Jay here.
I love a great revenge flick. Sometimes there's nothing more satisfying than watching a great antihero get justice for a terrible wrong committed against them. What makes a great revenge film? Well, besides a tightly scripted plot, you have to have a villain(s) that the audience can truly despise and also you have to a satisfying ending where the bad guy's comeuppance leaves the viewer satisfied.
Jay's Picks:
The Crow (1994)
Directed by Alex Proyas
Starring Brandon Lee, Ernie Hudson and Michael Wincott
Based on the even better comic book by James O'Barr, The Crow tells the story of Eric Draven, played by the late Brandon Lee, son of martial arts legend Bruce Lee. Eric and his fiancé, Shelly are brutally murdered by a gang of hoodlums and one year later he is resurrected by some mystical force embodied in the form of a crow. Draven finds that he is now immortal and sets about exacting his revenge against the men who wronged him and his girl.
Made in the mid 90's, The Crow is steeped in the era's dark grunge style. Nearly every scene in the film takes place and night and in the rain. To say its a moody picture would be an understatement.
The soundtrack was equally brilliant, displaying tracks from the likes of Nine Inch Nails, Stone Temple Pilots, Violent Femmes and KMFDM. I relay liked the idea of the hero as an avenging angel of death. Eric methodically and dramatically hunts down and kills each of the gang members until he ultimately faces off against Top Dollar (Michael Wincott), the crime boss who runs the city and employed the murders who killed the young lovers. It's here towards the end the movie gets slightly hokie, but not enough to spoil the overall fun.
The shocking death of star Brandon Lee during filming propelled a lot of the buzz around The Crow when it came out, but it still holds up as an excellent action flick. I'm sure if he had lived Lee would have found more leading roles and who knows how far he could have gone?
I Saw the Devil (2011)
Directed by Kim Jee-Woon
Starring Byung-hun Lee and Min-sik Choi
This is the first of three Korean movies on my list. What can I say? Those Koreans really know how to make a revenge movie. A warning, though, for those who don't deal well with violence - this will probably not be a film for you.
This particular tale involves the brutal rape and murder of a young woman stranded on the side of the road in her broken down car. The serial killer who commits the crime is a middle-aged school bus driver named Kyung-chul (Min-sik Choi). What he doesn't realize is that his victim happend to be the wife of secret agent, Kim Soo-hyeon (Byung-hun Lee) and she was pregnant with his unborn child when she was killed.
Using some unorthodox methods, it doesn't take Kim long at all to track down who killed his beloved fiancé. But, instead of exacting his revenge and killing Kyung-chul, he knocks the psychopath out and plants a tracking device in his skin that allows him to track the murderer wherever he goes. His plan is to torment the man who killed his love by following him and interrupting each time he tries to kill again, beating the absolute crap out of him, and saving his victim.
Savage and gripping, I Saw the Devil is a gruesome yet smart rumeration on the price of vengance on those who take their quest to punish too far and blur the line between justice and sadism.
In the Bedroom (2001)
Directed by Todd Field
Starring Tom Wilkinson, Sissy Spacek, Nick Stahl, Marisa Tomei and William Mopather
This Oscar nominee for Best Picture could be called the "high brow" pick on my list. I feel like it's been forgotten over the last decade, but when it came out I remember how effective it was at capturing the grief and anger that a middle-aged couple feels over the murder of their 20 year-old son.
When Ruth and and Matt Fowler's (Sissy Spacek and Tom Wilkinson) son, Frank (Nick Stahl) begins dating an older divorcee, Natalie (Marisa Tomei), they disagree over the relationship. When he is shockingly murdered by Natalie's ex-husband, Richard (William Mopather in an underrated role) their lives and marriage begin to unravel as they try to deal with the loss. Richard is only found guilty of manslaughter and this leads the couples thoughts to turn to darker ways of getting justice for their dead son.
In th Bedroom is a great film that shows what happens when an everyday couple is pushed to make choices that challenge their bond in ways that it has never been challenged before.
Kill Bill (2003 & 2004)
Directed by Quentin Tarantino
Starring Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Darryl Hannah, Lucy Liu, Michael Madsen and Vivica Fox
No list of revenge films would be complete without the addition of Quentin Tarantino's masterpiece of bloody vengance, Kill Bill. Released in two volumes that feel very different, stylistically, it tells the tale of a young woman known simply as The Bride (Uma Thurman). She was once one of the world's deadliest assassins until she was betrayed by her former lover, a man known only as Bill (David Carradine) and the four other members of the Deadly Vipers, an elite hit squad that The Bride once belonged to.
