therefore more explanatory and logical than its literary source. However, the second problem remains, namely the mysterious hero capable of defeating the dictatorship on his own. The comic source allows for the film to be perceived as an action-packed spectacle, but fortunately, the creators took a different path - after all, those two action scenes, especially the final one where the avenger has the 15-member police team fill him with bullets before slashing them with knives, sounds very stupid, like from the dumbest action movies. The film's weaknesses are the weaknesses of its comic source. Natalie Portman in the main role is only average in terms of acting, but naturally still beautiful and with a decent dose of personal charm. And no one can even recognize Hugo Weaving under the mask. Overall impression: 55%. By the way, the comic and the film do differ in many respects despite the basic plotline. The character of Chief Inspector Finch is crucial in both the comic and the film, but in the comic, he is more multi-layered and ultimately more tragic. He is a person who understands that he served a terrible system and did bad things, but cannot overcome his own shadow.
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One of the most seminal comics written by Alan Moore and illustrated by David Lloyd was adapted in a way that certainly doesn't disappoint. The ideas Alan Moore had, though not fully explored, are captured here, and the film clearly delivers the message that government can take various forms. It’s a political film that is action-packed yet retains an important underlying idea. The collaboration between the Wachowskis (then brothers) and James McTeigue worked wonderfully. After Watchmen, it's the second-best adaptation of Moore's work.
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Although the visual strives for the highest heights and the concept appeals to me, V for Vendetta works only as a comic book in terms of effect. Just after it ends, all the stronger moments evaporated from my mind, and with a few years of distance, I only recall the totalitarian-British atmosphere and the always amazing Natalie Portman. A wasted opportunity, which is especially regrettable. There were so many potentially strong ideas.
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