Wanted Movie Review
Reviewed by: Nemesis
This is a nice action, suspense R-rated thiller. The actors were believable in the roles they played and the film flowed relatively smooth. The editing was nicely done and the transitions between cut scenes blended well. The R-rating is for strong language (which wasn’t over whelming), graphic brutality and slight nudity (You have 3 blatent booty shots and a pair of sexual position scenes)!
The background of the film is the basic ‘Chosen’ one who does not know they are the chosen one, who has to take out their opposite equal. No one else can do it because the ‘enemy’ is so skilled or powerful that only the said chosen one can, but the chosen one must be awakened and taught how to use these vast skills to fulfill their destiny. The Chosen one of course has a female counter-part who helps on the journey of discovery. Befriends another sub-character that dies or is injured which is a catalyst to tip the hero into ‘bad ass’ mode. A wise teach/mentor who only says exactly what you needed, nothing else and finally other ‘peers’ with different skills or talents to complete the squad that really don’t believe in the hero in the first place. Through the film you see the hero do some cool stuff just to prepare for the final show down with the enemy in a climatic battle that only the chosen one could have survived with odds a good “US National Debt” to 1. Lastly you have the hero all cool looking and closes the film with a hint of a possible sequel. That’s the film in a nut shell.
So what else can I say with out spoilers? The film is suspenseful and the opening action sequence is billy bad ass! You see a little of this scene in the previews and it doesn’t look near as cheesy in the actual production as it did in the trailer. Yet after that opening scene the film keeps up the pace of little dialog just to be rushed back in to a heart racing event! The film explains how they are able to do what they do and why they are the elite assassins they are. I’m not too familiar with the graphic novel but from what I was told, in the paper back version the characters are mutants or genetical enhanced or what have you. In the film they just have a little something that other people don’t (No Spoiler!). All the characters are human although they may act as animals or less than due to their personalities. Angelina J aka ‘Fox’ in the film does not have ears or a tail like a feral animal but she sure has a nice set of hind quarters.
‘Wanted’ has a bit of a twist in the film, a few surprises and lots of action. As stated earlier in the review… the brutality is a bit graphic as well as ‘grooming’ scenes. People are beat up, shot up and sliced up with out the camera turning away real quick to avoid the actual visual. You will see what happens to the human body when impacted in such a violent manner. So be prepared. It’s nothing you haven’t seen before though, or to the level that has been show cased before… just be prepared if you thought it would be like the current list of 2008 CBMs.
There is humor in the film which counters the “Everyone is a hard ass” feel. A couple one-liners, camera work or acting shot caused 90% of the theater to respond in chuckle, cheer or cringe. Especially the cool things that are done with bullets, automobiles, trains, butchary knives or a KEYBOARD (possible hint).
The film reminds me a lot of Equilibrium with Batm…er… Christian Bale and Taye Diggs. It’s a good time, it keeps you glued to your seat and you do not have to be distracted by searching out for ‘easter eggs’, ‘fan boi treats’ or ‘hidden goodies’ by the director. Don’t go with high expectations. Just go to check it out! As stated before it’s an action movie to catch, but you aren’t missing anything if you want to save a few dollars and catch it on DVD or quality bootleg.