Volume 1 is a bombastic blend of Shaw Brothers grind house and Brian De Palma style as The Bride tracks down the deadly O-Ren Ishii (Lucy Liu), leader of the Crazy 88 gang. The epic fight scene in the House of the Blue Leaves is one of the best choreographed ass-kicking that has ever been filmed and the showdown with O-Ren is a throwback to the Leone standoffs of old, just with samurai swords instead of six-shooters.
Volume 2 is a more subdued affair. Again, Tarantino draws on spaghetti western influences (he even included Ennio Morricone source music from The Good, the Bad and the Ugly) to finish his revenge epic in a way many didn't expect. Highlights include the flashbacks to The Bride's training in China with Pei Mei, the claustrophobic beat down with Elle Driver (Darryl Hannah) and the surprisingly sentimental climactic scenes with Bill. Tarantino set out to make the revenge flick to end all revenge flicks and I think he pulled it off in spades.
Leon (1994)
Directed by Luc Besson
Starring Jean Reno, Natalie Portman and Gary Oldman
French filmmaker,
Luc Besson followed up his success with
La Femme Nikita by making his first English language picture,
Leon, or as it was called in the US -
The Professional. The story is pretty simple, but the performances are what made this movie so special. Jean Reno stars as the title character, Leon, a professional hitman who is considered the best at what he was. The film establishes early on that Leon lives a pretty lonely life. When he's not killing for money, he spends all his time alone, in his apartment, taking care of a simple houseplant, which is his only friend.
Leon is forced to make a difficult choice when the family who lives in the apartment next door to him are wiped out by a group of dirty DEA agents led by the unbalanced Norman Stansfield (
Gary Oldman at his unhinged best). They manage to miss the young daughter of the family, though, a smart and streetwise little girl named Matilda (
Natalie Portman in her first role), and Leon saves her by pretending that she is his child.
The rest of the film concerns the growing relationship and love between Leon and Matilda. He learns to care for and need another person in his life, and she learns from him how to be a professional killer. Determined to get revenge against Stansfield and his men for murdering her family, particularly her little bother, Matilda plans to use the skills Leon has taught her to punish the corrupt cops. The film remains one of my favorite love stories and also kicks ass as well. Make sure you see the unedited international version, though, as the added scenes add a lot more to building the relationship between Matilda and Leon.
Mad Max (1979)
Directed by George Miller
Starring Mel Gibson, Joanne Samuel and Hugh Keays-Byrne
Not as revered as its sequel,
The Road Warrior,
Mad Max still remains a highly influential, balls-to-the-wall stunt movie that introduced the world to a young
Mel Gibson. It also became the template for a sub-genre of movies that still exist today - the post-apocalyptic wasteland flick.
Gibson stars as Max, a member of an elite police force that hunts down and "intercepts" brutal gang members. In the awesome opening sequence we see Max help being down a criminal known as the Night Rider in a car chase sequence that still astounds, and was revolutionary for its time. Because of his role in Night Riders death, Max is targeted by a bike gang and its leader, the sadistic Toecutter (
Hugh Keays-Byrne).
The gang manages to kill not only his partner and best friend, Goose (
Steve Bisley) (no
Top Gun flashbacks please!), but also murders Max's wife (
Joanne Samuel) and infant son. The rest of the movie shows Max's embrace of the vigilante role that he would maintain over the next two sequels as he hunts down each member of the gang and exacts bloody vengeance for the pain they have caused him.
Personally, I much prefer
The Road Warrior, which I believe is one of the great action movies of the 80's, but Mad Max needs to recognized for the insane stunt driving it displayed and the introduction of cinema's most iconic vengeful characters.
Oldboy (2003)
Directed by Chan-wook Park
Starring Min-sik Choi, Ji-tae Yu and Hye-jeong Chang
The second film in the celebrated
Vengeance Trilogy by Korean writer/director,
Chan-wook Park,
Oldboy has become a cult favorite in America, and even spawned a lukewarm remake by Spike Lee in 2013 starring
Josh Brolin. It won the Grand Prix at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival.
