I am Kyle's self-indulgence

I finally found time to see this yesterday. I knew going into it that it would not be entirely faithful to the comic. No adaptations should be, because what works in one medium may not in another. I told myself I would try to suspend my appreciation of the comic book temporarily to be able to judge the film simply by its own merits. It turns out that's easier said than done.

I was actually pleased with some of the changes the Wachowskis made to the story. The biggest problem I've always had with V for Vendetta has to do with the pacing of the story. Moore's plot tends to branch out in many directions, particularly in the final third. While he makes it work in the comic, that makes it a little bit difficult to follow everything that happens. The movie features a much more cohesive and linear plot that still preserves the essentials of Moore's original story.

I was also pleased that some of my favorite scenes were represented very well. The part with the woman doctor is beautiful, and Evey's torture sequence works very well, which is absolutely essential for the story to work. Portman's performance in it rightly establishes her as the emotional center of the film. Unfortunately, the Wachowskis dropped that moments final payoff in the end by shifting the focus from Evey to the people of London (if you've read the comic and seen the movie, you know what I'm talking about). This change in the ending bothered me, but it's still not the biggest problem with the film.

A couple of weeks ago I provided my thoughts on Alan Moore's graphic novel. I emphasized how, far from actually advocating violent terrorist action, the book treats V in a morally neutral way, partly by hiding the emotions in his face behind a mask. The emotion in his voice is equally hidden, due to the fact that the dialogue is read off the page--V's voice only exists in the reader's mind. This is obviously not the case in the movie. Hugo Weaving's performance, while good, changes the character by lending him an emotional force he does not have in the comics. Add to that the film's musical cues in key dramatic scenes, and it's obvious that the audience is expected to sympathize with the character. Even the character's remaining moral shortcomings are overshadowed by the leaders of the British government, who are made much nastier and more evil than they are in the comic. The result is that V very clearly comes out as the hero in this film. And that's why it's not nearly as good as the comic. Whereas Alan Moore's original comic merely raises questions about anarchy and fascism or terrorists and governments, the film makes up the audience's mind for them. There is little ambiguity left.

Despite that difference, I must admit that the movie is fairly well-done. It could have been much better with a more sensitive writer and director, but it still provides some very moving scenes and is perhaps the best Hollywood adaptation of one of Alan Moore's stories we can hope for.