V for Vendetta
The last time a movie associated with the Wachowski Sisters- Lana and Lilly- was met with such outrageous fandom from the geeks, it was the start of what would be one of the most overhyped and overblown film series’ in history. 1999’s “The Matrix” was seen- at the time- as the new “Star Wars,” a revolutionary hybrid of story and special effects that paved the way for audience approval of movies from “Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon” to “X-Men 2: X-Men United,” which employed some of the same visual inventiveness and daring in story. Well, I didn’t think it was that great- visually terrific, the film’s story got bogged down in pretentious dialogue and dull storytelling that only increased with the film’s bombastic 2003 sequels, turning the trilogy into an uneasy hybrid of old school “Star Wars” (the original “Matrix” at its’ best) and new school (the sequels at their worst, which was pretty often).
“V for Vendetta” is a striking follow-up for the Wachowskis. Directed with confidence and intelligence by first-timer James McTeigue (an assistant director on “The Matrix” films), “Vendetta” is a film of purpose and provocation in these unsettling political times. It brims over with a defiant spirit that calls for free will against a fearful ideology looking to control through false patriotism. That means state-controlled news and television entertainment; a shadow government that spies on its’ citizens, maintains secret prisons, and conducts equally-secretive biological experiments for purposes of warfare; nightly curfews enforced with questionable legality; and a single man in power whose zealous religious beliefs catapulted him into office more on the power of persuasion by the party in charge than on merit. I’m not saying the dictatorship in “Vendetta’s” Britain is meant to be an indictment of the present-day U.S.- the ol’ U.S. of A. has its’ own problems in the film (some not implausible). Still, those who’ve seen parallels between “Vendetta’s” dictatorship and Dubya’s ever-less popular administration wouldn’t be completely off-base.
If I’ve made “V for Vendetta” sound a bit odd to be a graphic novel adaptation, that’s because it comes not from the usual stables of DC and Marvel but from specialty company Vertigo Comics- an offshoot of DC- and the mind of comic book icon Alan Moore, the creator of such acclaimed titles as Hellblazer (which became last year’s underrated “Constantine”), The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (which became a lame Indiana Jones-redux adventure in 2003), Watchmen (still in development Hell), and From Hell (which was turned into a skillful mystery by the Hughes Brothers in 2001). If you don’t see credit to him anywhere on “V,” that’s because Moore- unhappy about what the Wachowskis were doing to his work- asked to take his name off of “Vendetta.” Still, the startling intelligence and wit at work in Moore’s writing is all over “Vendetta,” adapted by the Wachowskis in a screenplay of genre-defying craft that runs circles over the bloated “Matrix.” And that it works onscreen is a credit to McTeigue, who- like Richard Donner with the Brothers’s early, underrated script for “Assassins”- keeps the film anchored in story and characters without relying on the hip, slick visuals the Brothers’s leaned on in not just the “Matrix” films but their directing debut, 1996’s overpraised lesbian noir, “Bound.”
With its story, it’s easy to see why the film hasn’t taken off in smash status- it defies easy genre descriptions. The film is set in a futuristic London overseen by an ultraconservative government- headed by High Chancellor (a bawdy and bellowing John Hurt, playing the hot-winded dictator with verve)- that imposes nightly curfews on its citizens, has banned most art and almost all entertainment (only an irreverent talk show host- played by Stephen Fry- seems immune, at least until he crosses the line), runs “news” through government filters before the network airs it (this includes the bigoted rants of an O’Reilly-esque pundit played with McCarthy-esque bluster by Roger Allam), and isn’t afraid of a little racism and homophobia to make their society run efficiently. But not everyone is pleased. Past rebellions have been quelled, but now a masked vigilante known only as V (played by “The Matrix’s” Hugo Weaving with subtle wit and warmth that plays counterpoint to his vicious and palpable rage against the government machine) who begins assassinating prominent party members and blowing up landmarks all in an effort to lead the content population of this fascist state to revolution a year from now on November 5, which marks the anniversary of an act of revolution against the British government from 1605. Entering the fray coincidentally is Evey Hammond (Natalie Portman, who sports a sturdy British accent and plays the character with an intensity and intelligence we’ve come to expect from her after roles in “The Professional,” “Cold Mountain,” and “Closer”), the daughter of parents who were killed for defying the government- her brother was also killed as a result; she is taken captive by V, and gradually becomes sympathetic to his cause while trying to avoid prison at the hands of the government leaders on the case, particularly a cop named Finch (Neil Jordan regular Stephen Rea in a compelling performance) who, the more he digs into the case, the more he questions the tactics his government partakes in.
Understandably, the film has become an easy target for critics and political pundits as a film promoting terrorism. I can see that, but watching the movie again, it became clear the film didn’t promote senseless acts of violence like the ones in the US on 9/11 and last summer in London, if only because V avoids civilian casualties. V represents the forgotten idea that a country’s citizenship has the right to question its government when it conducts shady business and tries to quell the free expression of ideas, particularly when it puts a muzzle on dissenters. At that point, if necessary, the population has the right to revolt- sometimes violently- when the government goes too far. To simply call it terrorism is an oversimplification; it’s a call to arms to a sleepy nation that is ruled by fear tactics and turns a blind eye to lies. That a comic book adaptation can combine the intelligence and bold politics that highlighted a lot of last year’s most fascinating films (“Munich,” “Syriana,” “Good Night, and Good Luck.” come to mind) and match up to those exceptional films in both is a credit to McTeigue and the Wachowskis for not sugarcoating the ideas at work in Moore’s creation and just aiming for an easy entertainment. “V for Vendetta”- shot with bold lighting simplicity by the late Adrian Biddle and scored with grand and great orchestral gestures by Oscar-nominee Dario Marianelli (“Pride & Prejudice”)- is the work of filmmakers wanting to open up moviegoers eyes to a world not far removed from our own, and stir us into action. Consider me stirred.