As usual, the original is by far the superior version to watch, Korean subtitles and all. It is exceptional in its dynamic visual flair, demented plot, and fantastic performances, most notably by Min-sik Choi who finds his way onto my list for the second time.
Choi play Dae-su Oh, who is unexplainably kidnapped on his young daughter's birthday and imprisoned in a room for 15 years. He tries to keep himself fit and his mind from breaking as he thinks about nothing else than finding out who did this to him and why. Suddenly, and also without explanation, he is released and told he has only 5 days to uncover the identity of his captor.
Oldboy is one of those movie you don't want to reveal too much about to anyone who hasn't seen it, so I'll refrain from saying much more. Just know that the ending, where everything is revealed to Dae-su is one of the most shocking and disturbing plot twists in cinema history. The act of revenge has never felt so twisted and complete in the movies climactic moment.
Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
Directed by Sergio Leone
Starring Henry Fonda, Charles Bronson, Claudia Cardinale and Jason Robards
Sergio Leone is one of the most celebrated directors in the western genre, and
Once Upon a Time in the West is what many consider to be his masterpiece. It was his first movie funded by an American studio and it surprised US audiences by casting
Henry Fonda, a beloved actor famous for always playing characters with good moral values, as the villain, Frank. In his first scene he famously guns down a child after wiping out that same child's family.
Charles Bronson starred as well as the character known simply as "Harmonica" who comes to town for unknown reasons, but partners up with a desperado named Cheyanne (
Jason Robards) to protect a widow (
Claudia Cardinale) from the wealthy train baron who has employed Frank to help him get her land. It becomes clear though that Harmonica is actually there to settle an old debt with Frank. As most Leone films the finale of the movie concerns a standoff between Bronson and Fonda that is still epic. Fonda's Frank asks Harmonica to tell him why he has come for him, but the quiet gunslinger tells him, "Only at the point of dying." To find out you'll have to watch the movie, which still remains the pinnacle of both the western and the revenge genres.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
Directed by Nicholas Meyer
Starring William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForst Kelley and Ricardo Montalban
Beloved among not only Star Trek fans, but also science-fiction fans in general,
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan stands alone in the pantheon of Star Trek movies as a truly great film. It may be a little dated now but it still holds up as one of the best revenge pictures to come out of its genre.
Taking its plot from the 1967 episode
Space Seed from the original series, Wrath focuses on the discovery of the spaceship Botany Bay, and its surviving crew, lead by the enigmatic Khan Noonien Singh (
Ricardo Montalban in a career role). Khan had been left on the planet by Captian James T. Kirk (
William Shatner) years ago, and now he wants revenge against his old nemesis for marooning him there. He steals the USS Enterprise and the experimental Genesis experiment that Kirk's old flame Carol Marcus (
Bibi Besch) created.
The movie is an expertly balanced cat and mouse game between Kirk and Khan as they jockey for the upper hand over the other. In the final battle its Spock (
Leonard Nimoy) who proves the hero as he sacrifices himself to save the ship. Its a moving moment between Kirk and Spock that one tries to not ruin by thinking of the movie to come,
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock.
Wrath of Khan has had the most influence over the rebooted franchise helmed by
J.J. Abrams, as he has used it as a template to inform many of the plot points in both of his films.
Sympathy For Mr. Vengance (2002)
Directed by Chan-wook Park
Starring Kang-ho Song, Ha-kyun Shin and Doona Bae
I know, another Korean movie. And its directed by the same guy that made
Oldboy? Yep, and arguably its better in many ways than that more popular film. Being the first entry in
Chan-wook Park's Vengance Trilogy which also includes
Oldboy and 2005's
Lady Vengeance,
Symapthy For Mr. Vengeance is more subdued and emotionally grounded story.
Ryu (
Ha-kyun Shin) is desperately trying to find a kidney donor for his ailing sister. When he is duped by some black market organ traffickers, Ryu and his girlfriend, Cha Yeong-mi (
Doona Bae) concoct a scheme to kidnap his boss's daughter and ransom her to get the money to buy his sister a kidney. Tragedy rears its head when the child drowns in a river by accident and Ryu' boss, Park Dong-jin (
Kang-ho Song) sets about finding his daughter's killer and getting revenge for her drowning.
Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance plays out like a Korean
Coen Brothers movie, with unexpected twists and turns. There are no bad or good guys, just people making terrible choices and paying for them in awful ways. Its a beautifully made movie, and heralded the arrival of a major talent. Chan-wook Park would eventually make the transition to making American films, like 2013's
Stoker, starring
Nicole Kidman.
Matt's Picks:
The Crow (1994)
Directed by Alex Proyas
Starring Brandon Lee, Ernie Hudson and Michael Wincott
"Little things used to mean so much to Shelly. I used to think they were kind of trivial. Believe me, nothing is trivial."
Based on
James O'Barr's 1989 comic book series of the same name,
Brandon Lee stars as musician Eric Draven, who is murdered along with his fiancée Shelly (who is also raped) on October 30 (Devil's Night), the eve of their wedding day, by a group of thugs during a seemingly random home invasion. Because of his anger and sorrow, Eric is given a second chance by a crow (believed to carry souls from this life to the afterlife), being raised from the dead and given invulnerability and a chance to bring to justice all of the thugs who murdered him and Shelly. However, it's not just the fact that Draven is able to kill the guilty which makes this a decent revenge flick; it's the manner in which he does it.
I remember Draven as being the first somewhat superhero who killed his tormentors (the only person in comics who did that at that time was Marvel Comics'
The Punisher), and the character became a major influence for a character I created in my writing. Unlike The Punisher, it was the first time a hero had such heavy, strong emotions conveyed to the public. This was captured not only in Lee's performance but also in the writing and production, which included rain and most scenes taking place at night. Also, the soundtrack kicks ass. Sadly, Lee was accidentally killed during the shooting of a scene in this film. However, he left one hell of a legacy in this film alone! This film has reached cult status and has earned its place among top pop culture revenge films.
Desperado (1995)
Directed by Robert Rodriguez
Starring Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek and Joaquim de Almeida
"You know, it's easier to pull the trigger than play guitar. Easier to destroy than to create. They killed the woman I loved ... and ruined my life."
Not many audiences knew when this film was released that it was a sequel to writer/director
Robert Rodriguez's 1992 debut film
El Mariachi.
Antonio Banderas' "Mariachi" (taking over for the first film's actor
Carlos Gallardo and paying homage to "The Man With No Name" series featuring
Clint Eastwood) is looking for a man named Bucho, who is the top man responsible for changing his life and killing the woman he loved (
Consuelo Gómez). Right from the beginning of the film, there is a major showdown and gunfight, thus cementing Banderas as a kick-ass action star! With a guitar case full of a cadre of weapons, Mariachi cuts a bloody path toward Bucho, while also having to deal with the destructive consequences of his road to vengeance. This is another film where the soundtrack (mostly provided by
Los Lobos and
Tito & Tarantula) really shines! This film would also establish writer/director Rodriguez as a bone fide talent in Hollywood (his
El Mariachi only cost $7,225 to make and would go on to become an international success). The best part of the film are the finely edited sequences -- such as when Hayek's character is serenading to a sleeping Mariachi while killers are surrounding her residence.
Before Rodriguez made spy movies for kids, he created this Latino character who had some actual street cred with his badass-yet-emotionally-deep story. At times, of course, the action is a bit unrealistic, but it's fun to watch -- taking a cue from
Quentin Tarantino and old "
Spaghetti Westerns" (a la
Sergio Leone).
Kill Bill (2003 & 2004)
Directed by Quentin Tarantino
Starring Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Darryl Hannah, Lucy Liu, Michael Madsen and Vivica A. Fox
"Revenge is never a straight line. It's a forest. And like a forest, it's easy to lose your way ... to get lost ... to forget where you came in."
I consider this to be director
Quentin Tarantino's masterpiece. This revenge film, which Tarantino used to sample -- and pay homage to -- some of his most favorite film genres, is so epic that Tarantino had to split it into two parts. The first film is much more violent and action-packed, inspired by the classic Japanese Toei and
chanbara films, Hong Kong (
Shaw Brothers) martial arts films, the 1970s girls with guns films, and 1970s revenge films.
Part One details protagonist The Bride's (
Uma Thurman) awakening from a coma after being shot in the head by her former boss and boyfriend, Bill (David Carradine), who lead the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad (
Darryl Hannah,
Lucy Liu,
Michael Madsen and
Vivica Fox), of which The Bride was once a member.
