An American Werewolf In Tatters.

How many times did 'The Wolfman' get pushed back? Like, a million? When any movie gets delayed more than once, you start to worry. You start to think that what probably happened was that it was screened to people in its earliest potentially finished forms, and that everyone thought it was shit. The woeful director of the even worse than 'The Lost World' sequel 'Jurassic Park 3' was forced (and I stress) on more than one occasion to return to the cutting room floor (and more than likely, the set) in the hope than he could somehow rectify the situation and do justice to the proposed modern adaptation of a Lon Chaney classic. At least, that's what I think based on the final product.

The cast reaks of impressive. Benicio Del Toro seemed like a great choice from the start. How his Amerixican accent would be written in was a concern, but they gave him a Latin mother to Anthony Hopkins' father along with a globetrotting American theatre company. Even still, there was no way he was ever English (or Welsh, if we're talking about the 1941 original). Never the less, Del Toro is decent even when plagued with a horrific script. Hardly a standout performer in this particular picture though. It's tough competing against a real heavyweight.

Sir Anthony Hopkins was always the main draw leading up to this film's (eventual) release. Anthony Hopkins can make any movie 'good'. You only have to watch 'Fracture' or 'Bad Company' once to realise that. He is what they call a classically trained actor, which basically means he can do anything asked of him without having to try too hard. Before 'The Wolfman' had surfaced, there were stories of Hopkins requesting a harmonica on the set so that rather than walking ominously down an asylum hallway to a Danny Elfman soundtrack, he's heard mouthing a whacky, wolfy tune (you know, for a laugh). This scene actually ended up being the single highlight of the film. Credit to you, Sir Anthony Hopkins. I guess by this point in filming you had figured out that the whole shoot was a bit of a joke said, 'Hey guys! Let's jazz things up a bit with a harmonica solo. You can't say no to me Joe Johnston, 'Hidalgo' sucked and I'm a freaking knight!' That's exactly how it happened? I thought so.

Emily Blunt is always nice to see in something that's not about royalty, but her accent slipped in a very Sam Worthington type way more often than not in most scenes. So much so that it's kind of hard to believe that she was the subject of early Oscar whispers upon the release of 'The Young Victoria'. I like Blunt though, she brings real emotion to a character. 'Sunshine Cleaning' was also good, so she's had a decent year.

The real treat in 'The Wolfman' though is Hugo Weaving. He's just got a presence on screen that I always find it hard to explain. Be it Agent Smith, Elrond or the faceless 'V', he has a general haunting about his voice when he needs it. If any movie needs an influx of unsettling, Weaving will provide. As the snooty Detective Abberline, he plays confident cop as well as he plays terrified citizen, but again it's the script that severely undercuts any chance this movie has of being remembered past the opening weekend of 'Alice in Wonderland'. Did I just say script? I meant visual effects.

You remember when David Naughton turned into a werewolf...in London? Awesome, right? Yeah, in 1981! You'd have thought that almost 30 years later, after all the Avatars and Lord of the Ringses, they would be able to turn Benicio Del Toro (and more comically, Sir Anthony Hopkins) into a genuinely horrible-looking manbeast with a hint of conviction. I guess in a way it was quite horrible, but to be honest, Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' will keep me up more nights. I don't know if the stop-motion transformations were meant to be some sort of homage to John Landis' Oscar-winning creature feature (which combined with Michael Jackson's 'Thriller' keeps me up most nights), but they sure looked dated. They were also blended with some rad 1995 CGI to give the film the real post-gothic look it was going for. That last part is sarcasm.

Couple all this with the expected plotholes and obvious 'twists' and you've got the latest in what is sure to be a long underwhelming line of remakes, updates and prequels of a genre that needn't be touched. You mean to tell me that 70 years on, horror film-writers can't come up with something scarier than a 'wolfman'? Quit recycling and put something on screen that makes me want to never go to bed again. Maybe a Peter Andre biopic starring Channing Tatum?

Remember, remember...

