V For Vendetta (2006)

In 1984's Nineteen Eighty-Four, John Hurt played the role of everyman Winston Smith. Through his unwise action of thinking outside the boundaries enforced by the Party, Winston is subjected to hideous torture until his will is bent to the liking of the overlord of Airstrip One, Big Brother. Just over 20 years later, the roles have been utterly reversed - John Hurt is now British Chancellor Adam Sutler (Susan in the original comic book), who rules this green and pleasant land with an iron fist and a powerful will. He even resembles Big Brother, with his moustachioed face appearing massive on the giant viewscreen in his government Lair O' Doom. This time the heroes are Hugo Weaving's V, a remarkably eloquent and frighteningly deadly masked freedom terrorist, and Natalie Portman's Evey Hammond, a normal girl caught up on V's attempt to take down the corrupt Norsefire party. Now, fans of the original comic book (creator Alan Moore included) will likely despise this adaptation, as nearly all talk of anarchism is expunged and instead V is fighting to free people from an oppressive government, not from government in general. In fact, the greatest, and generally quite fair, criticism is that this is merely a shallow ersatz of the Bush Administration, satirising the increased intrusion into public freedom post-9/11, rather than the anti-Thatcherite tone of the original story. This is generally fair, but since when was satire either boring or wrong? A faithful adaptation this is not, but this is still a clever and powerful film, treading some old ground and scouring some new as well. The entire story is held together well by its enigmatic and charismatic hero, and simply Hugo Weaving's vastly verbose and veritably victorious introductory monologue is well worth a watch. This film deserves little of the scorn it earns, as it remains entertaining, though not as inspirational as some dewy-eyed anarchists might wish.


There seems to be a theme developing with these totalitarian regimes...

The Wicker Man (2006)

This is one of the funnier films I've seen in some time, and it certainly wasn't meant to be. This remake of the chilling 1973 psychological horror is lacking in all suspense, fear and drama, and Nicolas Cage's maniacal performance is at his high-goofy best. Who could fail to be entertained as he rampages around the island breaking into people houses, dons a bear suit to slug a woman in the face or express his dismay at "THE BEES!"? The cultist antagonists of the original are replaced by a group of straw feminists who worship nature for no readily available reason. And the bee motif never sat right with me - it's not terrible, but it's superfluous and adds nothing to the film. The original got by with just simple cultists. The original had strong themes of the power of faith, being turned to both good and evil, and showed a man's virtues of Christianity and virginity being turned against him in the worst possible way. Surely the islander's faith is much stronger than Sgt. Howie's, yet this is a terrible thing to happen. On the other hand, Nic Cage's character Malus is killed merely because he has a connection to the island but didn't live there. Then why not use the pilot? He brought them food (connection) and lived away from the island. It removes the best aspect of the original, and fills it with nothing worth commenting on. Nicolas Cage is the sole saving grace, and even his insanity can't elevate this above "sub-par".


Need I say more?

Chīsaki Yūsha Tachi ~Gamera~ / Gamera the Brave (2006)

The most notable thing about the 12th outing of Japan's second favourite giant reptile is the truly staggering tonal shift between the classic, Disney-style "one boy and his magical pet" story, and the brutal and bloody violence of the monster fights, as the Gamera franchise is known for. Despite suffering the usual fairly slow pacing of the monster movie, the acting of the young protagonists is engaging enough to keep interest, and the special effects on the young Toto are silly enough to entertain us while we wait for the men in rubber suits to start beating each other into a pulp. The big bad Zedus is suitably evil-looking, appearing rather like a Rastafarian Gorosaurus, and provides an ideal challenge for this franchise reboot. And the main Chelonian himself, Gamera is entirely believable as the valiant underdog, and equally impressive when he finally achieves full power and opens up a can on the hapless villain. And I, for one, will sleep far more soundly tonight knowing that there is an underground network of endurance-running Japanese children keeping us safe from evil.


Toto's about to cook a fool.