Cast: Hugo Weaving, Natalie Portman, Stephen Fry, John Hurt
Directed By: James McTeigue
Runtime: 2 hours 12 minutes
Age Rating: R
Distributed By: Warner Bros.
Living in a totalitarian regime can only be a thing very few dream of. And it won’t be called as a dream but a nightmare no one would dare go through. This forms the basis of the movie V for Vendetta. Being set in a dystopian future the movie boasts of the ideals that can prove as a threat to the entire mankind. Imagine getting caught in the grasp of a mysterious person with a vendetta of his own and being a pawn to this. He realizes his dream through you, and you have no option left but to surrender and accept his ideology as your own and commit a heinous crime that you won’t feel guilty of doing. Because not only do you suddenly realize that all the people around you are his pawns. You suddenly feel as if you are doing something for the greater good but very soon you realize that you have done an unimaginable deed that will cause a civilization to fall to ruins. But before this realization sinks in it’s too late and things are beyond repair.
Every revolution needs a starting point to begin like how a tree needs a seed to sprout. A character named V (played by Hugo Weaving) hones a mask with a cut-out of the face of Guy Fawkes and is out with an agenda of his own to overthrow the dictatorship and bring renaissance and peace to the country. And this renaissance would take off by an incident. By now you all must have understood that this movie is based on the infamous Gun Powder plot incident and is based on the novel of the same name as the film. V saves a girl named Evey Hammond (played by Natalie Portman) and brings her into his den. There he explains to her his motive and seeks her help in achieving the same. Further, he goes on to explain his backstory grabs her attention and persuades her to assist him in his objective. He succeeds in the same and begins his final execution on the same date the Gunpowder incident was executed. V wages a war against the dictatorship of Adam Sutler to free the masses of tyranny and autocracy of the ruler.
The movie has a dark theme and takes place during night or at least most of the parts are shot during night. It is a dystopian movie that might make some people stop the movie midway between. The action is too loud and seems unrealistic. Some scenes are shot in a way that might give viewers the feel of seeing a superhero film. But doesn’t carry that vibe throughout the movie. This makes this neither a superhero movie nor a normal political drama film. It makes it difficult to categorize. The movie seems to promote a nasty agenda and glorify the acts of V. It shows that some kind of a new revolution is about to begin and would finally settle the question of peace and stability which has been lingering in each one’s mind since the dawn of industrialization and since wars have begun. The movie visuals are below par and definitely, there was room for improvement. The cinematography of action scenes required a lot of work to be done on them.
The movie focuses solely on promoting a vicious agenda and takes away focus from the main issue. This type of plot can prove to be highly problematic and the method used to gain control is unethical and promotes violence. Leaving this aside this movie can be seen by the viewers as a guilty pleasure and is a one-time watch.
Moviesamrat Rating: 2/5