The casting of John Hurt as the totalitarian monster Adam Sutler is one of the more obvious homages on display in John McTeigue's 'V for Vendetta'. The entire film has a very '1984' feel as it is, but Hurt's appearance brought with it a smile and a tip of the cap to the Wachowski Brothers who on the back of the success of 'The Matrix' franchise have managed to bring to the screen one of the more politically challenging graphic novels of our time. Whereas Zack Snyder's 'Watchmen' focused very much on the visual aspect of a graphic novel translation, McTeigue's 'V for Vendetta' is able to capture the Orwellian fear of the future that lies deep in all of us whilst maintaining a comic book fluidity that is only achieved with the support of producers like The Wachowskis.

V's character is written impecabally. Where McTeigue succeeds with his artful directing style, The Wachowskis succeed with yet another script that once again asks the big questions. What does the future hold for the Western world if we carry on this way? How much is too much? Hell, where is the line? 'V' (portrayed by the poetic Hugo Weaving) is one of the more complex characters of the DC universe. He is Machiavellian, most definitely Orwellian, and certainly insane. Within this tortured soul though, there is hope, determination and compassion. Evey (Natalie Portman) represents all of these things. Through her innocence, he finds solace. And through her confusion, he discovers clemency. It is as his personal transformation takes place that we are able to begin to empathise with the character and his ideals. He sees creation in destruction, where we can only see chaos. He treads the finest line between terrorist and freedom fighter, and in the end it is only in his Messianic death that we are fully aware of just where his integrity lies.

V kills a lot of people in this movie. He is masterful with his impressive collection of knives as proven in his 'final fight' against the easily hated Creedy (Tim Piggot-Smith) and his Solid Snake-y henchmen. This scene specifically has Joel Silver written all over it, despite how freaking awesome it is (keep a close eye out for the Eastwood reference). On the opposite end of the spectrum, V is proven to be a swift and just taker of lives. During a stint offing the evildoers of his past, he is shown offering forgiveness to those declaring repentance. Regardless of the fact that he proceeds to kill them anyway, it is an interesting insight in the soul of a character whose emotional backround is shrouded in mystery. With all the injustice he has endured in his life (partly shown through a series of flashbacks to his time spent at a suspiciously Guantanamo-ish institution), it is difficult to comprehend how such a tortured man is able to feel anything for his former captors.

For an American-produced film to offer so much British talent is a real treat. Stephen Rea and Stephen Fry are on offer to support Hurt, and collectively contribute to the pre-apocolyptic British feel that this movie has. Three years on since it was released in the UK, 'V for Vendetta' seems as relevent as ever. The country lives on edge as America collapses and holds it's breath, praying that we're not next. Violence and corruption rules the streets regardless of the most strictly enforced curfews. Free speech dominates the airwaves as the media makes a mockery of the government while the main channels are clogged with propaganda. Just as Skynet today seems inevitable, The Wachowskis have once again foretold the worst. It's the simple irony of it all that allows '...Vendetta' to rank highly in terms what constitutes a modern cult classic. What's even more interesting is the fact that the original story by Alan Moore (who funnily enough, also wrote 'Watchmen') was concieved between 1982 and 1989!

The choice for the role of Evey Hammond is another issue altogether. While I'm a Natalie Portman fan ('Garden State' and 'Closer' are brilliant), she does nothing for me in this. She's just a bit too fragile to be considered a heroine. And she's American! With an almost entirely regional cast, why was it necessary to cast a New Yorker as the female lead? You tell me. Thanks Joel Silver! She's okay I suppose. Her accent is cliched, but it's forgivable considering her CV. I just honestly believe that there are enough gifted actresses in this country to have been able to pip Portman to the post when it came to casting Evey.

If you know of a better Guy Fawkes film, do let me know. For now though, this film will always make the first weekend of November a thoughtful one for yours truly thanks not only to the beautiful words of Andy and Larry Wachowski, but to the smooth, silky sounds of Hugo Weaving.