This document provides an analysis of the political thriller film V for Vendetta. It summarizes the plot, in which V, a freedom fighter portrayed by Hugo Weaving, attempts to start a revolution against a fascist regime in the dystopian UK. Natalie Portman plays Evey, a woman caught up in V's mission. The film explores themes of revolution and fighting against oppression. It also references intertextual symbols used in the film, such as the red rose, that connect it to other genres like mafia films. Overall, the document analyzes the film through the lenses of characters, iconography, settings, narratives, and reception theory.

1. In thisassignmentIwill be talkingaboutmyfavouritekindof moviesandwhyIlike themand
breakingthemdowntofindoutwhyand how theycapture myinterest.Myfavourite kindof film
genre ispolitical thrillers;Iwouldconsidermyself tobe relativelypoliticallyactive soIenjoyseeing
filmsIcan relate to onan intellectuallevel, the three filmsIwill be analysingare Enemyof the state,
V forvendettaand fightclub I like the ideaof goodwinningoverevil,the ideaof someone’sacts
startingthe path to a revolution.
V forvendetta
V forVendettaisa 2006 British-setpolitical thrillerfilmdirectedbyJamesMcTeigue andwrittenby
the Wachowski Brothers,basedonthe 1982 Vertigographicnovel of the same name byAlanMoore
and DavidLloyd.HugoWeavingportraysV,an anarchistfreedomfighterwhoattemptstoignite a
revolutionagainstthe brutal fascistregimethathassubjugatedthe dystopianUnitedKingdomand
exterminateditsopponents inconcentrationcamps.Natalie PortmanplaysEvey,aworkingclassgirl
caught up inV's mission,andStephenReaportraysthe detective leadingadesperate questtostop
V.there isn’tmuch intertextuality usedinthe filmhoweverthere are scenesandiconographythatis
symbolicwiththisfilmthathave beenusedininfuture filmsof asimilartype i.e.the redrose placed
on the bodyaftertheyare killed,orasa warningthat deathis about to come.Thisstemsfroma lot
of mafiastyle hitmovieswhere there isan“assassin”andhisjobis to kill off
the people whostandinhisway,it’sa kindof signature toshow whohas
killedhimalmostlike asetof serial killings.
In mycase I do letstar theoryInfluencemychoice of filmsandmediaintake,inthisfilmforinstance
bothprotagonistsare major starsin the filmindustry,bothHugowearingandNatalie Portmanare
Here we can see the symbolicred
rose from the classicmafiafilmThe
Godfather.

2. massive influencesinthe filmindustryandontheirownwill bringmassmarketaudiencesto watch
filmstheyare in,bothof themare famousfor beinginactionthrillersintheircareerwithHugo
playingpartin the matrix trilogyandNatalie beinginLeonwhichisanotherIhave talkedabout
previously,itthinkthatstar theoryisimportantbecause if we didn’thave starsfilmswouldn’tbe
able to sell inmassmillionsliketheydobecause people wouldn’thave afavourite actor/ess.
Lacey’srepertoire of elements
Character- the story mainly focusesontwolotsof twopeople the police officerswoare workingfor
the governmentbutthenturnand helpout protagonists andthe original protagonists throughout
the filmwe dip intoothercharacters’lives,howevertheirscenesare shortlivedbecause V (Hugo
Wearing) killsthemoff andEveyisthe workingclassgirl whoisdisillusionedwiththe worldthe
governmentrunbutshe findsV and thenbeginsherpathto a much more enlightenedsense of
freedom. There are othercharactersthat are antagoniststhroughoutthe filmbutwe mainlyfocus
on the prime ministerandthe vice president,these twoare the mainantagonists andthe filmis
basedaroundthe capture andkillingof these two,tobringpeace andparityback to the UK
Iconography- the iconicscenesare mainlyof thingsthatyouwill see inmoderneverydayLondon
howeveralotof these shotsof the establishmentandparliamentarybuildings are keytothe film
because it’saboutrevolution
Setting– because of the basisof the filmthe settingforthe filmisveryapt,the scenesare mainlyin
upmarketLondon these are symbolicof London’spowerasone of the bigplayersinthe worlds
political andupmarketworkscenes,the filmisaboutbringinganendtothe corruptionthat
surroundsinparliamentandina way the filmalmostpredictedtocorruptionof the government
because recentlywe have hadthe MP’sexpensesscandal,whichispartlythe kindof thingthatthis
filmistalkingabout.
Narrative – thisfilmisa linearstoryline, butthroughoutthe filmwe doexperience some flashbacks
to the past duringthe film,these ae fillerstothe storywe learnaboutthe characters pasts,it’s
importantforthe viewerasit completesthe film, itmakesusfeel connectedtothe characters.
Howeverattimesyourloyaltiesare questionedtothe protagonistbecause of the amountpeoplehe
kills.
Stuart hallsReceptiontheory –
Receptiontheoryisbasedonthe ideathat we ourselvestake inmediabasedonthe everydaythings
our life.Thingssuchasage,gender,ethnicity,class,culture,personal historyand political andsocial
influence,all of these thingscontribute toreceptiontheory Ifeel Ienjoythe political subtextandthe
ideathat people revolutionisethe worldthroughactionsasa groupI feel myage and genderaffect
me whenwatchingthese kindsof filmseventhoughwomenmaywatchthem, the targetaudience
isn’treallyforthem,age isalsoimportantbecause itisquite a complicatedstory soI feel itwould
take an olderand a more understandingpersontoprocessthe storyline. Idon’tthinkethnicity,
genderandculture reallyaffectmuchwhenitcomestothisfilmsimplybecause alotof people will
feel differentlyabouthowthisfilmandhow Iaffectsthemisbasedpurelyon theirupbringing,
because noteveryone will agree withthistype of filminfactthisfilmtooka lotof criticismfrom

