The Best Cautionary Tales Entertain

Rating: 10/10 (19 April 2006)

The comments and reviews (both amateur and professional) on this film here at IMDb and elsewhere seem to run at polarized ends of the spectrum: you either love it or hate it. In my experience, that usually indicates a great, provocative movie that sinks its hooks into you emotionally, and makes you think. This movie has gotten so far under my skin that I feel the need to add some comments about it in a more personal tone than you will find in my more formal and "intellectual" review at Netflix (under the name Philip Sullivan). First let me be clear that 1) I am a major league movie watcher and fan, and surprisingly 2) I find myself more in love with this movie than I have been with any other film in many years. My tastes are eclectic, and not wed to any particular genre, but I tend to get hooked by the tragic, romantic, and epic; and good science fiction has been a favorite since modern special effects have made the visual experience credible. I rarely go to the theater these days, generally preferring the convenience and economy of waiting for netflix to deliver my entertainment to my home theater. But my thirteen year old son asked me to take him to V about a month ago, and now I have been back to see it two more times (including a one hour, 40 mile trip to see it in IMAXno better indication of movie love than that). People who pan this movie seem to fall into two basic categories: Alan Moore comic book lovers who can't stand the way the Wachowski brothers translated it to the screen; and intellectuals who enjoy picking away at the story, themes, and messages. All literature and all films are imperfect, and you can always find things about a creative work to criticize, sneer at, and devalue. Sure there are some plot holes, over-simplified morality, a blatant political message, Wachowski excesses, and a purposely ambiguous and romanticized view of terrorism. You can level similar, negative criticisms at a host of movies that are considered "Great". To choose just one, think about Casablanca. Talk about over-simplified morality and a blatant political message in a movie! But it has gone on to be considered one of the greatest movies of all time. So come on guys, it's just a movie! ... Entertainment! No one is advocating terrorism, or revolution, but the movie is trying to provoke broader thinking than the narrow, nationalistic, Christian patriotism gripping us since 9/11. In V, director James McTeigue and the writing/producing Wachowskis are melding 2006 box office movie making with a political and moral cautionary tale. If you like your special effect, "action" movies unadulterated by content that makes you think and feel perplexed or uncomfortable, don't go see this movie. If you think narrow morality, right wing conservative politics, and fundamentalist religious beliefs are the direction we should be going in, you won't like this film because it tells a story in which those beliefs take us back to fascist totalitarianism. On a superficial viewing you could say V is just the Wachowskis doing "Matrix meets 1984 by way of The Count of Monte Cristo". But I think you'd do better to delve deeper on both an emotional and idea level. Action, drama, mood, mystery, romance, tragedy, political intrigue, special effects that go "boom", great and moving acting, and perfectly matched music.this film has all of that. So, if you think you are anything like me, go see it. You'll love it too!