V for Vendetta (2006)

Location: AMC Loews Waterfront Theater
Seen Before: No
Rating: 3.5

I found this story extremely intriguing but ended up feeling the script needed much more work; the Matrix Bros. try to cram far too much into the film to the point where it feels bogged down and muddled. Often, as scenes unfolded, I found myself completely bewildered as to why they were constructed in the fashion that they were (poory worded, I know)--the overbearing score crescendoing as a character gives us expository dialogue and the editor is cross-cutting between action taking place--pacing, people, pacing! At the same time I never felt truely invested in the story's outcome, instead feeling like I was just watching colors flash in front of me on a giant screen. For the most part, it seemed rather predictable (why put Natalie Portman in a jail cell and threaten her with death when we know there's no way in cinematic Hell that she is going to be killed off?) and so often just remarkably convenient (Stephen Rea popping out behind the subway car toward the end was laughable).
So why the at least respectable 3.5? Solid performances; nice camerawork; fascinating storyline; an entertaining two hours. It hurts when it could have been a lot more, though. These fellows should have looked at recent blockbusters like Batman Begins and War of the Worlds, spectacles that got it right, before commiting V to celluloid.