V For Victorious

V For Vendetta

Not being a politically driven fellow, you’ll have to excuse me when I sidestep the whole parallels between the government presented in V For Vendetta and the current administration controlling the U.S. What I will say is that those Alan Moore fans will be relieved to know the film packs as much bite as it’s paperbacked source. Yes, some events have been altered and restructured and shifted about, but even Sin City with all its touted faithfulness dropped some pages and panels for the sake of cinema.

20 years into the future, the government is overtaken by a fascist regime. Led by Adam Sutler [Hellboy’s John Hurt], the regime has put an end to free thought and has done away with people of different race and sexuality. Officers known as fingermen roam the streets at night while curfew is in effect. It is here we are introduced to Natalie Portman’s Evey and V, a man of ideas who plots to remove those in power [Played with delight by Hugo Weaving of The Matrix and Lord of the Ring’s Trilogy]. Upon rescuing Evey from a fate far worse then death, their destinies are intertwined as V’s Vendetta of vengeance against government begins.

Much credit must be given to Hugo Weaving’s interpretation of V. From his body language to his manner of speech, Weaving breathes much life into the grinning visage of Guy Fawkes. It’s unthinkable that any other actor could have pulled off a character this abstract [Weaving replaced James Purefoy sometime into production]. Weaving walks a fine line alternating between menace and cheeriness, sometimes utilizing both, his performance is the highlight of the film.

The character of Evey and her journey has been retooled from the graphic novel, where she was held captive in V’s lair. Portman’s Evey separates herself from V’ a number of times during the film, at one point finding safe hiding in the home of a friend who himself has something to hide from the government. A particularly memorable sequence is Evey’s imprisonment as she’s interrogated for the whereabouts of V. Perhaps the most faithful section of the film, retaining the original ideas of individual freedom and holding onto them at all costs.

McTeigue, a first time director aided by second unit work by the Wachowski Bros. [though you’d think they had more than a small part in constructing this flick] exhibits a sure hand, particularly a scene in which Evey wakes up in V’s lair and is treated to breakfast and the already mentioned torture sequence in which all manner of hope is drained from Portman and her surroundings, it certainly doesn’t hurt that he’s aided by an ensemble cast of Britain’s finest [Stephen Fry, Stephen Rea, Roger Allam]

Whether or not the film will spark debate in the media is still questionable, what’s not is the fine amount of work that has gone into constructing this cinematic rendition of V For Vendetta, a well crafted and solid debut for McTeigue and an “action” film that like the Wachowski’s previous efforts, challenges you to think as well as enjoy the entertainment.

8.3/10