Recently I watched one of my favorites, a film I have seen near fifty times, yet it stirs feelings every time I watch it. This particular viewing of V for Vendetta had my mind racing more so than usual because of the current state of the American economy. I realized that it was one speech and one statement that strike me every time.
For those who have not seen V for Vendetta, the premise of the film is not far fetched, despite the anti-hero who sneaks around London in a Guy Fawkes mask, plotting the revolution that eventually blows up Parliament.
Near the beginning of the movie he takes over the London TV station in order to broadcast message to the people that he feels is far overdue.
“The truth is, there is something terribly wrong with this country, isn’t there?” he stated. “Where once you had the freedom to object, think, and speak as you saw fit, you now have censors and systems of surveillance coercing your conformity and soliciting your submission.”
Since September 11th, 2001, the leaders of our country have taken steps to ensure that such a disaster never happens again. In response they started a war they don’t know how to finish, much like Vietnam. However, during the arrangement of their precautionary steps and war mongering they ignored certain articles of the Constitution, the very foundation of our country. Now, as V stated in the movie, we have censors and systems of surveillance coercing our conformity and soliciting our submission. Words like bomb now put us on a list for investigation. I have friends afraid to do research for papers on the topic because they are Muslim and don’t want to be marked by the government.
“How did this happen? Who’s to blame? Well certainly there are those more responsible than others, and they will be held accountable, but again truth be told, if you’re looking for the guilty, you need only look into a mirror. I know why you did it. I know you were afraid. Who wouldn’t be? War, terror, disease. There were a myriad of problems which conspired to corrupt your reason and rob you of your common sense.”
Who is to blame? The American people? We re-elected our president. We elected the senators and congressmen. In short, the state of our country, the fear we live in, and the gradual loss of our constitutional rights is our own fault. Taken by the horror of what happened on September 11th and how swiftly our government reacted, we did the only thing we saw fit to do… Let them continue their destruction of our democracy.
“Last night I destroyed the Old Bailey, to remind this country of what it has forgotten. More than four hundred years ago a great citizen wished to embed the fifth of November forever in our memory. His hope was to remind the world that fairness, justice, and freedom are more than words, they are perspectives. So if you’ve seen nothing, if the crimes of this government remain unknown to you then I would suggest you allow the fifth of November to pass unmarked. But if you see what I see, if you feel as I feel, and if you would seek as I seek, then I ask you to stand beside me one year from tonight, outside the gates of Parliament, and together we shall give them a fifth of November that shall never, ever be forgot.”
The United States was built on an idea over two hundred years ago, brought into being on the fourth of July. The history books of today do not tell students a lot of what happened leading up to and during the revolutionary war. We didn’t just fight the British. We were the British. A state of siege and repression of rights and liberties had existed for many years and a state of war had existed for two years prior to the signing of the Declaration. We fought our own government for independence!
All governments progress from liberty to tyranny and despotism, unless carefully watched and circumscribed. Much is to be learned in today’s times from the events of that time, the causes and the reasons for the uprising and indignation of the citizens in opposition to tyranny. Many parallels can be drawn as we review the happenings of today. If we do not stand up and force changes happen now, it is not far fetched that there could yet again be a revolution.
The movie is set in Great Britain in the near future. Under the guise of several terrorist acts, a totalitarian government is elected to Parliament to save the country from these terrorists. The price? The people must give up a lot of their freedoms for safety. Can we see a parallel already? It is eventually uncovered that the government created the attacks in order to secure their power.
Driven by a personal vendetta, a mysterious individual known as V comes to the forefront to take up the cause for freedom. He wears a mask of Guy Fawkes to cover his burned and scarred face. V’s mission is to kill those who had tortured him at the detention center, those who instigated the attacks, and bring justice back to the country. He invites the people to join him in one year, on Guy Fawkes Day, to see him complete what Guy Fawkes couldn’t… Blow up Parliament.
In the end V is asked, “Why won’t you die?”
His response is simple and eloquent. “Behind this mask there is more than a man. Behind this mask there is an idea, and ideas are bulletproof.”
One could only hope that our country, our Constitution, can stand up to that kind of fantastic belief.
The idea that a small group of men could provoke such terror in their own people, a terror that only they could save the country from, is not very far fetched. It makes one wonder how far any government, American included, would go to secure its power.
Overall, the lesson that I come away with every time, the lesson that makes me want to stand up and fight for what is right and just, is V’s profound statement, “People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people.”
Regardless of what your views are about government, or how you feel about the brash comparison I have been bold enough to write on paper for our government to one day find, V for Vendetta is no less than heart-pounding, thrilling, inventive, and a pure joy to watch. If you have not seen it, you have no idea what you are missing.
No matter what you think of my diatribe or this movie just remember that, while Homeland Security may be used in lieu of conversation, words will always retain their power. Words offer the means to meaning, and for those who will listen, the enunciation of truth. And the truth is, there is something terribly wrong with this country, isn’t there?
