| Audience: | Adult |
| MPAA Rating: | Rated R for strong bloody violence throughout, pervasive language and some sexuality. |
| Profanity: | Very strong language |
| Nudity/Sex: | Sexual references and explicit situations, nudity |
| Alcohol/Drugs: | Drinking |
| Violence/Scariness: | Constant extreme, intense, and graphic peril and violence, explicit wounds, many characters killed |
| Diversity Issues: | Diverse characters |
| Movie Release Date: | June 28, 2008 |
Nasty, twisted, pulpy, and brutally violent, "Wanted" is like a cross between Kill Bill, The Matrix, and The Terminator
It turns out that our Wesley, who has been inwardly stewing and outwardly doing nothing as he is hounded by his supervisor and cuckolded by his best friend, is, in the grand tradition of heroes from King Arthur to Luke Skywalker to Neo to Harry Potter, the chosen one who must discover his hidden powers. The woman's name is Fox ("Is that a call sign? Like Maverick in "Top Gun?" he asks) and she takes him to a secret citadel where textiles are woven and assassins are trained. Wesley learns to use guns, knives, and fists. He is often critically injured, but fortunately they have some nifty little healing tanks and a soak or two puts him back on his feet and learning how to shoot around objects and race along the top of the El train. He understands that learning how to do something that makes full use of his unique talents is the only way to know who he truly is.
And the director knows enough to get that part out of the way quickly and get to the good stuff, some low-down and nastily twisted action that includes some bullet-cam shots of bodies that are about to be hit very, very hard. Russian director Timur Bekmambetov of the very successful "Night Watch" movies knows how to make violence stylish without becoming overly stylized, nudging the pulpiest elements into myth.
James McAvoy shows himself as able at nerd-into-action-hero as he was at faun ("The Chronicles of Narnia") and tragic romance ("Atonement"), and Jolie seems delighted to shake off the beatific Madonna role she has played on- and off-screen most recently. She moves like a panther, bringing an ecstatic grace to a ducking move on top of the El train just before it gets to a tunnel. Morgan Freeman is all gravelly exposition and Common has marvelous screen presence as members of The Fraternity. The plot twists are less successful onscreen than on the page and the violence goes over the top but by that time the fanboys will be so satisfied (did I mention that there's a scene with Jolie getting out of the tub and showing off her tattoos?) that they might not mind, especially with the hint of a sequel.
Parents should know that this film has constant extreme, intense, and graphic peril and violence, close-ups of bullets entering heads, a lot of spurting blood, and explicit wounds. It also has explicit sexual references and situations and nudity and very strong language.
Family discussion: Do you agree with the choice Wesley's father made about leaving the family? What does the movie have to say about when we should and should not question orders from superiors?
If you like this, try: The Russian film, "Night Watch," by the same director, and The Terminator
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I'm sorry you were disappointed. I appreciate your thoughtful comments and your points are well taken. I try to rate films based on how well they meet their own aspirations for their intended audience, and so gave this one a B because I felt it lived up to its comic book origins and pulp/myth intentions. But it does not match the better films of this genre or the director's Russian films.
Thanks Nell for your comment too- we need people to clarify what is on the screens especially for 8.00 bucks and food, and sitter.... My comment was to point out the lack of what I felt redeeming qualities to further view the movie.Trailers or not we don't always get a true sense of what all the movie is going to reveal( no illusions here folks) Why does Hollywood have to be so in your face with violence and graphic sex.. ok I guess I know that one- it SELLS. keep up with the reviews. but don't down put us down if we differ in opinion. Thanks-
You are so right, Karla, and I am committed to making this a safe space for all opinions on all movies as long as they are respectfully presented. I welcome your comments because the values (or lack thereof) should always be an element of our assessment of a movie, and one of the great pleasures of this site for me is the chance it provides for me to bring great movies with great values to an audience who might otherwise have missed them. Thanks for your comment, and please write again soon.
SPOILER ALERT: as an action fan I liked the movie because of it's pace and adrenaline rush and that when Fox finds out the truth behind Sloan's decisions on who to kill is not based on what she believed so deeply and she finds out that she herself should have been killed and takes a stand in what she believes in by killing all members of the fraternity who had been named and herself in the name of her beliefs but I must agree that the language and violence were over done but I also believe that this was an over-all good action movie.
Great comment, Elizabeth, thanks! (I added "Spoiler alert" so people who have not seen the movie yet will be warned that it gives away something else.)
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