Most subversive mainstream film ever?

Rating: 8/10 (14 March 2006)

We, the "developed" nations, are a controlled by fear. The media continuously bombards us with stories of terrorism, disease and disasters. The bigger the fear is, the more we allow our governments to control us, to dissolve our civil liberties.
In various nations people can be held with no trial or charge simply for looking a certain way, having faith in non-Christian gods, or being brown and having a beard. Claw for a hand optional. These people are tortured and humiliated.
Terrorism is a real threat, there is no denying it. There is only avoidance of the cause. Very little asking why, but a lot of finger pointing and knee-jerk reactions. These reactions are caused by fear but simply fuel terrorism, like a self-fulfilling prophecy it scares more and more people every day while the reactions fuel the anger of the terrorists. If we, the people, force our governments to examine and eliminate the causes of terrorism we will eliminate our own fear. This is unlikely to happen as the governments will no longer have the power to control us. The power of nightmares is strong, the politics of idealism long gone, we are firmly in the grip of the politics of fear.
This may lead to the situation presented in 'V for Vendetta'. A Naziesque totalitarian government keeps a tight grip on the citizens of Britain. Evey part of the media is controlled and every event is spun for the benefit of keeping the public in fear and the government in power. Until one man decides to fight back.
So is V the most subversive mainstream film to ever hit cinemas? Possibly. Is it a cheesy b-movie with bad acting and forced dialogue? Definitely ... and that's why I think it's brilliant. It's top level allows the subtext to get plastered on thick, and it's all the better for it.