V for Vendetta
July 17, 2008 · Leave a Comment
For those who have not seen V for Vendetta, the premise of the film is not far fetched, despite the anti-hero who sneaks around London in a Guy Fawkes mask, plotting the revolution that eventually blows up Parliament.
Near the beginning of the movie he takes over the London TV station in order to broadcast message to the people that he feels is far overdue.
“The truth is, there is something terribly wrong with this country, isn’t there?” he stated. “Where once you had the freedom to object, think, and speak as you saw fit, you now have censors and systems of surveillance coercing your conformity and soliciting your submission.”
Since September 11th, 2001, the leaders of our country have taken steps to ensure that such a disaster never happens again. In response they started a war they don’t know how to finish, much like Vietnam. However, during the arrangement of their precautionary steps and war mongering they ignored certain articles of the Constitution, the very foundation of our country. Now, as V stated in the movie, we have censors and systems of surveillance coercing our conformity and soliciting our submission. Words like bomb now put us on a list for investigation. I have friends afraid to do research for papers on the topic because they are Muslim and don’t want to be marked by the government.
“How did this happen? Who’s to blame? Well certainly there are those more responsible than others, and they will be held accountable, but again truth be told, if you’re looking for the guilty, you need only look into a mirror. I know why you did it. I know you were afraid. Who wouldn’t be? War, terror, disease. There were a myriad of problems which conspired to corrupt your reason and rob you of your common sense.”
Who is to blame? The American people? We re-elected our president. We elected the senators and congressmen. In short, the state of our country, the fear we live in, and the gradual loss of our constitutional rights is our own fault. Taken by the horror of what happened on September 11th and how swiftly our government reacted, we did the only thing we saw fit to do… Let them continue their destruction of our democracy.
“Last night I destroyed the Old Bailey, to remind this country of what it has forgotten. More than four hundred years ago a great citizen wished to embed the fifth of November forever in our memory. His hope was to remind the world that fairness, justice, and freedom are more than words, they are perspectives. So if you’ve seen nothing, if the crimes of this government remain unknown to you then I would suggest you allow the fifth of November to pass unmarked. But if you see what I see, if you feel as I feel, and if you would seek as I seek, then I ask you to stand beside me one year from tonight, outside the gates of Parliament, and together we shall give them a fifth of November that shall never, ever be forgot.”
The United States was built on an idea over two hundred years ago, brought into being on the fourth of July. The history books of today do not tell students a lot of what happened leading up to and during the revolutionary war. We didn’t just fight the British. We were the British. A state of siege and repression of rights and liberties had existed for many years and a state of war had existed for two years prior to the signing of the Declaration. We fought our own government for independence!
All governments progress from liberty to tyranny and despotism, unless carefully watched and circumscribed. Much is to be learned in today’s times from the events of that time, the causes and the reasons for the uprising and indignation of the citizens in opposition to tyranny. Many parallels can be drawn as we review the happenings of today. If we do not stand up and force changes happen now, it is not far fetched that there could yet again be a revolution.
The movie is set in Great Britain in the near future. Under the guise of several terrorist acts, a totalitarian government is elected to Parliament to save the country from these terrorists. The price? The people must give up a lot of their freedoms for safety. Can we see a parallel already? It is eventually uncovered that the government created the attacks in order to secure their power.
Driven by a personal vendetta, a mysterious individual known as V comes to the forefront to take up the cause for freedom. He wears a mask of Guy Fawkes to cover his burned and scarred face. V’s mission is to kill those who had tortured him at the detention center, those who instigated the attacks, and bring justice back to the country. He invites the people to join him in one year, on Guy Fawkes Day, to see him complete what Guy Fawkes couldn’t… Blow up Parliament.
In the end V is asked, “Why won’t you die?”
His response is simple and eloquent. “Behind this mask there is more than a man. Behind this mask there is an idea, and ideas are bulletproof.”
One could only hope that our country, our Constitution, can stand up to that kind of fantastic belief.
The idea that a small group of men could provoke such terror in their own people, a terror that only they could save the country from, is not very far fetched. It makes one wonder how far any government, American included, would go to secure its power.
Overall, the lesson that I come away with every time, the lesson that makes me want to stand up and fight for what is right and just, is V’s profound statement, “People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people.”
Regardless of what your views are about government, or how you feel about the brash comparison I have been bold enough to write on paper for our government to one day find, V for Vendetta is no less than heart-pounding, thrilling, inventive, and a pure joy to watch. If you have not seen it, you have no idea what you are missing.
No matter what you think of my diatribe or this movie just remember that, while Homeland Security may be used in lieu of conversation, words will always retain their power. Words offer the means to meaning, and for those who will listen, the enunciation of truth. And the truth is, there is something terribly wrong with this country, isn’t there?
Categories: Movie Reviews
Tagged: commentary, Movie Reviews