Cheering for the monster.

Rating: 6/10 (15 January 2013)

This movie sports great atmosphere, great characters and an amazing plot. So why do I hate it with such passion? The answer is not that straightforward.
Let me start off with saying I did not read the graphic novel and have no opinion on it. I want to get around to reading it some day as I think there might be some answers in there about things that keep bugging me about the movie. However, I'll judge the movie on its own merits. Any movie should speak for itself.
Alright, on to the movie. So what is this movie about exactly? On the surface it seems to be about freedom from oppressive governments. However, that's not the whole story is it? The protagonist (at least I assume V is the protagonist) is a criminal and a terrorist. So... it's about morally gray stuff isn't it?
Well, that's where the problem comes in. The movie never goes into the gray vs. black debate. V is supposed to be our hero; the one who saves us all. But never in the entire movie does he do anything heroic. He blows stuff up and kills people.
Now, I don't want to give the impression that every movie is supposed to be about heroes and villains. I love the morally gray protagonists, going their own way, killing people until someone calls them on it. And there's my point with this movie. That moment doesn't come. V is just going on with his big plan and at the last moment, when he is almost discovered, we find out that the populace loves him and he is their hero.
Now, I understand that the government is evil and we are supposed to hate them (at least, in this movie). But never, in the entire movie, do I get the feeling that V is any better than them.
But maybe I'm going about this the wrong way. We are not really supposed to feel a bond with V. That's what Evey (Nathalie Portman) is for in this movie. She is the one who makes us feel anything here. She succeeds there partly. One place where she fails in my perspective is in making V any more human. Her vulnerability makes him into a monster.
So, what am I supposed to feel and think after all this? Am I supposed to feel that V is justified in his crusade, just because the people he's fighting are even worse? Am I supposed to lighten up about what he does? Frankly, this movie made me angry. Just because V is never called on the fact that he's a monster.
However, I am forced to give it a 6/10, just because of the fact that it is so very well made. I might hate this movie with a passion, but I can't deny the fact that this movie made me feel things and made me experience something.