Part Two is more cerebral and less action-oriented -- instead delving into the details of why The Bride was marked for assassination, and her training as an assassin, as well as having to confront the truth of why she chose to go legit and quit the Viper Squad; this film is inspired by Leone's "Spaghetti Western" and revenge films. Thurman's Bride (or, B******, for those who know) is one of the tough female characters in pop culture today and an awesome force to be reckoned with. I cannot speak enough about how great this set of films are! There was talk of a sequel but Tarantino recently announced that the project was shelved. There was also talk of one long "director's cut" of these two films, called
The Whole Bloody Affair, and it was to be released on DVD in 2009, but that project was also shelved. Either way, it does not take away from the impact of this film's greatness.
Leon: The Professional (1994)
Directed by Luc Besson
Starring Jean Reno, Natalie Portman and Gary Oldman
"I like these quiet little moments before the storm. It reminds me of Beethoven."
Writer/director
Luc Besson had already made his mark with
The Big Blue and
La Femme Nikita, but it was this story of a professional hitman, Leon (
Jean Reno), who takes in a preteen girl Matilda (
Natalie Portman in her first role) whose family was killed by crooked DEA agents led by Norman Stansfield (
Gary Oldman), who is perhaps one of the best villains in cinema. When Matilda finds out what Leon does for a living, she asks him to help her to learn to "clean" (assassinate) so she can have her revenge on the agents. Against his better judgment, Leon teaches her a little bit at a time. In the meantime, Leon is opened to a whole new world as Matilda teaches him to live and love (in a familial way) -- she connects him to the world. There is plenty of action, but the story also has more of an emotional depth than most revenge films. From first viewing of this film, you could tell Portman was going to be a star as she holds her own with superb veteran actors
Jean Reno,
Gary Oldman, and
Danny Aiello. This is also one of the few revenge films with a touching ending. Can't recommend this one enough!
Man on Fire (2004)
Directed by Tony Scott
Starring Denzel Washington, Dakota Fanning, Radha Mitchell, Marc Anthony, Christopher Walken, Giancarlo Giannini, and Mickey Rourke
"Forgiveness is between them and God. It's my job to arrange the meeting."
Based on the 1987 book by A.J. Quinnell, this adaptation stars Denzel Washington as protagonist John Creasy, an alcoholic former CIA agent and Marine officer who is now a bodyguard, hired to take care of nine-year-old Pita Ramos (Fanning) just until her father (Anthony) can renew their kidnap and ransom insurance. At first, Creasy hates the assignment and often drinks himself to sleep; however, over time, Pita grows on him and the two form an unlikely strong bond. When Pita is kidnapped and is pronounced dead, Creasy viciously attacks everyone involved in her abduction and murder. Out of all the revenge films on this list, I think this one has to be the best when it comes to methodology. And, of course, Washington is at his best.
Munich (2005)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Starring Eric Bana, Daniel Craig, Ciaran Hinds, Mathieu Kassovitz, Geoffrey Rush, Michael Lonsdale, Mathieu Amalric, and Ayelet Zurer
"We are supposed to be righteous. That's a beautiful thing. And we're losing it. If I lose that, that's everything. That's my soul."
Based on the book
Vengeance: The True Story of an Israeli Counter-Terrorist Team, this film is based on the true story of Operation "Wrath of God," which was Israel's "off the books" retaliation for the
1972 Munich Olympics massacre where five Israeli athletes and six coaches were killed by a Palestinian group called Black September. The film follows Avner (Bana) who is hired from Mossad (Israel's version of the CIA) to form a
black ops group to kill top leaders and conspirators of the Munich plan. Spielberg uses his usual unique filming style and captures one of the best revenge films ever! There is plenty of tension as the group of ragtag operatives are somewhat making up their missions as they go along, but what is best about this particular revenge film is that it asks the kinds of questions that need to be asked. In one standout scene, Avner asks his handler (Rush), "Did we accomplish anything at all? Every man we killed has been replaced by worse," to which his handler replies, "Why cut my fingernails? They'll grow back." The other crucial scene is where one of Avner's teammates feels he is losing his soul over the revenge mission. On top of it all,
John Williams' haunting score is phenomenal! It doesn't get much better than this!
