Tuesday, February 28, 2006

V for Vendetta Movie: It better be good...



As a long-time follower of theV for Vendetta series, I sincerely hope that the creators of The Matrix have not created another Matrix Revolutions. The summary of the comics are as follows: The series is set in a future Britain where, in the chaos following a limited nuclear war that left the country mostly physically intact, a fascist single-party state has arisen. It resembles the Nazi regimeincluding government-controlled media, secret police, a planned economy and concentration camps for racial minorities but with a British cultural flavorur, and a greater reliance on technology, especially closed-circuit television monitoring in the mode of George Orwell's 1984. (Closed-circuit television had not yet become common in the UK at the time Moore wrote the series. Today, London has the world's highest concentration of CCTV.) When the series begins, political conflict has ended, the death camps have finished their work and been closed, and the public is largely complacent, until "V" a terrorist and self-proclaimed anarchist, who wears a Guy Fawkes mask and has an improbable array of abilities and resources begins an elaborate, violent, and theatrical campaign to bring down the government.
V himself is something of an enigma, whose history is only hinted at; it is strongly suggested that he is physically and mentally abnormal. The bulk of the story is told from the viewpoints of other characters: V's admirer and apprentice Evey, a sixteen-year old match factory worker; Eric Finch, a world-weary policeman who is hunting V; and several contenders for power within the fascist party. V's destructive acts are morally ambiguous, and a central theme of the series is the rationalization of atrocities in the name of a higher goal, whether it is stability or freedom. The character is a mixture of an actual advocate of anarchism and the traditional stereotype of the anarchist as a terrorist and advocate of anarchy in the sense of chaos.
There are many references to the letter V and number 5 (which is V in Roman numerals). For example, V is seen reading and quoting from Thomas Pynchon's novel, V. and Beethoven's fifth symphony is featured. (The first four notes can be represented as the letter V in Morse code.) V always introduces himself with a five-syllable phrase: "You can call me V." The phrase, "Remember remember the fifth of November (fifth of November is another 5 syllables)" is also referenced; it is the first line of a nursery rhyme detailing the exploits of Guy Fawkes. The name of every chapter begins with the letter V. Also, "V" could stem from his past as the "Prisoner of Room Five", as later revealed in the series.
Also following the theme of numbers comes Evey, V's protege whose name has 4 letters. Her name also contains the name EVE who is the mother of God's new civilization. At the end of the series, Evey finishes V's final terrorist act, she destroys all forms of British authority, with the future uncertain. Like Eve of the bible, she gives way to a new society.
The series was Moore's first use of the densely detailed narrative and multiple plot lines that would feature heavily in Watchmen. The backgrounds of panels are often crammed with clues and red herrings; literary allusions and wordplay are prominent in the chapter titles and in V's speech (which always takes the form of iambic pentameter, a poetic meter reliant on five stressed syllables per line).
The structure of the book also bears a resemblence to Gaston Leroux's Phantom of the Opera, with several direct parallels. The Shadow Gallery doubles for the Phantom's Lair, and Evey's abduction and education mirrors that of Christine Daae's

4 comments:

High Power Rocketry said...

I will have to do a wait and see, with real fears that the film will be yet another aeon flux...

But she is a good actor, and incredibly hot (having once met her in person). So whom knows really?

patrick said...

Ooh, met Natalie Portman in person eh? Do tell.

Charles,
I forgive you about the "young man" stuff. My writing can be a little immature, so I can hardly blame you for assuming.

Nicole said...

This just makes me wanna see the movie even MORE now. We're hoping to catch it on opening night (that is, if we've got the patience to deal with the interminible crowds).

patrick said...

Cool. I've always been a fan of the comics. It comes out on St. Patrick's Day, right?