THESE FORUMS NOW CLOSED (read only)
Fun Stuff => ENJOY => Topic started by: Leonidas on 12 Mar 2006, 02:45
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Set in a modern Britain (1997) where, after a nuclear war in America, Europe and Africa (bombs were not droped on the UK, but it was obviously affected) goverment fell and chaos and anarchy erupted. After a few years of disease, starvation, and feral gangs, a facist political party took control, and proceeded to stamp order on the country. However, in their political interests they rounded up all people of Asian and African decent, homosexuals, and people who they felt could be politically dangerous, and either killed them off or sent them to concentration camps to die/work/experiment on.
V is such a man. V also being the Roman numeral for the number 5, the room in which he was kept in his cell whilst being experimented on. He escaped the camp he was in, and he proceeds to kill off the people who were in control of the camp. Many of whom have risen to high political stature. In his "mission" he also intends to bring about freedom (anarchy?), and by doing so attacks the corrupt and totalitarian government directly, killing off it's members and attacking such institutions as the Old Bailey and Parliment it'self. On the 5th of November no less....
V is also a man who has kept in touch with a great deal of culture, most of which was destroyed and written out of the history books. Things such as popular music, movies, and literature. He wears a Guy Fawkes mask, and quotes Shakespere. It's clear he's not 100% sane, yet he is the anti-hero.
Portman (Evey) is a young orphan girl who was working in a factory making matches. She tried to take to prostitution in ored to make a little more cash, but on her first night was caught by the "police", who in marshall law were about to rape and kill her. She is rescued by V whilst on his way to a better viewpoint to which witness his demolision of Parliment, and the two strike up an uneasy friendship of sorts.
Personally I can't wait to see this movie adaption. I just hope it lives upto the brilliance of the comic.
People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people.
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It won't.
Might still be an alright film (1. Natalie Portman, 2. Explosions), but I bet you big time it will disapoint compared to the original.
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When you compare almost anything to an original piece of work, whatever the medium, it never really compares. However, if you simply compare movie adaptions to their original work then they are always a disappointment. It's hard to think of any movie adaptions which have been an improvement on the original work. It doesn't mean however that the movie itself will be poor. Accept it for what it is, not for what it isn't.
However, if it does suck I will be pissed. Personally I'll give it a chance before slaying it.
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I kinda wanna see this. I usually don't get too excited over movies, but I really like the art direction I've seen in the movie stills as well as the promo materials. Maybe I just like the color red. I dunno.
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I have an irrationally optimistic feeling about this movie. I imagine this is mostly due to the fact that I've never actually read the comic - I'm going to wait until after I've seen the movie to minimize let-down.
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i am just so glad that it is actually set in britain. i hope 'they' dont euthanise it for american audiences like 'they' made the fat controller sir toppam hat.
but i really want to see this, especially as hugo weaving wouldnt be allowed to show his face in the movie...i think..
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No. Just as in the comic book, V will not be unmasked to show some Tom Cruise lookalike.
What I am curious to see is how they approach Evey's detention in a concentration camp. Will they change the story, or (without wanting to spoil it for those who haven't read the comic) save the original reasoning behind her imprisonment.....?
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I am looking forward to this as well - I am curious to see how closely the movie follows the comic as well, though I have high hopes. I like the choice of Hugo Weaving as 'V' if nothing else.
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Hopefully it will bring the Wachowski brothers back from the suck by not rehashing a tired concept and mixing it with philosophy 101 concepts.
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No. Just as in the comic book, V will not be unmasked to show some Tom Cruise lookalike.
What I am curious to see is how they approach Evey's detention in a concentration camp. Will they change the story, or (without wanting to spoil it for those who haven't read the comic) save the original reasoning behind her imprisonment.....?
I haven't read the comic but I would guess she/he is homosexual?
