“V for Vendetta” (2005)
A cinematic debut for the ages from James McTeigue.
Now nearly 18 years since its initial release, it seems rather apt that I re-release my initial rambling musings on V For Vendetta as I have a simple rule of thumb in that I tend to judge progress in adult generations of 18 years. My son for instance will never know an existence prior to the advent of the internet. What were my political thoughts a generation ago? What were yours? How have they changed, if indeed they have or, as in my son’s case, how do you now view this incredible film a generation on from its original release? Or are you one of the lucky ones hovering around my son’s age and coming to this film for the first time?
That’s the exciting crux of this brief introduction. Why? Because I adore this film and have the baggage of a generation’s worth of information on the world pre this being released in 2005 and so I already had a firm opinion on what this film represented a generation ago, let alone how I regard it all these years later. I see V For Vendetta as a subversive call to arms, an anti Establishment rant AND peaceful resolution to an Orwellian 1984 group think world that was already firmly in place a generation ago and is now just tinkering with the edges of totalitarian control across every societal facet of our lives. History, words and commonly used phrases are all placed into the memory hole of lives of shortened attention spans deluged in a merger of State and Corporate power, control and, as brilliantly shown here, an Establishment Media reinforcing an established message, a controlled narrative and a vexatious, vaudevillian carnival show.
Penning these introductory words in the first week of a new year that will be exactly as upside down as the last one, witness just this week the further release of the “Twitter Files” proving, without the need for odious and Orwellian “Fact Checkers”, that the USA Government, that bastion of free speech and democracy (stop laughing at the back!) colluded and conspired (yes, an active, present day conspiracy!) to ban, quieten or simply delete people from Twitter with the active agreement and participation of the social media platform, who also had tens of Government Agents working inside Twitter itself. What larks!
I realise this isn’t news to you as I’m sure you saw the arrest and detention of hundreds of Twitter employees and members, lest we forget, of the American Government and their secret tentacles in the CIA and FBI? You saw all this on the rolling “News” bulletins didn’t you or at least the wall to wall 24/7, 365 days a week coverage of the Fascism openly on display and the smashing of human rights by a collusion between State and Corporate powers?
You saw all this, right?
Right?
A generation on from its original release I am at least heartened that a new breed of the human family are seeing this film for a first time and wall papering our collective Matrix with memes, quotes, references and how they see the horrible parallels to the life and prison being slowly and surely closed around us all.
The battle for our human species was lost a long time ago.
But I’m at least heartened that a new generation is seeing through the deliberate upside down absurdity.
So much for all that!
V For Vendetta was director James McTeigue’s feature film debut and my subversive ramblings are reproduced in full below or should you wish to read my thoughts on the first three films of his cinematic career, please see the link immediately below.
“Remember, Remember the 5th of November, the gunpowder treason and plot”
“There are of course those that do not want us to speak. I expect even now orders are being shouted into telephones and men with guns will soon be on their way. Why? Because while the truncheon may be used in lieu of conversation, words will always retain their power. Words offer the means to meaning for those that will listen, the enunciation of the truth and the truth is, there is something terribly wrong with this country isn’t there? Cruelty and injustice, intolerance and oppression and where once you had the freedom to object, to think and speak as you saw fit you now have censors and systems of surveillance coercing your conformity and soliciting your submission”.
“Beneath this mask is an idea and ideas are bulletproof”
“A revolution without dancing is a revolution not worth having”.
Thus is “V” (Hugo Weaving) a masked revolutionary hero who whilst being a loquacious and eloquent orator is also an expert of subversion, confusion and anarchy, frustrated at an oppressive Government taking over and taking complete control of the lives of the UK populace. A freedom fighter seeking to right the wrongs for both the population as a whole as well as wrecking revenge on high profile personalities that as the narrative unfolds clearly deserve their comeuppance. V is many things but anything other than the terrorist portrayed by the oppressive Government and their mouthpiece the “British Television Network”. Their job is “to report the news, not fabricate it. That’s the Government’s job” however V is quickly painted as the villainous terrorist and the Nation’s newest threat but by breaking into the very network TV that provides the Government sponsored news V is able to make an immediate connection with the population and more importantly to make them think beyond what is presented to them as fact and to question the very fabric of the oppressive, surveillance filled society that surrounds them.