3. criticswhocomparedin terrorismthe NYtimescomparedthe filmand the directorsideato9/11
and Osamabinladen. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/17/movies/17vend.html?_r=0
HoweverIwoulddisagree withthisstatementbecauseitisn’textremismit’ssimplyacase of
revolutionaryideology,howeversomeone of the quotesfromthe filmcouldbe consideredquite
disturbingbecause of theirsharpness.
Active spectatorshipforthisfilmhasexplodedworldwide because of agroupcalled“anonymous”
theyare hackersthat are a worldwidemovementtheyare famousfortheirmaskswhichcome from
the filmV for Vendetta.The masksare now a symbol of rebellionagainstauthorityholdingpeople
down;theyare strivingforrevolutionandchange forinstance politicalorconsumeristideasare
thingstheywouldlike tochange.
In termsof conventionsforthe filmthere aren’tmanyhoweverthe filmdidbranchoutandbecome
a well-knowncomicwithnowalegionof hard-core comicbookfanswhichnow are stagedat comic
bookconventionsthroughoutthe year http://www.conventionscene.com/tag/v-for-vendetta/ .Also
merchandise suchascostumesandfigurinesare widely collectable,forfansof the film
These are all examplesof extendedbranchingoutof a successful filmandthisishow active
spectatorshipgrowsandwiththatso doesthe film.

4. Fightclub
FightClubisa 1999 filmbasedonthe 1996 book. The filmwasdirectedbyDavidFincher,andstars
Brad Pitt,EdwardNortonand HelenaBonhamCarter. Nortonplaysthe unnamedprotagonist,an
"everyman"whoisdiscontentedwithhiswhite-collarjob.He formsa"fightclub"withsoapmaker
TylerDurden,playedbyPitt,andtheyare joinedbymenwhoalsowant to fighttoletof steam
Palahniuk'snovel wasoptionedby20thCenturyFox producerLaura Ziskin,whohiredJimUhlsto
write the filmadaptation.Fincherwasone of fourdirectorsthe producersconsidered,andwas
selectedbecauseof hisenthusiasmforthe film.Fincherdevelopedthe scriptwithUhlsandsought
screenwritingadvice fromthe castand othersinthe filmindustry.The directorandthe cast
comparedthe filmtoRebel withoutaCause (1955) andThe Graduate (1967). FincherintendedFight
Club 'sviolence toserve asametaphorfor the conflictbetweenagenerationof youngpeople and
the value systemof advertising.FightClubfailedtomeetthe studio'sexpectationsatthe box office
and receivedpolarizedreactionsfromcritics,whodebatedthe explicitviolenceandmoral
ambiguity,butpraisedthe acting,directing,themesandmessages.Itwascitedas one of the most
controversial andtalked-aboutfilmsof 1999. Howeveronce itwas DVDreleaseditestablisheditself
as a cult filmwithamore acceptingaudience.
Intertextualityandpostmodernismsinfightclub –inthe filmtheyuse anarrator whois the main
protagonist) throughoutthe filmwhichdisturbsthe storylineandgivesitamore sinisterfeel and
almostschizophrenicelementtothe charactersandyourself whilstyou’re watchingit.
The main character forexample portrayedbyEdwardNortonisthe mainprotagonistbutunlike
mostother filmsthe characterwasn’tgivenaname so audienceswere leftwithoutanswers in
regardsto himself andashe was one of the majorcharacters not knowinghimnamescouldbe seen
as a postmodern tactic. A lotof postmodernfilmshave alotof intertextualitybecauseof their
directorshoweveranexamplewouldbe whenTylerDurdenshouts “RunForestRun”whichis a
famousquote fromForrestGump.
Anotherpostmodernismfeature isthe compressionof time andspace,bybeenunattachedbythe
realmsof realismandboundariesfilms once the audiencerealisesthatthe filmtheyhave been
watchinghasbeena hallucinationof the protagonistsmind,thisthenthrows the chronological order
of the narrative intochaos. The endof the filmbecomesamental struggle betweenthe two
characters at the end.Thisis anotherconventionof postmodernism, thoughthroughoutthe filmin
scenesif youlookclose youcan see the character appearfor a brief secondsthroughthe filmbefore
vanishing,thisisasignof subliminal messagingandonlya selectfew whopickuponit at the time

