criterionforum.org

Not ashamed to say I saw this today -- and as expected, it does not surpass the delirious bugfuck craziness of Day Watch. It's got Bekmambetov's imprint on every frame and is a joy to watch for that fact alone, but the story just doesn't cut it. Don't know the comics, so I don't know how that rates, but it leans far to much on The Matrix for characters and plot and Fight Club for the humor -- which works for the most part, but is hampered by McAvoy's "American" accent which just didn't ring true to me -- especially in his rather crappy voice over bits. Nice to see Konstantin Khabensky in small role ("Yes, I am Russian.") -- though he didn't get to do as much crazy stuff as say Dominique Pinon did in Jeunet's Alien film.

The thing that bugged me the most didn't have anything to do with the film itself, but rather -- walking into the theatre, ahead of me was this family -- mom, dad, older teenage son and another son who could not have been more than seven or eight years old. I had to bite my tongue to keep from saying something -- but come on people, films like this just aren't made for little kids. Hell, I love outrageous and gratuitous ultra violent films as much as the next film geek -- and Wanted certainly fulfills the edict 'nothing exceeds like excess' to an out of control and way over the top degree -- I just don't think little kids should see this kind of extreme bodily violence. Anyway...so it goes.

Don't get all the slagging on Angelina, she's not that bad of an actress. Here's what she says about Wanted in the current Vanity Fair:

Angelina Jolie wrote:...because I had just done A Mighty Heart and was scheduled to do Changeling, which is about the kidnapping of a child. And I had lost my mom. And I knew I was in this odd, fuzzy state going from one loss and kidnapping to another loss and kidnapping. Then Wanted came along. It’s about being physical and jumping and running and being violent, and instinctively I knew I needed to do that.

I liked her better in this than Mr. and Mrs. Smith, that's for sure.

moviscop wrote:jolie def had a butt double too...

Um, what makes you say that?

i was wrong about the ass double.

moviscop wrote:i was wrong about the ass double.

Weren't we all?

MyNameCriterionForum wrote:

moviscop wrote:i was wrong about the ass double.

Weren't we all?

We can all talk intelligently about film, but, at the end of the day, what guy doesn't enjoy seeing a nice ass. Jolie has one, this is clear.

However, Billy Bob has been involved with that body. It is, for lack of a better word, tainted poon.

moviscop wrote:We can all talk intelligently about film, but, at the end of the day, what guy doesn't enjoy seeing a nice ass.

Probably the most intelligently on-the-nose post I've seen here in ages I'm also glad to see some love for Mr. And Mrs. Smith too.

An interesting post from Glenn Kenny's blog. I added a comment at the bottom about my feelings of the film perhaps showing that we have not really moved on past the first Matrix film, instead just rehashing the formula somewhat.

that is really funny actually. wanted should have stolen the name "contempt" from godard. by the way. is it bad that i have a hard time getting into french new-wave cinema?

"Bekmambetov, who's based in Moscow, talked to a lot of young Americans like Wesley about their situations and their dreams. 'Unfortunately,' he says, laughing, 'their imaginations are very bloody, very violent. They don't say so, because people never say what they think, but there's a lot of aggression and anger. But I like this generation, they’re very smart, and I'm very sorry that they are spending their lives in such predictable ways.'"

doesn't quite explain why he continues to make shit.

Get ready for a sequel, even though:

Spoiler

Platt acknowledged that the creative team is still working on the challenge of continuing the story after most of the principal characters -- including Angelina Jolie -- ended the original in no position for an encore.

I haven't seen the film, but that looks like a pretty major spoiler to me...

I don't know - maybe:

Spoiler

they all renounced violence to become basket weavers while Jolie and McAvoy got married and settled down to a life of domestic bliss?

^^^ SPOILER THAT!

Spoiler

It's not clear that AnJo dies, and even if she did, they can clone her.

I violated my noJo pledge and saw this. It's ok, but I agree peeps are much better off watching Daywatch, one of the best action flix of the decade (and much better than Nightwatch).

Oh, like Aeon Flux?

Barmy wrote:I agree peeps are much better off watching Daywatch, one of the best action flix of the decade (and much better than Nightwatch).

hear, hear! I am always waiting with baited breath for more news on Twilight Watch but it doesn't look like its coming out any time soon.

Appropriately enough, the film is becoming a video game.

LQ wrote:

Barmy wrote:I agree peeps are much better off watching Daywatch, one of the best action flix of the decade (and much better than Nightwatch).

hear, hear! I am always waiting with baited breath for more news on Twilight Watch but it doesn't look like its coming out any time soon.

The Eggcorn Database

Hi Angelina!!!!

Ms. Jolie, what's it like the forbidden zone that is One-Shot Oscar World?

Also, what's the deal with Brad? You know what I mean...

I know I'm still a newbie, but dear god this forum is attracting dead weight like crazy lately...

HypnoHelioStaticStasis wrote:dear god this forum is attracting dead weight like crazy lately...

Including, apparently, Mrs. Jolie's publicist.

Mr_sausage wrote:

HypnoHelioStaticStasis wrote:dear god this forum is attracting dead weight like crazy lately...

Including, apparently, Mrs. Jolie's publicist.

Only her publicist (or her mother) would cite Hackers as being among Jolie's best work.

The British Advertising Standards Authority has banned tv adverts for the DVD citing it makes the use of guns and violence sexy.