Payback (1999)
Starring Mel Gibson, Gregg Henry, Maria Bello, David Paymer, Lucy Liu, Kris Kristofferson, and James Coburn
"Not many people know what their life's worth is. I do. Seventy grand. That's what they took from me. And that's what I was going to get back."
I struggled of whether or not
Mel Gibson's brilliant
Braveheart should be on this list since his character
William Wallace does start his rebellion due to him avenging the death of his wife; however, I decided
Braveheart was not applicable to this list because even though there was one scene of revenge, it is not revenge that continues Wallace on his rebellion quest. There are plenty of Gibson films that focus on revenge and are great (
Ransom,
The Patriot,
Edge of Darkness), but the one that take the cake is this gem from 1999. Based on
Richard Stark's (real name
Donald Westlake) brilliant novel
The Hunter (and one of my favorite series of books), Gibson plays Porter (in the books, it's Parker) who is betrayed by his team of thieves, shot in the back and left for dead. When he awakens, Porter makes it his mission to get the money owed to him ($70,000) and get even with those who betrayed him.
Revenge (1990)
Directed by Tony Scott
Starring Kevin Costner, Madeleine Stowe, Anthony Quinn, James Gammon, Miguel Ferrer, and John Leguizamo
"I killed a man who I hated today."
Aptly named (especially for this list!) is this 1990 revenge romance-suspense film (based on the novella by Jim Harrison) starring Kevin Costner as retired U.S. Naval aviator Michael "Jay" Cochran who wants a vacation and decides to visit his friend Tiburon "Tibby" Mendez (Quinn), a Mexican businessman who is actually a powerful crime boss. Upon arriving to Tibby's hacienda, Jay meets Tibby's young wife Miryea (Stowe) and the two soon fall in love. Unfortunately, Tibby finds out about this and is not too pleased. Events then unfold that send Jay in a downward spiral of revenge. I remember this as being one of the first movies I watched which was clearly about revenge and it captivated me. The direction of Tony Scott (who also did Man on Fire) is wonderful and the world lost a great director upon his death.
She-Devil (1989)
Directed by Susan Seidelman
Starring Roseanne Barr, Meryl Streep, Ed Begley Jr., and Linda Hunt
"I've always found that justice serves those who serve themselves."
Hey, revenge can be funny too! And most people may think I'm crazy for loving this film. But I do. I think it's one of the best revenge films made! Also, before this film, I wasn't too crazy about
Meryl Streep. But, after watching this film (based on the
novel by
Fay Weldon), I thought any actress (who's usually known for serious, dramatic roles) who can make a comedy -- and, in a sense, make fun of herself -- then she's got to be cool. In this film, housewife Ruth (Barr) has a loving family in her husband Bob (Begley Jr.) and their two children. But when Bob leaves Ruth for romance novelist Mary Fisher (Streep), Ruth chooses to get even. And get even, she does! Not just that but she also inadvertently makes a life for herself in the meantime. This film, while a comedy, does go to a few dark places as Ruth simply snaps and blows up her family home. Nevertheless, the film is funny and I have to admit that I never tire of watching it.
V for Vendetta (2005)
Directed by James McTeigue
Starring Natalie Portman, Hugo Weaving, Stephen Rea, Stephen Fry, John Hurt, and Roger Allam
"People should not be afraid of their governments. Governments should be afraid of their people."
Based on the revolutionary
comic book series by legendary recluse writer
Alan Moore, this film takes place in an alternate universe where Great Britain is the main power in the world and almost a fascist state (think of
George Orwell's
1984). Evey (Portman) is nearly raped one night by the secret police after curfew, but is rescued by a man in a
Guy Fawkes mask (which has since come to symbolize rebellion and revolution of the common man). The man, only known as "V," is somewhat of an anarchist upon first viewing, but it is soon revealed that the men -- including the Supreme Chancellor (Hurt), a bishop, a scientist, a police commissioner, and a news channel talking head (who is uncannily similar to a particular Fox News host who calls people "pinheads") -- who run Great Britain, have wronged "V," and he is out for revenge -- while also simultaneously rebelling against the fascist government. This is not just an entertaining movie but an important piece of writing regarding true freedom and how, oftentimes, the destruction of freedom does not come from an outside threat, but rather from within.
