V For Vendetta (2005)

"Entertaining and solidly crafted.  John DeFore, Hollywood Reporter
"Enjoyable, smartly designed and superbly acted thriller that actually gives you something to think about while you're watching stuff get blown up.  Matthew Turner, Viewlondon
"[An] enjoyable -- if occasionally irresponsible -- comic-book thriller.  Jami Bernard, New York Daily News
"This is a bold movie with a strong story and script and absolutely outstanding direction.  Ross Anthony, Hollywood Report Card
"A compelling, rousing and at times strangely moving entertainment.  Glenn Kenny, Premiere
"Entertaining and solidly crafted.  John DeFore, The Hollywood Reporter
"Spectacular and exhilarating.  Michael Wolff, Vanity Fair
"Truly an outstanding movie. The acting was phenomenal, the screenplay was brilliant, and the concept was executed perfectly.  Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
"Richly satisfying entertainment the way movies are at their best, when they prod you to think.  Ruthe Stein, San Francisco Chronicle
"As the revolutionary V, Weaving is mostly marvelous...  Sight and Sound
"...visually exhilarating, provocative and disturbing...an action thriller that also stimulates thought.  USA Today

Editor's Note V FOR VENDETTA: From DC comics and the Wachowski Brothers (THE MATRIX) comes this tale of revolution in an England of the future, one gone fearful and fascist; anyone different, from homosexuals to free thinking artists, is "black bagged" and subjected to torture and inhumane medical experiments. Hugo Weaving stars as V, the mysterious knife-carrying masked avenger who has lightning reflexes, lots of explosives, and intentions to blow up Parliament. He's also on a vendetta against the evil powermongers who made him the lonely monster he is. Natalie Portman is the innocent waif who saves him and winds up hiding out in his nifty secret lair, which is filled with forbidden books, art, and a jukebox that plays Cat Power and Julie London's "Cry Me a River." Meanwhile, there's a hangdog police inspector (Stephen Rea) picking up their trail, and a plethora of evil British government types regularly bullied into action by the intensely odious "Grand Chancellor" (John Hurt). Director James McTiegue keeps all these events unfolding at a hypnotically rhythmic pace, like the burning of a long, unstoppable fuse. Some may balk at the film's seemingly pro-explosive, pro-terrorist stance, but to look deeper is to realize the film merely provides a funhouse mirror of our actual messed-up world, something that is true of all the best science fiction. V certainly fits that category, especially with Natalie Portman in the lead, as lovely and riveting an actress as a beleaguered nation could ever hope for.

	Hugo Weaving
	Natalie Portman
	Stephen Fry
	Stephen Rea
	John Hurt
	Natasha Wightman
	Roger Allam
	Rupert Graves
	Adrian Biddle - Cinematographer
	Andy Wachowski, et. al. - Writer
	Dario Marianelli - Original Music By
	Grant Hill, et. al. - Producer
	James McTeigue - Director
	Martin Walsh - Editor
	Alan Moore - Based On Graphic Novel By
	Andy Wachowski - Screenplay
	Ben Waisbren - Executive Producer
	Joel Silver - Producer
	Larry Wachowski - Screenplay
	Marco Bittner Rosser, et. al. - Art Director
	Martin Walsh - Editor
	Owen Paterson - Production Designer

Rolling Stone
3.5 stars out of 4 -- "The explosive V FOR VENDETTA is powered by ideas that are not computer-generated. It's something rare in Teflon Hollywood: a movie that sticks with you." 03/23/2006 p.74-75

Uncut
"[M]any of Moore's concerns remain intact....It shares the stylistic panache of the MATRIX movies..." 04/01/2006 p.133

Premiere
4 stars out of 4 -- "[A] compelling, rousing and at times strangely moving entertainment." 04/01/2006 p.32

Sight and Sound
"As the revolutionary V, Weaving is mostly marvelous..." 05/01/2006 p.81-82

USA Today
"This dark and stylized movie is visually exhilarating, provocative and disturbing. Set in a slightly futuristic world, V FOR VENDETTA is an action thriller that also stimulates thought." 03/17/2006 p.4E

Total Film
3 stars out of 5 -- "[T]he best adaptation of an Alan Moore graphic novel yet to hit the screen..." 08/01/2006 p.96

Ultimate DVD
5 stars out of 5 -- "A bravura action romp with all the flair you might expect from a film produced by Matrix creators the Wachowski brothers....Excellent." 08/01/2006 p.85

Entertainment Weekly
"[T]his grandiose popcorn movie is slathered with ideas, theories, and intricate proclamations about he nature of freedom, government, and individual will..." -- Grade: B 08/04/2006 p.53

Rolling Stone 10 of 10
Truly an outstanding movie. The acting was phenomenal, the screenplay was brilliant, and the concept was executed perfectly. Hugo Weaving was extremely convincing as an actor through his ability to conceal himself behind a concept. The viewer felt for the character despite the attrocities it commited against others. It was able to suspend its disbelief for the greater good. A must-see. It is a movie that may alter the perspective of those of us who experienced 9/11, war in general, and our country as a whole. If it doesn't alter or inspire it, it certainly will provoke it. - Peter Travers

Chicago Sun-Times 8 of 10
"V for Vendetta" has been written and co-produced by the Wachowski brothers, Andy and Larry, whose "Matrix" movies also were about rebels holding out against a planetary system of control. This movie is more literary and less dominated by special effects (although there are plenty), and is filled with ideas that are all the more intriguing because we can't pin down the message...The character of V and his relationship with Evey (Natalie Portman) inescapably reminds us of the Phantom of the Opera. V and the Phantom are both masked, move through subterranean spaces, control others through the leverage of their imaginations and have a score to settle. One difference, and it is an important one, is that V's facial disguise does not move (unlike, say, the faces of a Batman villain) but is a mask that always has the same smiling expression...With most action thrillers based on graphic novels, we simply watch the sound and light show. "V for Vendetta," directed by James McTeigue, almost always has something going on that is actually interesting, inviting us to decode the character and plot and apply the message where we will. There are times when you think the soundtrack should be supplying "Anarchy in the UK" by the Sex Pistols. The movie ends with a violent act that left me, as a lover of London, intensely unhappy; surely V's enemy is human, not architectural. - Roger Ebert

ReelViews 9 of 10
V for Vendetta represents 2006's first memorable motion picture - a visually sumptuous concoction that combines political allegory, bloody action, and a few stunning cinematic moments into a solid piece of entertainment. While it's true that the film at times overreaches and its connection to its graphic novel inspiration is tenuous, V for Vendetta mostly succeeds playing in the same sci-fi thriller arena as Aeon Flux and Ultraviolet. First-time director James McTeigue is relentless when it comes to pacing, rarely letting things flag...V for Vendetta plunders a variety of pop culture sources. Some of the references are from the graphic novel; others are unique to the movie. Without overthinking or digging too deep, viewers will be able to identify parallels with 1984, The Matrix, The Phantom of the Opera, Zorro, and even Star Wars. V for Vendetta can be seen as a political allegory, but it's not as blatant a comment on current events as some reviewers might claim. Still, if you want to go down that road, the associations are there to explore. For those who would prefer to simply enjoy this textured, futuristic tale of love, loss, and mayhem, V for Vendetta satisfies for the entirety of its two-plus hour run. - James Berardinelli