5. realise whatisgoingandthat the character playedbyTylerDurden isa figmentof EdwardNorton’s
imagination.
Laceysrepertoire of elements
Character – The charactersin fightclubare verysinisteranddangerous;the twomaincharactersare
TylerDurdenand EdwardNorton,nowEdward Nortonisa schizophrenicandthe othercharacter
doesn’texistwhichislikeI’ve saidbefore it’sanexampleof postmodernism.The twomain
protagonistsare like the twoegoversionof the same personone side isthe quiet9to 5 jobguy
while the otherishowhe wisheshe was.
Iconography – The iconographyisprettyrare it’sa filmthat broke the boundariesreallyitsdirector
was auteurinthe directingof this film,the filmisabouttakingusall back to zero(nobank debt) so
yousee a lot of importantbuildingsthatare partof the “establishment”
Setting- The settingispettyvague howeverwe cantell thatitis ina large citypossiblyNew York
because of the buildingsandcorporate stuff we see,the lackof knowledge aboutthe settingbrings
intrigue aboutwhere andwhatisgoingon itis onlyat the endof the filmwe know whatthe planis
(Projectmayhem)
The narrative doesn’treallyfollow alinearstoryline because of the postmodernismstiedinwiththis
filmthe schizophreniccharacterof EdwardNorton createscharactersin hisheadwhichwe are ledto
believeasviewers are real,thisgivesthe feeling thatthe filmhasnoreal time boundariesthisis
whatthrowsthe filmintoachronological chaos.
I feel receptiontheoryreallyappliestome whenitcomestofightclub,evenbefore Iwatchedthis
filmIfeltdisillusionedwithsocietyandneededreleasesIjoinedakarate groupwhichis similarto
the release the menuse inthisfilmbutafterwatchingthisfilmIbecame more interestedinkarate
because Iwantedto be more like Tylerinthe waythat he issomeone people respond to.Iwas 13
whenI firstwatchedthisfilmsoIdidn’treallyrelate onapolitical level mythoughtwere mainly
cultural and appeal tothe characters. I have since watchedthe filmafew more timesandnow relate
on a political andsocial levelwhere Icanunderstandthe struggle andwantforchange.
A groupthat have since seemedtohave stemmedfromfilmssuchasthese are anonymous“project
mayhem” issomethingthatwouldbe seemtobe connectedwiththe actsof anonymous.It’slike
the group has watchedthe filmandthen insome wayshave replicatedthe attitude andactions
towardscorporations.

6. I thinkthere wasa particulargenderforthisfilmbutthere was definitely atargetaudience forage it
was aimedatteenagersforthe late 20th
early21st
whowere disillusionedwithcorporate and
governmentgreed.
Active spectatorship –the onlyactive spectatorshipseemedtobe the fashionsense atthe time
there wasa bigsurge inthe 90’s and 00’s or thiskindof extravagantclothingitalsoentwinedwith
the buddingclubscene at the time.There isn’ttoomuchotherstuff whenitcomesto spectatorship
of thisfilmitdidn’treallybranchoutintoothermediaformsexceptDVDwhichiswhere itstartedto
become a cultfilm.
GreenZone
Anotherfilmbasedonapoliticallymotivatedbook,itwaswrittenbypolitical journalistRajiv
Chandrasekaranthe bookwasaboutlife inBaghdadduringthe invasionof Iraq.It wasthenturned
intothe filmGreenZone isa 2010 British-French-AmericanwarthrillerfilmdirectedbyPaul
Greengrass. The keyplayersinthe filmare General MohammedAl-Rawi(Yigal Naor),whoishidingin
Baghdadduringthe invasionof Iraqand U.S. ArmyChief Warrant OfficerRoyMiller(MattDamon),a
Mobile ExploitationTeam(MET) leaderwhoissearching forIraqi weaponsof massdestruction.
Millerfindsthatthe majorityof the Intel giventohimisinaccurate.Moreover,Miller'seffortstofind
the true storyaboutthe weaponsare blockedbyPentagonofficial ClarkPoundstone
Thisis a filmwithlotsof postmodernisms ithasa lotof linkstofilmssuchas fightcluband hurt
locker
Medialiteracy isnowadaystakeninthe formof WEB2 thingssuchas a social medianow playavital
part inreachingout to people toadvertise theirmediaproducts, twitterisprobablythe bestwayof
spreadinghype aboutfilmsandalsovine isimportantbecause theycanrelease shortteasertrailers
and alsointerviews.

7. A lotof filmcompaniesnowwill setuptwitteraccounts aswell andpromote theirownhashtagse.g.
#fightclubthey will alsosetupFacebookaccountsto[promote newsaboutthe actorsand teaser
trailers.
I feel thatall of these filmshave liveduptheirmediaexpectationevenif likefightclubtheydidn’t
make it bigat the time it markeditself ascultfilm.