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Nope. Honestly, I can't tell you the story about her getting imprisoned and tortured/questioned. It really would spoil the movie for you. What I will do however, once the movie is out, and if it has been changed (which I suspect it probably has) then I'll tell you.
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It's getting mixed reviews, with a skew towards 'good' rather than 'bad'. (http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/v_for_vendetta/)
Though the reviews that have read the original novel seem to be overwhelmingly good.
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From the review by Edward Douglas:
When Evey is captured and tortured, the film begins to follow Moore's story verbatim, including a particularly moving subplot some may expect to be cut from the movie, and it's sure to evoke emotion even more than the way it was handled originally.
It's been kept a little vauge deliberately, but I believe (hope) that this might mean that the reasoning behind Eveys capture/torture/interrogation has been kept the same as in the graphic novel.
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Having read the comic some time ago and forgotten a lot of details, I would wholeheartedly suggest this movie to anyone who's read V or not.
I felt it was a wonderful rendition of the story and everything happened how it should have, in my humble opinion.
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I'm not long back from seeing this movie, and in terms of a review, this is my best shot...
As a fan of the comic book I am aware that I went into this movie with perhaps certain expectations. Expectations however I also knew were likely not to be met. As with all comic book adaptations there are certain parts and story lines which have to be removed or played with in order to keep the continuity of the movie. The important part is that if what has been played with and removed been replaced with suitable material. Material which will allow the characters to develop as they should, and will not take away from the story.
Essentially, anything which will try and "Hollywood" the movie is always a bad move in my eyes.
Now it's quite hard to write a full review without giving too much of the story away. Needless to say though that the movie itself does raise some very interesting points about the role of government and power. Not only the abuse of power, but also how governments are able to gain so much power in the first place. Not least through the use of fear. The fear of different religions, different races, different sexualites. Even fear of your neighbours.... And just how this fear can be bred and used against the people as an assault on their personal liberities.An interesting parallel between the movie and the current governemts of the US and the UK.
One part of the movie I was so glad was not sanitised or changed however was the imprisonment of Evey. Such a hard concept to grasp, the reasoning behind her imprisonment, yet one which does show a twisted sense of logic. I won't go into it any further than to say if it had been played with, then I would have disliked this movie intensely.
Hugo Weaving as V is superb, being able to express a whole range of emotions from behind a mask no less. As is his spoken work, which, with the way V can slip in and out of quoting Shakespere to speaking French is no mean feat. And despite various reviews I have read slating Portman for her performance and her English accent, I would have only good things to say about both. Especially the scene where she is set free. Above all this was the scene that I was most looking forward to.
So whilst I would have criticisims of the movie from a comic fanboy point of view (where's FATE? Where are Prothero's dolls? The change in sequence of the bombings), taken on it's own merits as a movie it is one I thought was fantastic. The fact I thought it could have been better is only the comic book fan in me speaking.
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Sorry to not contribute more to the conversation, but the movie Kicked ass it had a great story and action/gore
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I thought this was gonna be about the mini-series with the lizard aliens
the movie looks interesting, but I'll probably wait until cable/DVD
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I thought this thread was going to be about the Thomas Pynchon novel!
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Was Spectacular.
I am a huge comic fan boy, and I actually liked an adaptation, which very rarely happens. The ending left me flat from a fanboy perspective, but was great as a film ending. There were moments throughout that didn't necessarily capture the exact DETAIL of the comic, but got the feeling.
Hugo Weaving as V is the Darth Vader for our Generation.
They did the jail scene perfectly, Portman was amazing throughout, the actor playing Finch was great, and while there were flaws translation wise, overall the film did everything it needed to and more.
See it, read the comic again, see the movie again, read the comic again, and then buy the DvD.
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^^^ = Truth
An absolutely kickass film. Go see it twice.
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I just thought it was funny that they got John Hurt of all people to play the totalitarian dictator
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well... if the shoe ain't broke, wear it.
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So whilst I would have criticisims of the movie from a comic fanboy point of view (where's FATE? Where are Prothero's dolls? The change in sequence of the bombings), taken on it's own merits as a movie it is one I thought was fantastic. The fact I thought it could have been better is only the comic book fan in me speaking.
They took the detail out of all of the murders, possibly to make V seem less cruel, (He didn't do the poisoned communion wafer thing with Lilliman, at least not on screen: the dialogue suggests he poisoned him though. Deleted scene?), FATE would have been one sub-plot too many, I think, and a bit too 'sci-fi' for the feel they were giving the whole movie: the idea of moving Evey to be an employee of BTN was actually pretty neat, I thought, in view of making the plot more concise.
I think the major changes were the sanitation (V is slightly less malicious, Evey isn't a prostitute, Gordon isn't a petty criminal, Finch doesn't take LSD at Larkhill) which you'd expect but I think harm it, and also, mainly, the way they changed or largely damped down the political side: The V of the film is campaigning for Democracy, not anarchy. There's no mention, for example, of the Land of the Do as You Please.
Art direction and acting were great though. There were also some changes I like: for example, making it a possible future rather than an alternative future by updating the events, changing it from a nuclear war to a chemical war, and implicating Islamic extremism, which could have been much more clumsily done, though that bit about the Quran was an obvious stab for political relevance. I also liked the fact that they still managed to keep in little elements like Storm Saxon.
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Did anyone else think they used the word "bollocks" a bit too much? I mean, I know it's England, but still. If it's just me, I'll shut up. (Seriously, though. Do Brits really say "bollocks" that much?)
Anyway. Having never read the comic, my general impression of the movie was that is was "pretty good." As has already been mentioned, the art direction and acting were superb. Things that could've been improved? Pacing I thought was a little off. They could've lost that cheesy overhead shot of the rain falling on Evey (and miss their special effects quota, I suppose). The final V fight scene was a fairly obvious concession to Matrix fans, but it wasn't as bad as it could've been, even with the crazy blood spurting stuff. So yeah.
Also, Cat Power and Antony and the Johnsons playing on the jukebox FTW.
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I appreciate that bringing in Fate into the story would have been one sub-plot too many. I just feel however that it would have explained how V was able to use the government postal system to his advantage, and also how he was able to access the government speakers and cameras on every street corner. As it was the movie never made that clear.
Not an important issue in the grand scheme of things. Just the fanboy talking.
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Where are Prothero's dolls?
On the shelves in his bathroom. Someone wasn't paying attention.
I also thought that Prothero's being driven mad by the destruction of his doll collection was a bit limp; this is a man who commanded an extermination camp and oversaw medical experiments with a 98% fatality rate without blinking, for God's sake. It was good theatre, but it doesn't stand up to even the most cursory analysis.
As for Fate: the idea of a human being providing a fake Voice for the computer that runs everything and V's taking him out undermining the people's confidence worked well in 1981. However, with Tom Baker having recently supplied his voice for a service that computer generates an audio version of text messages it would be stupid to hang a major plot device on the hook now. With that gone, it was easier to simply jettison the remainder of the Fate plot thread.
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A friend of mine saw it and absolutely loved it. I'll probably check it out. And I should probably check out the comic then?
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I saw this on Saturday night and enjoyed it.
I haven't read the comics but I'll see if the library has a copy and start them now.
Must say that its not your everyday Hollywood movie since they did leave alot of the undertones in from what I've read.
Damned good movie all around.
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As for Fate: the idea of a human being providing a fake Voice for the computer that runs everything and V's taking him out undermining the people's confidence worked well in 1981. However, with Tom Baker having recently supplied his voice for a service that computer generates an audio version of text messages it would be stupid to hang a major plot device on the hook now. With that gone, it was easier to simply jettison the remainder of the Fate plot thread.
This is a good point actually: In the days of the internet, Fate is a bit of an anachronism (and they mention the net a lot. I think we're meant to assume that this ie how V does his magic nowadays). Probably the same reason they didn't concentrate on CCTV Cameras quite as much as the original: London now has more CCTV than anywhere else in the world anyway. For better or for worse, it's just not scary anymore.
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I'm not going to see it. Ever. From what I've heard so far, it's really not that good. I also read in the New York Times that Alan Moore, V's creator, not only hates the script so much, (he called it rubbish) he actually disowned the character, since he figures the movie V will be the one people remember. Moore hasn't had much luck with Hollywood. League of Extraordinary Gentlemen sucked, and the planned Watchmen movie is once again in the toilet, and it doesn't look like it's ever going to happen now. Too bad, but at least his most famous creation won't be wrecked by some self-righteous executives who would turn that story into an anti-Bush metaphor. Screw 'em all, folks. I want the original story the way it was originally written, and not the "relevent" updates in the theaters. I hate Bush, don't get me wrong, but there's just too damn much of these cinematic metaphors going around. Just do something where we can get lost in the fantasy.
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I'm not going to see it. Ever. From what I've heard so far, it's really not that good. I also read in the New York Times that Alan Moore, V's creator, not only hates the script so much, (he called it rubbish) he actually disowned the character, since he figures the movie V will be the one people remember. Moore hasn't had much luck with Hollywood. League of Extraordinary Gentlemen sucked, and the planned Watchmen movie is once again in the toilet, and it doesn't look like it's ever going to happen now. Too bad, but at least his most famous creation won't be wrecked by some self-righteous executives who would turn that story into an anti-Bush metaphor. Screw 'em all, folks. I want the original story the way it was originally written, and not the "relevent" updates in the theaters. I hate Bush, don't get me wrong, but there's just too damn much of these cinematic metaphors going around. Just do something where we can get lost in the fantasy.
You should keep in midn that Alan Moore is a crazy old fucker who wouldn't be satisfied with anything but a 100% comic-> film adaptation. Even the Co-Author So-and-so Lloyd(cant remember his first name) said the movie rocks, and appended that Moore is a crazy old fucker. Wiki it if you're curious.
The movie has much more in common with Hitler than Bush. Those who cry about the parallels between Bush and this movie had thier mind already made up before they entered the theatre.
I'm a fan of dystopian movies, stabbing, explosions, and Tchaikovsky. If you like any of these, you should definitely see it.
You've made up your mind about the movie, and I can't change that for you. I can, however, note that you're totally wrong.
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I'm reading the comic right now and it's really good. It makes me excited to see the movie, but also afraid of how it'll line up.
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The movie has much more in common with Hitler than Bush. Those who cry about the parallels between Bush and this movie had thier mind already made up before they entered the theatre.
Oddly enough, it is the right that has been crying out that this movie glorifies terrorism and is an attack on Bush. Takes one to know one I guess.
Anyway, I enjoyed this movie thoroughly. I plan to read the comic next and then see it again.
I've really stopped caring about adaptations not being perfect, what is important is that the movie as a standalone object does not suck.
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I haven't read the comic yet, but knowing other works of Moore and their adaptions to the screen (From Hell, The League...) I didn't expect the movie to absolutely stick to the comic version. I have to admit that I think that From Hell (the movie) was a really good one despite not sticking to the book. The League wasn't bad either, although I like the comics more.
So I went into the movie yesterday ... and it was absolutely f...ing great! I had low expectations because of the Wachowski brothers (I didn't like Matrix THAT much) but it turned out extraordinarily well. The actors were great , the visuals were amazing and I more than once had goosebumps (which hapens very rarely).
I wholeheartedly recommend this movie to all that haven't seen it yet.
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I still can't get the 1812 Overture out of my head..... :)
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The movie has much more in common with Hitler than Bush. Those who cry about the parallels between Bush and this movie had thier mind already made up before they entered the theatre.
The more obvious parallels are with Hitler, but that people are seeing Bush in it only goes to show how much like Hitler Bush is.
You've made up your mind about the movie, and I can't change that for you. I can, however, note that you're totally wrong.
Why are you even bothering to address the opinion of someone who is avowedly arguing from a position of ignorance? Until Sean has seen the movie, his opinion on it isn't worth the paper it isn't printed on.
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There are parallels with Hitler in terms of the rallies, the symbolism, the hatred of "inferior" peoples, and obviously the concentration camps. However, when you are dealing with the manipulation of the public through the media, the use of fear as a political tool, and the corruption at the highest level of government in order to gain more and more power, then the parralels are very much with Bush and Bliar.
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i just saw this movie last night and i didnt have very high expectations (i thought it would be okay but not great) and i'm glad i was wrong. this movie was absolutely great. i'm not going to touch the political controversies. instead, i'm just going to say that this movie was easily enjoyed by both people who had and hadnt read the comic: i had read some, the friend i went with had never even heard of it, and we both thoroughly enjoyed the movie. go see it.
p.s. POLITICS! OPINIONS! AHH
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The movie has much more in common with Hitler than Bush. Those who cry about the parallels between Bush and this movie had thier mind already made up before they entered the theatre.
This is so true. I have a co-worker who asked me if the leftish themes bothered me. Huh? What leftish themes? Homosexuals? Wtf?
You've made up your mind about the movie, and I can't change that for you. I can, however, note that you're totally wrong.
I agree. People need to just watch the movies and enjoy them. Over analysis of movies makes me want to hurt people. In a good way.
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. . .People need to just watch the movies and enjoy them. Over analysis of movies makes me want to hurt people. . .
quoted for truth
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I just want to say that I rather enjoyed it, though I did expect more action in it from seeing the preview. The action that was in it was awesome though. I did notice the themes that people are talking about but really it did not seem to ruin the movie what so ever.
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my friend seen it and he actually wrote the whole insight of the politic aspect of V, you can see it here v
http://www.spymac.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=213049
it was very well written (he's a fellow Britons)
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What a nerd.
I saw it Friday. It was pretty f'ing awesome. Go see it. I'm porbably going to see if I can pick up the comics whenever I get paid next, so yeah.
And people who over-analyze movies really need to shut up. Especially since the ones that are the most over analyzed are the ones that the writer/director really just made up as they went.
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There are parallels with Hitler in terms of the rallies, the symbolism, the hatred of "inferior" peoples, and obviously the concentration camps. However, when you are dealing with the manipulation of the public through the media, the use of fear as a political tool, and the corruption at the highest level of government in order to gain more and more power, then the parralels are very much with Bush and Bliar.
Kinda beat me too it. The Hitleresq things done in the movie(I havent read the book), were just things that happened, backstory if you will.
The gradual losses of small liberties, the 'for your safety' aspect of civilian watchers(Fingers?) and curfews. The use of popular media to spout hidden propaganda, by using the BTNs integrity as a venue to make it happen as opposed. The things that actually happened in the movie are much more Bush or Blair.
With the idea the war and fear of terrorism worked so well once. That it is the defacto method of getting the people behind the Grand Chancellor when the independant thought alarm goes off. Being a pretty good example.
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It's really just human nature. Human beings, as societies, are generally willing to accept losses of civil liberties in exchange for more security. It is mob mentallity that savvy leaders seeking more power have always played.
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I can best sum all of that up in one of my favorite quotes (which will also be mentioned in the quotes thread, because I was just reminded of it).
"Why, of course, the people don't want war," Goering shrugged. "Why would some poor slob on a farm want to risk his life in a war when the best that he can get out of it is to come back to his farm in one piece. Naturally, the common people don't want war; neither in Russia nor in England nor in America, nor for that matter in Germany. That is understood. But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy or a fascist dictatorship or a Parliament or a Communist dictatorship."
"There is one difference," I pointed out. "In a democracy the people have some say in the matter through their elected representatives, and in the United States only Congress can declare wars."
"Oh, that is all well and good, but, voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country."
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that's pretty awesome.
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(Fingers?)
That bit doesn't make much sense in the film...in the book, the official police/detectives are the 'Nose', the people who watch the cameras are the 'Eye', the people who listen into phone conversations are the 'Ear', the broadcast media are the 'Voice', and, therefore, those who go out and 'feel things out' on the street and carry out the bidding of the party are 'Finger men'.
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Ok so I pretty much had their idea pegged, if not why they were called that.
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For the dissidents among you, here's a website about the anarchist ideas in V for Vendetta and how they're portrayed in the movie.
http://www.aforanarchy.com/
Nothing much content-wise yet, but hopefully there'll be regular updates now that the movie is out and about.
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For the dissidents among you, here's a website about the anarchist ideas in V for Vendetta and how they're portrayed in the movie.
http://www.aforanarchy.com/
Nothing much content-wise yet, but hopefully there'll be regular updates now that the movie is out and about.
What's the world coming to, when the anarchists are this organised?
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There are parallels with Hitler in terms of the rallies, the symbolism, the hatred of "inferior" peoples, and obviously the concentration camps. However, when you are dealing with the manipulation of the public through the media, the use of fear as a political tool, and the corruption at the highest level of government in order to gain more and more power, then the parralels are very much with Bush and Bliar.
Must.... restrain.... self.....
I don't know if this has already been addressed, but:
"The manipulation of the public through the media, the use of fear as a political tool and the corruption at the highest level of government in order to gain more and more power" is more of a parallel with BUSH AND BLAIR than it is with HITLER?!?!!?
Someone seriously needs to re-read their German history from about 1924-1938. Seriously. If you don't think Hitler fearmongered, manipulated media and exploited government corruption to get into the position he held... then you're simply quite ignorant of historical facts.
I certainly am not one to defend Bush, but what Bush has done in no way compares to what Hitler did.
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Are you saying that killing millions of people is worse than getting a country involved in a couple of conflicts that aren't turning out so well?
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BLASPHEMY
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There are definite Bush parallels though. The main one is that the rewriting of Norsefire's rise to power, from taking control after a Nuclear War to gaining control through staged incidents of mass terrorism is a reference to the conspiracy theory that Bush let 9/11 go ahead, if not staging it himself. You could talk about the Reichstag Fire as well, but it's clearly a post 9/11 film. Also, there's the change in style of Prothero from the cool 'voice of fate', to a reactionary tv pundit somewhat in the vain of Pat Robertson, with his frequent mentions of 'Godlessness' as the reason for the downfall of other nations. The religious aspect is of course mentioned in the Graphic Novel, and is strongly implied with Lilliman, but is not as explicit in the parties propaganda, although the novel does portray a scene indicating that christianity has been thoroughly nazified, absent from the film.
Rather than being about Bush and Blair instead of Hitler, I think it's more trying to draw parallels between various historical events and the events of the film.
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I think it uses actual news footage at various points and talk about the subway underground colapsing. For example.
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There are parallels with Hitler in terms of the rallies, the symbolism, the hatred of "inferior" peoples, and obviously the concentration camps. However, when you are dealing with the manipulation of the public through the media, the use of fear as a political tool, and the corruption at the highest level of government in order to gain more and more power, then the parralels are very much with Bush and Bliar.
Must.... restrain.... self.....
I don't know if this has already been addressed, but:
"The manipulation of the public through the media, the use of fear as a political tool and the corruption at the highest level of government in order to gain more and more power" is more of a parallel with BUSH AND BLAIR than it is with HITLER?!?!!?
Someone seriously needs to re-read their German history from about 1924-1938. Seriously. If you don't think Hitler fearmongered, manipulated media and exploited government corruption to get into the position he held... then you're simply quite ignorant of historical facts.
I certainly am not one to defend Bush, but what Bush has done in no way compares to what Hitler did.
