Spontaneous Musings

[The problem with reading reviews, whether they are book, movie, music, or television is you have to figure out if you and the reviewer share the same tastes, attitudes, or interests. If you don't, chances are you will not agree with the reviewer. A good reviewer gives you enough information about the movie, book, what-have-you without giving away the story and enough to let you know whether or not you will agree with the reviewer's opinion on the work. Many professional reviewers, I've discovered, make the mistake of coming across too arrogant and appear to think their opinion matters far more than it does, much like the critic, M. Night Shyalaman successfully skewers in Lady in the Water. This review is no more or less than my perception of V for Vendetta and in some respects is more of an analysis than a critique. Take from it what you will.]

V for Vendetta is based on a graphic novel by Alan Moore and is directed/produced by the Wachwoski Brothers, the same guys who did the Matrix films. If you are familar with either creator and do not like their works, chances are you won't like this film. Moore's comics, including The Swamp Thing, The Killing Joke, Promethea, Watchman, and The League of Extraordinary Gentleman tend to be like most comics and fantasy novels written by men, a tad like a male romance novel - violent, the woman controlled or subordinated by the male (Swamp Thing/Watchman), or taught by him to be what she can be as if she were a child and he the adult (Promothea/League), or if she is an educated, powerful female in her own right, crippled (The Killing Joke) or seen as only powerful because she is "beautiful" (the beautiful but not overly intelligent woman with ugly man is a trend in the male centric romance novel). It's not necessarily misogynistic, no more so than most Westerns were and are, or for that matter Raymond Chandler detective novels. Frank Miller's novels do the same thing - violent, male centric novels, where the women are fantasy figures little more.

I tend to be more tolerant of these type of stories than many women are, since I adore Westerns and noir films -two genres that are not necessarily favorable in their depictions of women or depict strong women. In college, more than one female student or professor berated me for my love of the art form. How can you stand something that depicts women, people of your own sex, in such a derogatory fashion? Where women have almost no roles and are treated as merely sidekicks or romanticized objects? Aren't you ashamed of yourself? Ah, but I've read romance novels written by women and they are guilty of the same things, sometimes in reverse. I'm interested in the story, the evolution of the characters, the mythology or thematic meaning - I tend to not care that much about, since there are times that it is less clear and often up to the viewer/reader to interpret based on their own background and experience. That is not to say, I don't see it nor are not disturbed by it at times. Just that it doesn't always bother me. It depends. An example is Sin City, a film that can best be described as a hyper-realized male romance novel. I liked it for what it was. I did not bother reading the disturbing metaphors, but let it rest as just a fun cinematic ride. Did the same thing with the tv show M*A*SH*, which got better regarding the female roles as it moved forward, but much less fun and snarky. At any rate, I knew when I rented the film V for Vendetta that I would be disturbed by how Evie was handled, that comes with the territory when you read or see films based on noirish graphic novels written by Frank Miller or Alan Moore.

As mentioned above V for Vendetta is a film based on Alan Moore's complex political/noir/science fiction graphic novel that takes place during the Margret Thatcher/Regan era, which has been condensed and abridged for the screen as well as updated. It now takes place in the not too distance future, a future that could be a possible outcome of the Bush/Tony Blair era. The film pays homage to three works: The Counte of Monte Cristo, which it even refers to, 1984 (John Hurt who plays the dictator in V, plays the political prisoner in 1984), and Pgymallion.

( review for V for Vendetta cut for plot spoilers, since this film is impossible to analyse or discuss without them. )