V is an every man, an idea, a purpose and a figure head for rebellion and revolution against the suffocating dystopian society of a near future England under the control of a neo Fascist Government that watches and hears everything via their suffocating surveillance and nightly curfews. V is also partial to Shakespeare, to dancing to “Cry Me a River” or “The Girl from Ipanema”, cooking and re-taking valuable pieces of artwork from the aptly titled “Ministry of Objectionable Ownership” but we’re getting ahead of ourselves! Here’s the opening 13 minutes of a two hour film which sets the scene for an incredible cinematic debut feature from James McTeigue as well as introducing a sizeable cast of characters to come.
V for Vendetta opens with ominous black and while toned opening titles including a reference to “DC Comics” on whose graphic novels the film is based. Against the background of a completely black slide the English folk rhyme of “Remember, Remember the 5th of November” is recited as a narration by an unseen young lady before this is dissolved into a sepia coloured re-enactment of the foiled plot of Guy Fawkes in 1605 to blow up the Houses of Parliament. The re-enactment follows his capture and eventual public hanging before a completely black screen returns for the end of her narration as she presciently announces that ideas have worth and value, that “they do not bleed” and that a single man taught her the value of ideas and truth and she will never forget this man or what 5th November represents ever again.
As the narration ends a blood red and fiery title slide announces “V for Vendetta”.
We cut to the first of many television rants from “Shock Jock” and all round odious creature “Lewis Prothero” (Roger Allam), the self titled “Voice of London” on the British Television Network as he espouses violent retribution on the United States of America by invoking the Boston Tea Party revolution of the 18th Century and the reasons for their current demise in the western world as a lack of “Godliness”. During Prothero’s obnoxious continuing rant to camera, the camera cuts brilliantly between a young woman and an older man sitting at their respective dressing tables preparing and dressing for an evening out. Both of the unnamed characters have their televisions on and continue dressing almost simultaneously as the clever cuts between them display. Neither is particularly watching the repulsive actions of Prothero but as the young lady finishes brushing her hair we cut for the first time to the real hero of our film.
Facing his dressing table mirror “V” (Hugo Weaving) affixes his distinctive mask for the first time whilst Prothero prophetically exclaims that “someone is watching over this country” however V is clearly not the someone he has in mind! Meanwhile, V is now fully dressed, all in black and the still unnamed young lady equally fully dressed and looking at Prothero’s continuing rant with utter disdain. The problems of the country can be attributed to “Immigrants, Muslims, Homosexuals and Terrorists” but thankfully both the young lady and V have had enough of his vile verbiage and swiftly turn off their respective televisions before the young lady, looking at a nearby clock and realising she is already late, rushes out of her apartment.
We cut to loudspeakers informing the local residents of the curfew that is now in effect and “for your protection” before quickly cutting between the footsteps of both the young lady and V as they make their way through these same streets. The young lady, fearing to walk straight ahead instead cuts through a nearby alleyway however she walks straight into the arms of a waiting “Fingerman” or a member of the Government’s Secret Police. Quickly the young lady is surrounded on all sides by two further Fingermen and fearing for her life produces a small can of mace or pepper spray. The odious Fingermen threaten her with sexual violence if she doesn’t acquiesce to their needs and she is quickly overwhelmed and can only cry out for help.
Enter our hero!
He dispenses quick, swift and severe justice to the Fingermen with the young lady cowering in a corner and while still brandishing the mace/pepper spray asks who he is. V, forever with a flair for the dramatic, answers thus:
“Voila! In view, a humble vaudevillian veteran cast vicariously as both victim and villain by the vicissitudes of fate. This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is a vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished. However, this valorous visitation of a bygone vexation stands vilified and vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin vanguarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition! The only verdict is vengeance, a vendetta, held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous. Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose, so let me simply add that it’s my very good honour to meet you and you may call me “V”.
Dumbfounded, the young lady can only nervously ask “Are you a crazy person?” to which V laughs and responds that “they” will certainly think so. However, he has a question of his own, who is this beautiful young lady that he’s rescued? “Evey” (Natalie Portman) is the frightened reply to which V simply says “E V…of course you are”. V doesn’t believe in coincidence and is convinced they were destined to meet on this evening and assuring Evey that he means her no harm he would like to invite his new companion to a very special musical performance and albeit reluctantly, Evey finally agrees.
We cut to a brightly lit London sky with V and Evey admiring the view from a rooftop opposite The Old Bailey, however she remains sceptical about any musical performance and notes that V doesn’t have any instruments. V then swiftly produces a conductors baton from beneath his dark cloak and dedicates the impending concerto to “Madam Justice, in honour of the holiday she seems to have taken in these parts”. As Big Ben chimes signalling midnight and the first seconds of November 5th are upon us, V begins majestically waving his wand yet there is no music. A quick cut to Evey again portrays her scepticism however slowly, growing louder and louder across the multitude of the Government’s oppressive loudspeakers that fill the neighbouring streets come the strains of Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture to the bemusement of both Evey and the residents now roused from their slumbers and filling the streets below. As the overture reaches it’s crescendo V strikes at the Old Bailey with his wand and the old lady topples from her perch amid a huge explosion that continues to rip the entire building to pieces and with fireworks surrounding the huge explosion that’s engulfing the building, the scene ends with Evey’s open mouthed astonishment and fireworks rising into the night sky in a colourful shape of a V.
