V FOR VENDETTA : Interesting, But In The End It's All Too Much...

Rating: 6/10 (31 March 2006)

V FOR VENDETTA
I honestly had little clue what the film was about going into it. I knew a general idea of the controversial topics the film covers, but had no idea how they went about doing it. All I knew was that the movie looked stylish and was generating buzz... so I was happy to go. In the end, I walked away having never been bored... but also unsure as to whether I actually enjoyed the piece or not.
V FOR VENDETTA is a very ambitious film. It takes on a topic much in the same way that MUNICH did (though I know the messages, themes, and histories of the pieces are completely incomparable... I'm not comparing them on anything besides the approach to their topics). Both are films this past year that attempted to present a neutral, unbiased view of terrorism and violence and the pros and cons it brings. For me though, this stance may be bold, but ultimately it does not service the films.
V FOR VENDETTA is a confusing, constantly shifting film with a lot of glossy qualities. It took every ounce of my focus to keep up with what was going on... and the plot is constantly shifting. This made things remain interesting to me, however it was never a film that I could sit back and soak up. It tells the story of a "freedom fighter" of sorts named V... and he terrorizes the country in order to take down Parliament. He believes that people should not fear their government... it should be the other way around. And through violence towards the governmental establishment, he aims to fix the problem.
Meanwhile, a girl named Evie (played by Natalie Portman) gets mixed up in his game. Her parents died fighting for some of V's ideals, and Evie is torn between helping the nations leading terrorist and fighting for what she ultimately believes in.
However, this summary of the plot is a shameful generalization. Their is so much more in the film than that basic outline. Everything the film does it does with beautiful stylization and confident direction. All the elements are there, but for an action movie like this things are ultimately a little too complicated.
I feel like the film they were trying to make and the audience they were trying to reach was far less ambitious then the actual message they were trying to put into everything. For someone to go into this movie completely unaware of the twisting plot that lies ahead of them it all ends up being a bit overwhelming.
I can't fault the movie b/c it is definitely well produced and features strong production elements on every side. The performances are also very solid if nothing remarkable. However, like I said, their was a little bit too much of a message and plot to fit into the movie they hyped this film up to be.
Perhaps I need to watch it again so that I can be familiar with things and sit back and enjoy it more so then focus on following the difficult plot. But on first viewing, V FOR VENDETTA is an admirable, yet very flawed/overambitious effort.
... C ...