Ridiculous...and good.

Rating: 7/10 (3 January 2009)

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I detested the trailers and I'm not a fan of gene-pool lottery winner Angelina Jolie, so one movie I never thought I'd sit down to watch was Timur Bekmambetov's action orgy Wanted. Problem was, I kept coming across reviews that wrote about this film being a pleasant surprise. Considering all I had to lose was an hour and a half, I thought I'd give it a shot. Surprise, surprise...Wanted actually is a pleasant surprise.
This surprise didn't come easy and it most definitely didn't come early. The first fifteen minutes or so was nothing less than a flip imitation of Fight Club, so lame that my finger hovered over the "stop" button on my computer. But patience prevailed and once Wesley Gibson's (James McAvoy) fate was altered, there truly was no turning back. When Wanted shifts into second gear, it does so with a resounding thump of unbridled torque. Once Wanted screams aloud that its a thrill ride, it does something few action films ever have the smarts to do - it winks at the audience.
This wink let's us know this isn't the real world, but that this is a movie...and a very silly movie at that. The remainder of Wanted is crammed full of implausibly over-the-top, yet very slick and expertly choreographed action sequences, each one upping the ante of ridiculousness. Wanted reminds us being silly and ridiculous is not the exclusive realm of the Farrelly Brothers, and not since John Woo made an art form out of corny, over-the-top action films has there been something with so much adrenaline and laugh-out-loud silliness as Wanted.
Within this realm of excessive camp, Angelina Jolie fits as snug as silk stockings (not that I would actually know). The more serious she plays her character Fox (even the name is a groan inducing pun), the more you can't hate her freakishly abnormal "good" looks and constant mugging for the camera. If she does take herself this seriously in real life, then she must be excruciating company, but if she has the sense of humor to understand her role here, then props to her. Her cheesy performance is destined to be parodied, yet few parodies will ever come close to besting her own efforts. She delivers every line of dialogue as if it were her last and every cat-like motion she slinks across the screen with is deliberately bon3r baiting.
Beyond Jolie, the cast in Wanted is first rate. McAvoy does the fish-out-of-water routine with ease and Morgan Freeman is, well...Morgan Freeman. The pleasant bonus appearance is Terence Stamp who is, in my mind, one of the most underused actors around. I can't believe I'm saying it, but I had a laugh out loud riot watching Wanted. Never having met John Woo or Timur Bekmambetov, I can't say for sure if they take this junk seriously, but if taking the pi$$ out of a tired genre is their thing, then they're experts at this craft. If, on the other hand, they're not in on the joke...well, at least they're getting rich getting laughed at.