A quick cut follows and as the breathless opening thirteen minutes reaches it’s conclusion we are greeted with an extreme close up of “High Chancellor Adam Sutler” (John Hurt) dispensing orders via the telescreen to his dark suited Government Investigators namely “Finch” (Stephen Rea), “Creedy” (Tim Pigott-Smith), “Dominic” (Rupert Graves), “Dascomb” (Ben Miles) and “Etheridge” (Eddie Marsan). His orders are simple: find the culprits, add the 1812 Overture to the “Blacklist” (Memory Hole anyone?) and for Protheroe to spin the explosion of the Old Bailey into a controlled demolition. He simply won’t tolerate chaos returning to the streets of London, the “terrorist” must be caught and, as always “England Prevails”.
Although constantly masked, Hugo Weaving (or Agent Smith from The Matrix trilogy if you prefer) is superb as the loquacious, elegant and indeed eloquent V and finds a partner in crime with Evey whom Natalie Portman infuses every last sinew into a boisterous, never giving up young lady her parents would be proud of. Stephen Rea is superb as the meticulous Government Investigator Finch whom it’s clear from the outset is anything but a compliant officer of the Government and going against the grain, a truth seeker above all else. But of the roles not already noted it is to Stephen Fry we turn for the darkly comedic twists needed in this dystopian tale as TV Host “Dietrich”. Dietrich has his own agenda to rail against both the overbearing TV Network for whom he works and the Government to whom he opposes, however it’s the comedy and warmth that shines through in his performance and this is perfectly encapsulated in his Benny Hill style TV mock up of the current Governmental regime that flies in the face of everyone concerned. It lightens an otherwise very dark (in every sense) film and his lament of “You wear a mask for so long you forget who you were beneath it” perfectly summarises a truly wonderful, if disturbing film.
Written as a graphic novel by Alan Moore and David Lloyd in 1982 and adapted for the screen by The Wachowski’s, this debut feature from James McTeigue immediately entered the public consciousness and Zeitgeist after it’s release in 2005 and nine years later it still retains it’s power to shock and shine a pertinent light on the events of today. The Guy Fawkes mask worn throughout the film by V has now become synonymous the world over with it’s adoption by anti Government and anti Globalisation groups such as Anonymous, the multitude of Occupy groups and the ever growing “99%” groups as a marker (and no doubt in due deference to) the film’s stance against oppressive and Fascistic Governments in collusion with Big Business coupled with the mass surveillance society we all now live under. The film references, and takes inspiration from, a great number of sources and none more so than George Orwell’s eponymous novel 1984 with eerie parallels to today’s surveillance and CCTV spying society through to a single Dictator barking out orders via a “telescreen” to an apathetic populace.
The dictatorial Government here has a slogan of “Strength through Unity. Unity through Faith” which is another eerie parallel to 1984’s odious “War is Peace. Freedom is Slavery. Ignorance is Strength”. There are obvious and distasteful parallels to the German Nazi Party and their expulsion of immigrants and homosexuals as well as the Adam Sutler character that as the film here continues, is seen in an ever increasing dictatorial role. Today’s fear based television news is mirrored by the British Television Network and their spinning of viruses, plagues and pandemics and Protheroe’s horrific rants wouldn’t look out of place on far too many “News” networks to name. The Gunpowder Plot, Phantom of the Opera and The Count of Monte Cristo are also key influences throughout.
V for Vendetta struck an immediate chord with me in 2005 and this has only heightened as the years have rolled on since it’s release. Yes it strikes me as a highly prescient film reflecting the times in which we live, but also as an incredible achievement for a first time Director. Subversive, outspoken and a clarion call to arms? Maybe. Or if you watch those “News” networks long enough, just another damn immigrant terrorist on the loose! V for Vendetta is a towering achievement for Director McTeigue and a cinematic debut to be justly proud of.
Thanks for reading. Just for larks as always, and always a human reaction rather than spoilers galore. My three most recently published film articles are linked below or there’s well over 180 blog articles (with 350+ individual film reviews) within my archives from which to choose:
