v for vendetta spoilers follow. stop reading now if you're not the spoiler type. consider yourself warned.
did you know that the common use of "guy"--as in "you guys"--is derived from the name of the man who almost blew up parliament in 1605? straight from the omniscient wikipedia:
so benjamin and i saw v for vendetta yesterday. (on the imax. we actually made it to the theatre this time!) great movie. honestly. i've always admired actors who can work behind a mask. for me, an audience-member, my connection (or lack thereof) with the characters onscreen makes up a critical chunk of my "movie enjoyment factor". lights, explosions, music, special effects, even plot-lines, are all very well, but if the characters aren't interesting and engaging, forget it. if i don't care about the characters, how can you expect me to care about the story of their lives, or the messages they're selling? anyway, so a guy (no pun intended) who acts behind a mask, who is denied all the standard methods of communicating emotion, intent, etc., and is still able to create a connectable character...uh, is pretty cool. try it--put on a mask and try to say "i'm confused" without speaking and without looking like a mime.
the movie itself has very interesting things to say (obviously). i haven't read the comic bo--excuse me, graphic novel on which it's based (though i have since read the plot summaries!), so i had no preconceived expectations. (as opposed to expectations i developed after i'd...seen it...wait....) you've all heard the "especially in light of our post-9/11 culture" hype, so i won't go into it. yes, it portrays a terrorist as the good guy. what a shocking conundrum. let's leave it at that. anyway: having now read the gist of the graphic novel, i think it may have missed alan moore's boat. the novel seems to draw sharp contrasts between anarchy and fascism--v was an anarchist seeking to spread anarchy under the nose of fascist extremists. the movie paints a clear picture of britain's fascism, but doesn't really give an alternative. as parliament burns and the government collapses, the watchers are left thinking, "wow...now what?"
it's got a fun little paradox at the end, too. the film makers spent all kinds of time and energy discussing the power of symbols and ideas and hope vs. the power of brute force, and at the end the parliament buildings blow up and it's this great symbol representing the collapse of british fascism and the dawn of a new era; meanwhile, v is underground, killing the regime leaders. via brute force.
so yes, go see it and enjoy. (please don't take your kids. please. the violent scenes are short, but very intense and very graphic. to say nothing of...well, the whole rest of the movie--just don't take your kids.)
did you know that the common use of "guy"--as in "you guys"--is derived from the name of the man who almost blew up parliament in 1605? straight from the omniscient wikipedia:
In an example of semantic progression, Guy Fawkes' name is also the origin of the word "guy" in the English language, particularly in American spoken English. The burning on 5 November of an effigy of Fawkes, known as a "guy", led to the use of the word "guy" as a term for "a person of grotesque appearance," according to the Oxford English Dictionary. Over time, the word evolved to become a general reference for a man, as in "some guy called for you." In the 20th century, under the influence of American popular culture, "guy" gradually replaced "fellow," "bloke," "chap" and other such words in many English speaking countries.so the next time you want to make a clandestine insult, just use "guy", and no one will be the wiser!
so benjamin and i saw v for vendetta yesterday. (on the imax. we actually made it to the theatre this time!) great movie. honestly. i've always admired actors who can work behind a mask. for me, an audience-member, my connection (or lack thereof) with the characters onscreen makes up a critical chunk of my "movie enjoyment factor". lights, explosions, music, special effects, even plot-lines, are all very well, but if the characters aren't interesting and engaging, forget it. if i don't care about the characters, how can you expect me to care about the story of their lives, or the messages they're selling? anyway, so a guy (no pun intended) who acts behind a mask, who is denied all the standard methods of communicating emotion, intent, etc., and is still able to create a connectable character...uh, is pretty cool. try it--put on a mask and try to say "i'm confused" without speaking and without looking like a mime.
the movie itself has very interesting things to say (obviously). i haven't read the comic bo--excuse me, graphic novel on which it's based (though i have since read the plot summaries!), so i had no preconceived expectations. (as opposed to expectations i developed after i'd...seen it...wait....) you've all heard the "especially in light of our post-9/11 culture" hype, so i won't go into it. yes, it portrays a terrorist as the good guy. what a shocking conundrum. let's leave it at that. anyway: having now read the gist of the graphic novel, i think it may have missed alan moore's boat. the novel seems to draw sharp contrasts between anarchy and fascism--v was an anarchist seeking to spread anarchy under the nose of fascist extremists. the movie paints a clear picture of britain's fascism, but doesn't really give an alternative. as parliament burns and the government collapses, the watchers are left thinking, "wow...now what?"
it's got a fun little paradox at the end, too. the film makers spent all kinds of time and energy discussing the power of symbols and ideas and hope vs. the power of brute force, and at the end the parliament buildings blow up and it's this great symbol representing the collapse of british fascism and the dawn of a new era; meanwhile, v is underground, killing the regime leaders. via brute force.
so yes, go see it and enjoy. (please don't take your kids. please. the violent scenes are short, but very intense and very graphic. to say nothing of...well, the whole rest of the movie--just don't take your kids.)