Explosive Tale

Like many others, I was a bit skeptical when this film was in the theaters because the trailers were so spotty about what the movie was actually about. Sad to say, this uninformative nature of movie trailers has become the norm over the past few years, giving just a small glimpse of the story and highlighting the action or special effects rather than attempting to sell a film on it's own merits. Needless to say, I waited for the DVD release and I wish I hadn't.

In a future that has turned darker than most would like to consider, England has become a fascist state much like Hitler's Germany during WWII. The government is controlled by the High Chancellor Adam Sutler (John Hurt) who was elected to this newly created office (in much the same way as Hitler) as the direct result of a horrible biological attack on London that killed hundreds of thousands before a cure was found. Sutler promised the people protection from the wars, terror, and disease that were running rampant in the rest of the world. He unified them under an almost Puritan system of Christian virtues, promising the blessings of God for their unquestioning obedience, pointing forward to a brilliant future where England prevails over all, having cast aside her sinful, decadent past.

The hero, V (Hugo Weaving), is without doubt a terrorist with somewhat superhuman abilities.
He adores the arts and is very well educated and despises everything about the people who are currently in power. He has spent years working underground to rescue items that were placed on the "black list" by Sutler. Everything from music to art to books (he has thousands of books just piled up in his secret underground living quarters). Yet even more than his hatred over what has been done to the arts is what has been done to the people of England, his homeland and a place he loves above all. He wants to change the world, and he acknowledges the power of people, wanting to give them the strength to reclaim themselves and their freedom.

On the night that V is prepared to begin his final year long campaign to free England, he encounters Evie Hammond (Natalie Portman) who is running a bit late on getting to her date with Gordon Deitrich (Steven Fry). This placed her out after curfew and left her to the not so tender mercies of a group of Fingermen (so-called police but really nothing more then thugs, very similar to the SS of Nazi Germany). These brutes attempt to rape her and V intervenes then invites her to witness his "concert" which is to blow up the Bailey with fireworks abound and the 1812 Overture blaring from the city's loudspeaker system.


Deitrich and Chief Inspector Finch (Stephen Rea, who is assigned to investigate V) are also important characters, each trying to make a life for themselves as best they can, trying to do the right thing despite everything around them. Deitrich is a major TV personality with a show much like Carson's "The Tonight Show" and gives us some much needed laughs.

Even though V is out to liberate the people of England from the monstrous government that brought itself to total power, he is also out for revenge, as you can guess from the title. But revenge for what, you ask. V has spent years gathering clues and information as well as contraband that should be preserved. Something terrible was done to him so that the government could then do something even more terrible to everyone else. There are some thoroughly despicable and unfortunately believable characters involved in the chain of events that lead to the current state of affairs that we see in the film. V is not only giving the people their freedom back, he is retaliating for the wrongs done to him. To this end, he leads several people along a merry chase through the darkness while shining a bright light on the horrible deeds that were done in the name of power.

There are some very ugly spells that I would not consider suitable for young children (under 14 years of age or so). There is, of course, lots of killing by gun and knife, as well as a good bit of fisticuffs that might inspire improper behavior in kids. Nothing to really be concerned of there if the young ones have a healthy respect for make believe.

The action is good and the story is well thought out. I really liked the flowery language that V uses quite often (sometimes a bit over the top) and the acting is even top notch. This is a film that has achieved the top shelf of my case and gets viewed with some regularity. A good job by all involved.