V for Vendetta (2006)
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A masked vigilante and a young woman navigate a landscape of oppression in a dystopian future.
The story
In a near-future Britain, the fascist and totalitarian Norsefire regime, led by High Chancellor Adam Sutler, maintains control through propaganda and fear. Evey Hammond, an employee of the state-run television network, becomes entangled in the plot of a masked vigilante known as 'V'. After V rescues Evey from the secret police and takes her to witness a public bombing, he begins a campaign to dismantle the regime's power. Evey finds herself caught in the middle of V's escalating actions against the government's key figures, while the authorities attempt to capture the mysterious masked man.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In a dystopian Britain ruled by the Norsefire party, Evey Hammond works for the state-run media. Her life changes when she is rescued by 'V', a masked vigilante who bombs the Old Bailey and hijacks a television station to call for revolution. V proceeds to eliminate key Norsefire figures, including the propagandist Lewis Prothero and the Bishop of London. Meanwhile, Chief Inspector Eric Finch investigates V's identity, eventually uncovering a conspiracy where the government orchestrated a biological terror attack to seize power. Evey is captured and tortured but is eventually released by V, who reveals he is testing her resolve. As Guy Fawkes Night approaches, V distributes masks to the public, sparking widespread riots. V and Evey share a final moment before V confronts the head of the secret police, Peter Creedy. Despite being mortally wounded, V succeeds in his mission, and his identity is revealed to be secondary to the idea he represents. In the end, Evey sends V's body onto a train rigged with explosives to destroy Parliament, while the public, masked as V, witnesses the destruction of the old regime.
- First release year
- 2005
- Runtime (minutes)
- 133
- Production countries
- United States; United Kingdom
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- James McTeigue
- Writers
- The Wachowskis · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Natalie Portman · Evey Hammond; Hugo Weaving · V; Stephen Rea · Chief Inspector Eric Finch; John Hurt · Adam Sutler; Stephen Fry · Gordon Deitrich; Tim Pigott-Smith · Peter Creedy; Rupert Graves · Detective Sergeant Dominic Stone; Roger Allam · Lewis Prothero
- Genres
- dystopian; thriller
- Themes
- freedom vs. state; anarchism; fascism; identity; propaganda
- Tone and mood
- dark; tense
- Premise and plot tags
- political thriller; dystopian; anarchist fiction
- Source material / true-story basis
- V for Vendetta graphic novel by Alan Moore, David Lloyd, and Tony Weare
- Reception
- The film received mostly positive reviews from critics and was a box office success.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 73% · scale: percentage · review count: 255; Metacritic · score: 62 · scale: 100 · review count: 39
- Awards and nominations
- Best Actress · Saturn Awards · 2007 · win; Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form · Hugo Award · 2007 · nomination
- Production trivia
- The film is credited for popularizing the use of the Guy Fawkes mask by anti-establishment political groups.; The film was the first time the security-sensitive area of London was closed for filming.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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