Doesn't have much of a brain but delivers sheer, pure entertainment

Rating: 7/10 (12 July 2008)

At its peak in the late 1980's and early to mid 1990's, the action movie genre provided cinema-goers, perhaps for the first time since the Golden Age of cinema, with a broad, encompassing entertainment package that was impossible to resist: big-name movie stars, laughs, thrills, and excitement all wrapped up in an easily digestible package that doesn't require too much work to unwrap. Not that easy accessibility is a bad thing, especially during those times, when despite the audience's readiness to consume, filmmakers would still give it their all and each film was a labour of love.
In recent years, though, with the novelty of the superhero movie increasing tenfold in popularity, the movie-going audience was provided with a new, easily consumable source for their excitement and entertainment which promised fantasy and science-fiction along with majestic action set-pieces, and the traditional action-thriller genre was reduced to shallow, bland fare such as xXx, Mission: Impossible III or Bad Company, with a few beacons of light such as The Bourne trilogy serving as anomalous but much-welcomed exceptions. Now, with Wanted, we finally get a clear-cut action-thriller that truly, sincerely, straightforwardly delivers everything we, the viewing audience, expect and call for to be entertained.
The plot itself is really quite ridiculous, but naturally, it doesn't really matter. The thing is, Wanted grabs you right from the get-go and doesn't really let loose, right through the end credits. The action scenes  and they are plentiful  are so incredibly well-conceived, well-executed, and well-choreographed that one tends to easily ignore the rather silly plot devices employed to set up said action scenes. Car chases, hand-to-hand combat, intense gun fights: the film has it all, and every scene employs incredibly skillful craftwork in terms of choreography, stunt work, cinematography, editing and visual effects, of which there are many and which are impressively seamlessly integrated into the scenes, action-oriented or otherwise. The haywire cinematography and heavily rock-oriented soundtrack also contribute to the nonstop adrenaline rush of the movie.
The strong cast also undeniably contributes to the film working so well. Angelina Jolie is majestic and ascendant as the mentor, and proves once again that she's quite a sufficient action star, combining grace and ferocity in her performance. Morgan Freeman is regal as the wise overseer, but also gets to prove that he has a tougher, rougher side. But the most impressive turn is provided by James McAvoy who, between The Last King of Scotland, Atonement and now Wanted, has proved that he is a truly talented leading man. And it's not just his spot-on American accent: McAvoy supplies another one of the major reasons why the film works: he provides us with a believable, down-to-earth character we can totally identify with. So just as he is in awe being pulled in to this new, intense, high-octane new world of conspiracies, car chases and lots of killing, we the audience are right along side with him.
Ultimately, the great action-thrillers of years past, like Die Hard or Lethal Weapon, worked so well primarily based on that strong human connection with the lead characters. The action movies of recent years, besides being quite generic and bland in terms of their plot and execution, featuring by-the-numbers cinematography and the same stunts and action scenes we've already seen, are sub-par primarily because they lack truly down-to-earth characters we can genuinely identify with. Also, the film is so relentless in its over-the-top intensity, wild cinematography and haywire action scenes, I was so engaged in it that I didn't even feel the need to use my brain even once. So sure, Wanted doesn't have much of a brain nor much of a heart, but it delivers sheer, pure entertainment in its most absolute, heart-pumping, seat-grabbing, eye-popping form.