UK: The Wachowski brothers' latest cinematic adventure 'V For Vendetta' premieres in heavy rain in London

Record ID: 220299

  • Title: UK: The Wachowski brothers' latest cinematic adventure 'V For Vendetta' premieres in heavy rain in London
  • Date: 16th March 2006
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (English) ACTRESS NATALIE PORTMAN SAYING: "Well, I hope they are entertained, that is obviously the prime objective of any movie and it's an action movie and it's very fun. But you know, it also gives you something that you can really go home and think about and feel about."
  • Embargoed: 31st March 2006 13:00
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  • Reuters ID: LVA7NVZJ2JLKC0TA3XMXC9HWVRVR
  • Story Text: The big screen adaptation of 'V For Vendetta', a cult graphic novel, premiered in London on Wednesday (March 8, 2006) under stereotypically wet conditions.
    The film comes from the Wachowski brothers, also behind the Matrix trilogy, and stars Natalie Portman and Australian Hugo Weaving in the leading roles.
    With "V for Vendetta," the Wachowski's are courting controversy with discussion of the use of violence at a time when terrorism is such a sensitive issue.
    The hero in the Wachowski brothers' latest cinematic adventure is a "terrorist" at war with the totalitarian British government. The masked crusader, known only as V, vows to destroy the Parliament building on November 5th and seek vengeance on the corrupted government. His quest is to free the people of England from the tyranny of its leaders. The narrative is set sometime in the near future and alludes to a period when wars have come to haunt the United States, which has descended into chaos.
    One character says, "blowing up a building can change the world," while another is arrested for having a Koran hidden at home. The film's tagline is: "People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people."
    Starring a shaven-headed Natalie Portman as the foil to the mysterious V, the film is based on a 1980s graphic novel warning readers about the danger of lurching to the political right under then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Portman plays Evey, who is rescued by V from a life-and-death situation. Thrown together by chance circumstance, Evey emerges as his unlikely ally in his plan to ignite a revolution and free a corrupted society.
    Portman, 24, attending the London premiere in a navy Balenciaga dress said the film gave her a new understanding of the different aspects of violence.
    "I think I just thought in different ways the issues surrounding violence, when, if ever, is violence justified and what aspects of violence do we legitimise and not legitimise and I guess I learned different ways of thinking about it. I don't know if I've come to any conclusions but it made my understanding more layered I guess," she said. The anti-hero, played by Hugo Weaving, seeks to emulate the 17th Century Catholic rebel Guy Fawkes, who narrowly failed to blow up the Houses of Parliament in London on November 5, 1605, and was hanged for his troubles. Unlike the legendary character, in 'V For Vendetta' V eventually manages to blow up the Houses of Parliament. The scene come at a sensitive time, with less than a year from the bombings in London last July.
    According to reports, the images were considered too controversial, pushing back a planned November release of the film. However, producer Joel Silver said there was no drama behind the decision to postpone the release of the film.
    "No, we finished shooting the movie in September and we hoped to put it out in November but we just couldn't get it done in time and we picked a date for it to come out, when the Matrix opened in 1999, so we picked that same date. It would have been nice it could have come out on Guy Fawkes day but it just couldn't be done in time," he said.
    British actor Stephen Fry, who plays a television host who daringly and dangerously pokes fun at the ruling Chancellor, said he did not expect a strong reaction from the London audiences.
    "I think Londoners are much less touchy, much less sensitive about the sacred nature of the symbols of democracy and of London itself. I don't think we get offended by the sight of the houses of parliament being blown up. After all, every fifth of November, we burn Guy Fawkes, but it's a comic, we almost admire him, you know. It's a great moment," he said, adding: "So, I think Londoners will take it very well, very well."
    Director James McTeigue said the film related to current political themes, but essentially followed the original graphic novel, written under the 80s Thatcherite era. The director, who made his debut with 'V For Vendetta' said similar issues had re-emerged in the aftermath of the Iraq war and 9/11.
    "We took a lot of it from the source material, you know, which was written a long time ago. So, I think they were discussing those themes then and those themes sort of ebb and flow and now is another time where there is a heightened awareness of it, if you like. So, I think you have to take it for what it's worth in that regard," he said.
    The topic of terror and its justification is not the only feature of "Vendetta" that may spark debate. John Hurt, who plays the evil leader Sutler, is being made to look and sound like Adolf Hitler and images of biological experiments on human beings are designed to resemble the concentrations camps of World War Two.
    Hurt said he hoped the film would make viewers think about its various themes and that it would spark debate. "Well, I think, first and foremost it's an action film,
    so we want it to be entertaining but it also has some content to it as well, which is unusual for action films. So, yes, I hope it does make people think. I hope it brings people into argument, discussion, all sorts," he said. Portman agreed, saying she too hoped audiences would find the film thought-provoking.
    "I hope they are entertained, that is obviously the prime objective of any movie and it's an action movie and it's very fun. But you know, it also gives you something that you can really go home and think about and feel about," she said.
    "V for Vendetta" opens in the UK and the United States on March 17.
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