V for Vendetta

V for Vendetta

Diala Esreb

Personal Rating: 8.5/10

Imdb Rating: 8.2/10 (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0434409/)

Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 7.3/10 (http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/v_for_vendetta/)

"People shouldn't be afraid of their government. Governments should be afraid of their people"

 - Alan Moore, V for Vendetta

V for Vendetta Critique

V for Vendetta is a film set in a false reality where England is ruled by an oppressive government, and it’s about a terrorist named “V” (Hugo Weaving) whose main task is to empower the people and overthrow the regime. The film is based on a graphic novel by Alan Moore. “V” is a freedom fighter attempting to stimulate a revolution against their fascist government. Evey (Natalie Portman), a working class girl, gets entangled in V’s mission and ends up bringing an end to the government, and a start to the people.

This movie brings attention to the truth of how corrupt government and politics are. While politicians lie to hide the truth, this movie is a lie to exhibit it. This idea is brought up throughout the movie. The idea that artists use a false image to hide what they want to say, which in turn allows them to say it. It shows us that art is normally a metaphor for something real. The reaction the public had to this movie, further proves the point. Many political activist groups have interpreted this movie as a symbol of the oppression of the government. An activist group called “Anonymous” sport the same Guy Fawkes mask that V wears in the film when they appear in public. This movie has become an allegory to the resistance to political and economic oppression.

The cinematography of this movie is interesting because it is very dark and gloomy which relates to the story and the characters in it. Most of the light comes from the fireworks/explosions that V sets off whenever he is attacking parliament, and it symbolizes the fact that authority reigns in the dark, and we can only fight back to find light. Another aspect of symbolism I found interesting was that in the movie, whenever the chancellor would speak to the government workers he would be projected on a giant screen showing that he is greater than everyone, but when we meet him in real life we realize that he is the same as us, the people. This illustrates the fact that we are all equal and there is no one greater than another.

I personally liked this movie and I think many people should watch it. It is captivating, and the acting is magnificent. I enjoyed it and I think others will too.