Sunday, March 19, 2006
V for Vendetta
Just caught this movie. Starring the lovely Natalie Portman and "Agent Smith" Hugo Weaving, this is one GREAT action-political treat, packed back-to-back with action and intrigue. I've only seen Portman as Queen Amidhala (sp?) in the Star Wars movies, so it was quite a refreshing change to see her in a serious role, and boy can she act. She brings out the fear, the confusion, and the hard-jawed determination in her character so well that you actually feel for her.
Weaving is the prose-spouting, cool as ice V. As in his other famous roles as Elrond in Lord Of The Rings and as Agent Smith in The Matrix series, he's really in his element spouting really impressive sounding BIG sentences with even BIGGER words in a calm soothing voice just as he sends you to your Maker, ala Agent Smith. His presumably deformed face hidden behind a mask for the entire movie, his voice and posturing were the only way he communicates with the audience, and yet he connects. No other masked character have had such rapport with the audience since Darth Vader.
Its been a long time since I've seen a movie that is not only exciting for its action sequences, but also heavy on the political message. I would give this at least an 8/10 rating, maybe even 9/10.
The great fight sequences aside, the message about a future English government ( slogan : "England prevails") that uses fear as a weapon to cow its own citizens into giving it more and more power, is quite relevant today. And leaves me thinking about how it might apply to me. I wonder, in the cinema filled with educated, English speaking fellow-countrymen, how many of them actually see the parallels in the movie and in real life ?
Governments, from the mighty USA to the UK regularly use the spectre of war, civil unrest, terrorism, and a hundred other dreadful scenarios to frighten their citizens into action, into alertness against these threats, and ultimately, into giving the government even more sweeping powers.
The Patriot Act is one such example ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patriot_act ). The act was passed swiftly and with very little resistence in Congress after the 911 incident. The Americans, fearful of futher acts of terrorism, gave their full support to a law that infringes their rights to free speech, free press, human rights and privacy. It would have been unthinkable that the United States, a country proud and protective of its freedom of speech and press, would have accepted this just a few years ago. But when motivated by fear, humans are willing to give up anything, including their most cherished possessions, their most sacred rights, and even their loved ones, to save their own skins.
The message here is that, once that happens, the government then acts to protect its powers and to give itself even MORE power, resulting in a regime that is draconian and merciless. Dissidents who as much as mock the leaders are swiftly and mercilessly punished. Any acts of defiance are met with violence, torture and execution. No longer a government by the people for the people, it becomes a government of A FEW people OVER the people.
Benjamin Franklin once said "People who give up their liberty for security deserve neither".
Chew on it.
Weaving is the prose-spouting, cool as ice V. As in his other famous roles as Elrond in Lord Of The Rings and as Agent Smith in The Matrix series, he's really in his element spouting really impressive sounding BIG sentences with even BIGGER words in a calm soothing voice just as he sends you to your Maker, ala Agent Smith. His presumably deformed face hidden behind a mask for the entire movie, his voice and posturing were the only way he communicates with the audience, and yet he connects. No other masked character have had such rapport with the audience since Darth Vader.
Its been a long time since I've seen a movie that is not only exciting for its action sequences, but also heavy on the political message. I would give this at least an 8/10 rating, maybe even 9/10.
The great fight sequences aside, the message about a future English government ( slogan : "England prevails") that uses fear as a weapon to cow its own citizens into giving it more and more power, is quite relevant today. And leaves me thinking about how it might apply to me. I wonder, in the cinema filled with educated, English speaking fellow-countrymen, how many of them actually see the parallels in the movie and in real life ?
Governments, from the mighty USA to the UK regularly use the spectre of war, civil unrest, terrorism, and a hundred other dreadful scenarios to frighten their citizens into action, into alertness against these threats, and ultimately, into giving the government even more sweeping powers.
The Patriot Act is one such example ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patriot_act ). The act was passed swiftly and with very little resistence in Congress after the 911 incident. The Americans, fearful of futher acts of terrorism, gave their full support to a law that infringes their rights to free speech, free press, human rights and privacy. It would have been unthinkable that the United States, a country proud and protective of its freedom of speech and press, would have accepted this just a few years ago. But when motivated by fear, humans are willing to give up anything, including their most cherished possessions, their most sacred rights, and even their loved ones, to save their own skins.
The message here is that, once that happens, the government then acts to protect its powers and to give itself even MORE power, resulting in a regime that is draconian and merciless. Dissidents who as much as mock the leaders are swiftly and mercilessly punished. Any acts of defiance are met with violence, torture and execution. No longer a government by the people for the people, it becomes a government of A FEW people OVER the people.
Benjamin Franklin once said "People who give up their liberty for security deserve neither".
Chew on it.