Just when I thought I was out they pull me back in!!!!
:(
Listen sugarplum, I know my history. I have a degree in the bloody subject. Of course hitler used fear and manipulation of the media in order to achieve his position. As has been the way with all political powers to a greater or lesser degree. However, I don't think that that the movie does have a very unique spin on it, being made and released in these times where the powers that be in the West contiune to strip the people of their liberties and freedoms in the name of their own safety. However, it's been perfectly clear the both the UK and the US have used the media to stir up a climate of fear. Fear of terrorism for one thing. This has given them the ability to change our laws and constitutions in order to spy on us, listen in on us, what we do, what we read, what movies we watch, websites we visit....
If you are telling me that all this isn't clear and present as a modern phenomenon (yes, clearly history repeating itself) and as such portrayed in the movie V for Vendetta then you are clearly ignorant yourself.
Either that or a republican.
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ok, so i have seen the movie and i have read the graphic novel AND i almost have a masters degree in history. just to make all that clear before people start jumping on me.
i loved both the movie and the book and i have to say that, despite what many are saying about the changes made for the movie and blah blah blah the message isn't the same, i thought that the changes made for the movie only helped to make the story better. it fleshed out the characters better. it tied things together much better. it made for a MUCH better reasoning behind the guy fawkes mask. it made for a better "ending".
the book was written in the 80s. if it had not been updated for the film, i don't know if it would have ressonated as much with viewers. certainly there are ties to the current american administration, however you can also find those ties in star wars or lord of the rings or hell, why not find them in josie and the pussycats.
there are also ties to many other things as well...most obviously, the gunpowder plot.
damn...i forget what i was going to say next...perhaps an edit will be in order later...or simply further discussion later on.
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As many reviewers have pointed out, a bit of cognitive dissonance in both the graphic novel and the movie is while V fights for either anarchy or democracy, Guy Fawkes desired a Catholic monarchy, certainly not more freedom...
I haven't read the graphic novel, but I am a history undergrad...since credentials seem to be popular now ;)
I enjoyed the movie, but most of my friends I saw the movie with were unreservedly enthusiastic, throwing around phrases like "one of my favorites of all time." These are all typical Midwestern, upper-middle class, fairly moderate university students. I've kind of puzzled over why they like it so much more than I did. I was entertained, but somehow relying on all the easy fascist tropes like booted soldiers marching in front of a fist pumping leader on a platform didn't strike me right. Also, for as much as I despise Bush, the Bush connections seemed clumsy and blatant sometimes.
I guess my friends had never made some of the connections the movie makes about fearmongering, gathering of power, etc. i'm still trying to understand their reactions.
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Yeah, I'm a little taken aback at the fountain of love one of my friend poured on it. Course, I wasn't taking it ultra seriously in the first place, since I went to see it with a different friend of mine who is so ridicuolous and amazing that you can't take anything seriously with him. Great time.
I thought about seeing it again just for clarity purposes on friday, but I scratched the idea and rented Dr. Strangelove instead.
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Okay, I saw and loved the movie. A lot. Given that I tend to like modern movies a lot more than older movies - I know, I know, blasphemy - I would have to say it is easily in my top 15 movies of all time.
Part of the reason I think a lot of people end up loving it so much, is that it's really gratifying and enjoyable to watch a movie that gives a voice to what people are feeling, and I feel like this movie definitely did that. It was simultaneously escapist fantasy along with real and political, which is a tough line to toe and I feel respect must be given for that, too.
While in film student, what does this shot mean type film critique, it wasn't the best movie I've ever seen (or even the best movie I've seen in the last two months, Good Night and Good Luck was better on purely film merits). It WAS, however, one of my absolute FAVORITES because, while it didn't make any new points, and sometimes handled its ideas a little clunkily, it made me feel like I wanted to be one of the people in the Guy Fawkes mask as Parliament blew up.