WANTED
US, 2008, 111 minutes, Colour.
James Mc Avoy, Morgan Freeman, Angelina Jolie, Terence Stamp, Thomas Kretchman, Marc Warren, David O’ Hara.
Directed by Timur Bekmam Betov.
There is a recent over-the-top tradition in action films, especially those based on graphic novels, comic strips and computer games, a kind of anything you can do, I can do bigger, better and louder – and flashier. It can be traced back to Quentin Tarantino and his pal Robert Rodriguez in the 1990s to their recent collaboration, Grindhouse. John Woo could do it as well, think of Face/Off. The Wachowski Brothers raised the bar with The Matrix series. Meanwhile over in Moscow, the Kazakhstan-born director of commercials, Timur Bekmambetov, tried to outdo them all with his futuristic thrillers Night Watch (2004) and Day Watch (2006) and, just in terms of flash and flair may have outdone them all.
Now he has his own Hollywood blockbuster, Wanted, and there’s no mistaking the graphic oomph that he brings to it. Immediately in its favour, it is much easier to follow the plot than in Night Watch or Day Watch. But, here he is with huge action pieces like smasheroo car chases and a train crash and dangling carriages on a high bridge (which completely ignore collateral damage in terms of people’s lives and property destruction – no realism here). And here he is again with all kinds of camera techniques, hand-held, playing with time and motion, altering speeds at whim, especially with firing bullets that can go round people to their intended targets (and some bullets just colliding in mid-fire and melding).
By this stage of the review, it is hoped that those who don’t fancy this kind of visual extravaganza will have decided whether they want to indulge or not. What remains is the actual content.
This is shoot-em-up with a vengeance (a lot of vengeance). Since it cannot be taken for real (and this kind of thing was spoofed by Hancock), we have to put aside the body count, the bullets and the knives as part of the graphic novel imagination. This may be a generational thing as younger audiences play along with the conventions, lap them up as once upon a time kids did as they played cowboys and Indians. Many of the older generation are not on the wavelength and don’t want to be.
One of the difficulties with an adrenalin-pumping two hours like this is that plays on our aggro tendencies and sensibilities. The discussion is whether they are intensified or sublimated by a kind of new Saturday-matinee-mentality catharsis.
James Mc Avoy seems one of the least likely candidates for action hero (think Mr Tumnus in Narnia or Atonement) but that is the point. He is a beyond-nerdy accountant who is recruited by a secret society of assassins presided over by Morgan Freeman at his most oratorical with Angelina Jolie at her most Lara Croft- CGI iconic looking. He becomes a top killer only to find a twist in the plot that starts to make a moral point about making decisions for life, learning that you cannot always trust the information you are given – but it would be interesting to conduct an exit poll from the cinemas to check whether this is actually what the enthusiasts get out of the film. Checking on comments on the IMDb, it looks as though some do. So there were are or, as the case may be with non-fans, there we are not.
1.The basis in a graphic novel? The comic-book style? Content, visual flair?
2.The work of the director, his films in Russia, commercials? His visual talent, editing and pace? A different perspective?
3.The settings: Chicago, the realism of Chicago, a fantasy world, offices and apartments? The castle and the history of the weavers? The room with the loom of doom? The streets, the train? Europe, the monastery? Sets and décor? Danny Elfman’s atmospheric score?
4.The importance of special effects, the car chase, the train, flying, the bullets? Playing with time and motion? The camerawork, the editing? Pace and energy?
5.The blend of the serious and the humorous? Comic, ironical?
6.The prologue, the killer, the bullets, the secretary being killed, the window, his going to lift, running along the corridor, flying? The confrontation with Cross? Standing on the X, falling for the decoy, his death?
7.Wesley and James Mc Avoy as the choice for this role? Small, seemingly nerdy? His voice-over, the story of his father leaving, living with his girlfriend, his best friend and his sexual exploits, his exploits with the girlfriend? At the office party, Janice as large, feeding her face, his comments? Janice and her reprimands? His Googling his name and finding no entries? Seeing himself as a nothing, his fears, getting his prescriptions filled, paying for his friend at the shop? His friend saying that he was the man – and his ironic comments?
8.The supermarket scene, Fox’s arrival, his watching, Cross and the shooting, the dangers, people fleeing? The shoot-em-up? Fox and her car, rescuing him after he escaped, flying through the air, the various angles, the parallel shooting? His being saved?
9.Fox in herself, the exploitation of the Fraternity? The introduction to Sloan, his gravity, demeanour? The castle, the room, the loom of fate and the explanations? The philosophy of the fraternity, the history of the weavers? The giving of missions woven in cloth? The trainers for becoming one of the assassins?
10.Wesley, his being upset, going to work, thinking over what had happened to him, Janice and her reprimand, his telling her off, walking out? Going to Fox, beginning the training, his agility, the shooting, the bending of the bullets? The Butcher and the knives? His being wounded, in the bath, continually being healed and rehealed? The test and his firing at Fox, the bullet bending? The information about his father, the assassin, the documents, his studying them, the techniques? Cross as the enemy?
11.His pursuit, the shootings, the dangers? The completion of the training, his being given missions, killing the businessman in the car, flying over him? The personalities of the trainers and their methods?
12.The character of Fox, her protection, her sardonic remarks?
13.Sloan, his high life, the orders, the weaving?
14.The bullet and his being hit, his examining it, the research, discovering the maker, going to visit him, the train ride, the crash of the train, on the bridge, hanging over the bridge? His escape?
15.The confrontation with Cross in the train, his hanging on, the revelation that Cross was his father, not sure whether to believe it or not, killing Cross – and his guilt afterwards?
16.Pekwarsky, the visit, the discussions, Wesley interpreting that he was on Cross’s side? Rescuing him from the train? Telling him the truth, enabling Wesley to have a different perspective, about the weavers, about Sloan?
17.Sloan, his greed, his edging people out, Cross’s rebellion, the determination to kill Cross? Wesley confronting Sloan, confronting the group? Looking at the weaving, seeing the missions that Cross gave? Cross and his speech, justifying his philosophy of life – and the touches of crass language and their shock effect?
18.Wesley, his infiltrating the castle, his swathe of destruction, the confrontation of Fox, her death? His escape from Sloan?
19.The office, Sloan coming into the office, insulting Wesley, discovering that there was a decoy, the X on the floor, Sloan’s death?
20.Wesley, his commenting on the six weeks, the change in his life? How strong were the subtext messages, about choice, vocation in life, being a man?
