Remember remember, the 5th of November

V for review

How does a man write a reView of a moVie based on a bookthat changed his life? Where does one start to write about the celluloid’s mimicking passages of text that made a young man actually start to think?

Well Very simply, one begins at the beginning and moVes forward onto the end of the writing piece. It helps to haVe a cleVer opening line though. And it neVer hurts to haVe a joke that carries on throughout the piece either.

I’d like to state, for the record, that Alan Moore is a crackpot. But he is perhaps one of the best comic book writers eVer. “V for Vendetta” is one of this best works, so of course Hollywood had to attempt to translate his anti fascism pro personal freedom tale into a 10-dollar ticket.

Well now dear reader, I’m sure you’re only reading this to find out weather or not I found it to be worth the price of admission. If you’re reading this expecting to see spoilers, and descriptions of where the moVie deVeated from the book, then you’re going to be disappointed.

The Internet is full of self-described critics, each of them their only credentials an ISP address, and a keyboard. This does not a critic make. A critic is one who reViews and discusses the work critically. If a critic hears one sentence in the movie, and bases their entire opinion on that one sentence, then they haVe critiqued one sentence and not the film itself.

The worst of all self-described critics, is the self-described comic book fan turned film critic. Any change to the story, any single missed line or segment of story brings down the wrath of these keyboard warriors. Safely hidden behind their ISP address they broadcast their message of displeasure and entertainment unrest, confident that they themselVes could have written a better film while sitting in their bathtub.

V had a message, he had a story to tell, and he was an idea. Once an idea has been born, it is nearly impossible to kill. It takes a lot more effort then a troll writing from his bathtub could possibly put forward. V’s message is alive and well on the big screen. As for V’s identity, it is as obscured and hidden as it eVer was on the printed page.

written April 9, 2006 after viewing on IMAX