Year of Release: 2005
Director: James McTeigue
Starring: Natalie Portman, Hugo Weaving, Stephen Rea, Rupert Graves, Stephen Fry, Tim Pigott-Smith, John Hurt, Roger Allam, Ben Miles, Sinead Cusack, Natasha Wightman, John Standing, Eddie Marsan, Guy Henry, Alister Mazzotti, Mark Phoenix
Genre: Action, Thriller
Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 7
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Synopsis and Review
Following the uneven critical and commercial reception of "The Matrix Reloaded" and "The Matrix Revolutions", both of which came out in 2003, the Wachowskis decided to tackle a different intellectual property as their next feature film adaptation and landed on Alan Moore and David Lloyd's graphic novel, "V for Vendetta", originally published in the early 1980s. The film takes place in a near future where Britain is under the far-right, ultranationalist Norsefire political party, one that silences all opposition, a fascist regime where police brutality, political murders, torture of dissidents, exclusion and imprisonment of minorities of color and sexual preference, has become a standard. Massive propaganda has also become a staple of this government, which is ruled with an iron fist by High Chancellor Adam Sutler. In this world two central characters cross paths, one of them by the name of Evey Hammond, a young woman whose parents were targeted by the regime, and killed as a result (they were activists). She now works at the television Network BTN which is run by the state. The other central character is a masked vigilante who goes by V, wears a Guy Fawkes mask, and has himself a dark past marked by torture, medical experimentations, and trauma. They initially cross paths when V saves Evey from an assault situation perpetrated by "The Fingermen", who are about to rape her. V blows up the Old Bailey to awake the people of Britain and its rulers, the former ones from apathy, the latter ones from their comfortable place of absolute power. Furthermore V and Evey cross paths once again when he takes over BTN, taking credit for the bombing, and forewarning everyone that a year from that date everyone should join him in a special event that he's orchestrating. Evey helps V in his escape from the TV studio, and he in return takes her with him when the police knocks her unconscious. V continues to kill key figures in the Norsefire regime, uncovering a trail of corruption, violence, and methodical self-profiteering from many of the key members of the party. While Evey seeks to escape from the plans V has set in motion, she does realize that the totalitarian regime and what they've imparted on people, including her own existence, are too much of a heavy burden to merely be brushed aside.
One of the most interesting things about this film and the material that originated it, is its timelessness, and how apt it continues to be, since it addresses questions of tyranny, corruption, unscrupulous power in modern governments, all of this wrapped in a context where people are the ones who permit for these scenarios to flourish and exist, due to a certain numbness, and exacerbated and fabricated fears. James McTeigue in his feature directorial debut, smartly mixes elements he observed from the Wachowski films (he was first assistant director for "The Matrix" series), namely in the action scenes, but is able to go beyond merely building interesting action set pieces. He and his team create an entirely believable alternate society, one where far-right ideologies are clearly exposed, from the persistent visual propaganda on the streets, to the fabricated news on the main TV channels that people are "allowed" to watch, to the fear that dominates everyone that is possibly critical of the current government. This sanitized existence is perfectly depicted, and what's ultimately at stake is equally given a tremendous amount of importance. The aspect that sadly gets the least amount of development are the characters themselves. Both Evey and V are not given much detail in their characterization, beyond what is their summarized background. And while that isn't a crippling aspect to the success of the feature, it is one of the aspects that feels a bit shallower. James McTeigue and his team however, more than bring this world to life, and make this narrative an engrossing one, something that the stupendous cast helps immensely. Natalie Portman, Hugo Weaving, Stephen Rea, Rupert Graves, Roger Allam, Stephen Fry, John Hurt, Sinead Cusack, Tim Pigott-Smith, they're all fantastic in their roles, and make this film that much more vivid to witness. The same applies to the production team, including the cinematography from the late Adrian Biddle, score from Dario Marianelli, and production design from Owen Paterson. 20 years on, it's a film that remains as entertaining as before, and one that is always worth revisiting and reflecting with.
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