
With that said, what worked and was miscalculated in the film? To begin, the Wachowskis coupled with the direction of director James McTeigue captured the visual of “V” perfectly. The mask was chilling, and the darkened question of his origins remained open-ended. Their depiction of this masked vigilante was brilliant. The way the shadows fell, the camera angles on his face instilled both fear and excitement for this character. “V”, with this film, became iconic. Alas, the visual alone couldn’t counter what preceded “V”. The use of Hugo Weaving’s voice was, like Natalie Portman’s accent, weak. “V” was a bold character, but when he spoke, he seemed weaker and in less control. Weaving’s voice-work didn’t capture the intensity that surrounds this character – and then there was Portman. While she brought some innocence to the character of Eve (a name symbolic as well as poignant), the fading British accent continued the idea that she was merely Natalie Portman playing a character, not just Eve incarnate. Stephen Rae was superb in his role, as always, as the tamed cop hunting for a belief he struggles with, and John Hurt was completely over the top, applauding his role as evil as outstanding. These secondary characters, proving their might stronger than the primary ones, added much needed relief to this film, but it didn’t make it perfect.
“V for Vendetta” is a great film to sit down and enjoy two hours of crisp visuals, amazing music (look for a beautiful cover by “Cat Power”), and intense ideals. It is a thinking film. It camouflages itself as a big-budget action/adventure film, but all the while it is asking to you see the modern news and question our governments. It will keep your mind occupied for hours. McTeigue did a great job of bringing modern relevance (still tragic today) into this film to create a timeless sensation, but it still doesn’t counter the disappointing acting. As mentioned before, what makes “V for Vendetta” the graphic novel work is our characters, and as they lacked in the film – it moved it in a different direction. Without the graphic novel, this film still works as entertainment, and slight thought – but it isn’t a complete masterpiece. I enjoyed this film when it was first released on the big screen, but watching it today – the small nuances with the characters just don’t hold up well over time. Its message is in tact, but lacks the body.
Found in my "Videohound 2008" book, this film is getting a pink mark. I wanted to love it, but after re-reading the graphic novel, it just missed too many crucial elements. Also, I should mention, that I watched this film on bluray. Alas, I will not watch it again, but would perhaps consider suggesting it to friends. Maybe....
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