Susan Granger’s review of “V for Vendetta” (Warner Bros.)
Volatile and vehement, this timely cautionary tale about extremist hysteria emerges as the first exciting, insightful and, potentially, the most controversial film of 2006.
Set in London around the year 2020, this political thriller details how a lone vigilante, known only as “V,” blows up the Old Bailey courthouse and threatens to topple a fictional totalitarian regime, headed by a venal, villainous Chancellor (John Hurt), by exploding Parliament to commemorate November 5th, 1605. That’s when anarchist/folk hero Guy Fawkes’ plot to overturn the English government was foiled. Disguised beneath a grinning Guy Fawkes mask and black cloak, “V” (Hugo Weaving) is an enigma. While rescuing, then recruiting, a na•ve waif (Natalie Portman) and preaching fairness, justice and freedom, he methodically embarks on a series of vengeance killings, leaving a red rose at each murder scene – much to the consternation of an indefatigable police detective (Stephen Rea) whose relentless investigation unveils a perverse, multi-layered conspiracy, involving bio-terrorism, censorship, surveillance and state-sanctioned torture.
Based on Alan Moore’s graphic “comic-book” novel, illustrated by David Lloyd, the paranoid sci-fi concept was conceived in the 1980s in rebuttal to conservative Margaret Thatcher, evoking allegories like “1984,” “A Clockwork Orange,” “Planet of the Apes.”
“Matrix” creators Larry and Andy Wachowski adapted it, placing their long-time first assistant director, James McTeigue, at the helm. Photographer Adrian Biddle captures Owen Paterson’s darkly elegant production design; it’s streamlined by editor Owen Walsh and enriched by Dario Marianelli’s stirring score.
Although Portman’s character is, essentially, passive and her accent occasionally wavers, she’s vibrant, even if Weaving, Rea and Sinead Cusack deliver more subtle, persuasive performances. On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “V for Vendetta” is a cleverly compelling 8. Superficially, it’s an action adventure; dig deeper and it delves into the moral ambiguities inherent in contemporary society.
