Definitely Wanted (Wanted (DVD))

Member Name: JayHall1991

Product:	Wanted (DVD)
Date:	02/08/08 (69 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A lot of fun, Great action, Great effects

Disadvantages: Ridiculous, Beyond Unbelievable

Wesley Gibson is frustrated with his life; his girlfriend is having an affair with his best friend, his boss is constantly on his case and he lives next door to the noisiest train station in town, plus he feels like he is meant for something else, something better. One day, whilst shopping he is caught up in a shoot-out, being saved from a vixen named Fox, who explains that he is mysteriously linked with the murder of a man a few days before. So he begins to become entangled in a world of deadly assassins, cult groups, hit-men and blood shed... but still, is all as it seems?

Wanted is a fast and furious action drama; overflowing with style and elegantly choreographed fight sequences which fully grip the audience and filled with nice twists and a few great core performances which never fail to keep things fresh. It breaks free from convention from the get-go and has a complete, blood soaked, ball - messing around with exciting visual techniques, the viewer's expectations and story structures to make for a truly refreshing, but absurd, film about vengeance, double crossing and bloodshed. The whole thing is so much fun that it is easy to gloss over the film's rather copious flaws; it is truly ridiculous, some of the plot turns are unsuccessful, it can look pretty ugly and the onslaught of absurd action sequences can feel more than a little overwhelming. The plot has a tendency to meander and drown amongst the bullet holes and high kicks and it is never really tonally sure-footed. But all of those things don't really matter - this film is a complete blast; it's frenetic, funny, sexy, intelligent, beautifully paced and, most importantly, cooler-than-hell.

Wanted requires you to put all common-sense to rest, it requires you to leave your brain at the door-step and throw away any knowledge of the laws of physics. It's hard at first (the opening sequence is one of the most stylish, but by the same token the most ridiculous) but once the action really starts, you will find yourself holding your breathe and edging closer and closer to the edge of your seat. There are so many spectacular action set-pieces, and they come around so very quickly, that you don't have time to analyse the believability of the stunts - it's compulsive and addictive stuff which doesn't let up for one second. It throws thousands of blows at the audience, so if one doesn't bowl you over then there are ten more heading your way. The few moments when it does slow-up are emotional and well-written enough to hold there own, which helps make the whole thing more palatable and satisfying whilst giving McAvoy and co some screen-time to show off their acting muscles. The fact that Wanted throws all logic out of the window means that it isn't bulked-up; making for a sinewy, shuttle like movie that is captivating enough to keep the audience completely hooked.

Wanted is gorgeous in a brutal, blood-thirsty way- it adopts a truly unique visual style, which is at times startling, at times fascinating and always completely fresh and interesting. It has a pleasing Hollywood sheen which is mixed with a comic book sensibility to great effect; making for eye-popping action sequences and beautiful drama sequences. It is shot beautifully, with impossible feats captured perfectly and sleekly and the CGI are always reassuringly realistic and highly stylised... making the impossible look fairly easy. It's flashy and sexy with daring shifts in visual scheme throughout (the film looks like ten or eleven patched together), shifting from bubble-gum comic stuff to a dark, brooding colour palette and back again. But sometimes it doesn't work; sometimes the makers are a little too visually daring, tipping the fine line between style and crass, making things look tacky which draws from the film accomplishments. When the film's script calls for brutality the film turns gloomy and violent, which just isn't as breath-taking as the cool, clean style that precedes and succeeds it. But, overall Wanted is a visual treat; filled with new and innovative takes on old conventions.

The main problem with Wanted is that it takes everything too far.... Everything is overblown, hyper stylised and wholly unbelievable. It insists on lobbing action sequences at you at an overwhelming rate - which manages to dull the 'wow' factor of the, extremely impressive, stunts substantially. As the film never stops to breathe, it can feel a little exhausting and as it hurtles towards its climax it grows more and more bizarre and hard to believe. It also switches tone without much thought, making some of the film feel a little uneven, whilst the dark visuals can at times make it hard to see exactly what is going on. Plus, the finale can't help but feel a little anti-climatic -considering what comes before it- but even considering this it feels a little too easy and a little conventional.

James McAvoy, at first seems like an uneasy fit for Wesley - but proves himself to be a very strong lead; ably handling the action sequences whilst maintaining an 'everyman' quality which makes him likeable and engaging. He manages to bring a big dollop of humour to the rather gloomy proceedings but is also serious enough to bring the brutality of the piece to startling life. He has a fun sexual chemistry with Angelina Jolie that brings some substance to the film and he portrays and radiates an untapped anger which makes him a scary and forceful presence. Angelina Jolie is on sinewy form as the sexy and sassy Fox; she is fierce and athletic and surprisingly graceful, hitting hard and making quite an impression. She is dark and brooding but brings a bit of emotional to the role and has a great time with the fight sequences. Morgan Freeman is typically great as the 'voice of god' that guides Wesley through the film.

Timur Bekmambetov directs with style and intelligence, keeping the films frenetic pace going throughout whilst instilling some real substance to the fantastical plot. He brings real energy into the fight scenes; making them brutal yet graceful and allows the copious plot twists to shock the audience without feeling heavy-handed or hammy. He shows a lightness of touch which works well with the screenplays ambitious demands and when the film stops to build some character development or emotional resonance he does so with an affectingly clean un-sentimentality. When the film slips into completely ridiculous territory (which is, admittedly, fairly often) he always brings it back to enjoyable ground. His direction is clean and efficient; showing a real eye for colour and visuals whilst making some of the screenplays mis-steps work more successfully than they should.

Overall Wanted is a flawed action movie; it is silly and unsure of itself and it isn't believable for one moments... but that doesn't matter because it is having so much fun, and we as an audience are taken along for the ride. It is sexy, violent, pulpy and proudly so... it may be grotesque - but is joyfully so.

Summary: A Frentetic, Sexy speed-thriller